Cooking Made Easy

     I love to cook, I find it relaxing and it just makes me happy when people enjoy the food I cook. I think people get intimidated by cooking because they think it had to be a whole big production, which is not true! I have six simple tips for anyone who wants to start cooking more at home!  

~ Cook with what’s in season, foods that are fresh will taste better and make your meal even better.

~ Keep it simple. Everyone is not going to be Julia Child, steamed vegetables and grilled protein is not crazy hard but it makes a great meal.

~ Use a timer. Until you get the hang of things in the kitchen use a timer. It helps food cook to where it is supposed to and you don’t have to stay in the kitchen waiting for the food to cook. Your days not “wasted” in the kitchen alone.

~ Calm down! Cooking doesn’t and shouldn’t be stressful. There is a period of learning and you will feel pressured but know that it’s ok to burn something, just try it again, or if you under cook something just put it back in the pan or oven, no big deal!

~ Taste and season everything. Once you know something  is almost done taste it before taking it out of the pan, you can always add more seasoning if you need to while it finishes cooking in the pan. If you over season with say salt for example add a pinch of sugar to balance it back out, or a raw potato that can soak up the salt (don’t eat the potato as it will be salty! )

~ Plan! You can make something once that you can repurpose into another meal later in the week. For example, if you make chicken one night, you can use what’s left and make chicken tacos another night. Two full meals and you only labored hard in the kitchen once!

With these simple tips I hope you are more at ease about getting into your kitchen and trying out new dishes. If it helps follow a recipe until you can think of things you want to try on your own, but know that a recipe is just a guide, if you don’t like something the recipe calls for try substituting it for what you and your family do like.  Good luck and have fun with it!

 

Live Healthy,
   Nadia