There are so many different reasons why people don’t cook that often. That is because our lives are getting busier and a lot of times people just don’t have the time or strength to cook. For those who are struggling to cook for themselves because they are on a busy schedule, here are some of the best tips to help you out.
1. Always Plan Ahead
The best thing that you can do to help yourself out is to take a couple of hours out of one day to figure out all the meals you are going to eat throughout the week. This will help you spend less time over the stove and in the fridge trying to figure something out. You can try making yourself a weekly menu so you know what you have to have in your fridge to make that happen.
You should always create a grocery list based on those meals that you have planned and it will not only save time but it will save you money. You can also double up on the food and freeze some for times when you don’t even have time to plan. Another thing that will save you time, in the long run, is chopping your fruits and vegetables. It will also provide you with a healthy snack.
2. Stock Up On Groceries
A full fridge of food will become your best friend when you are working a tight schedule. It comes in handy because you will always have nutritious food that you can just grab out of it and eat. Something that you should do is do your best to choose foods that are nutritious rather than filling your fridge with unhealthy foods.
Make sure that you have a wide variety of future vegetables as well as enough meat for the meals that you have in plan. But the tricky part when you are trying to stock up on meats is finding a company that sells quality meats such as Sutcliffe Meats.
3. Cook In Batches
Batch cooking is also known as meal prep. That means that you will be cooking every couple of days and preparing meals for more than one day in advance. You can either cook every couple of ways or you can cook once a week and freeze the rest and defrost meal by meal.
When you are meal prepping make sure that you are stocking on protein as well as using up all the vegetables that are not the freshest. You can also make sauces that can be used for different dishes so you don’t have to eat the same meal every day.
4. Get Creative With Condiments
Due to the popularity of having to eat clean, a lot of people are affected by using condiments. But that is a great mistake when you are someone who is super busy. If you use condiments wisely, they won’t be unhealthy. It will only save you a lot of time and it will make your meals super tasty and fun.
Once you have a basic receipt that you and your family like eating you can find a fun condiment and spice the meal up. Having the same meal with different condiments will make a completely new meal and it will require minimal effort. Some of the best condiments that you can use are peso, harissa, jerk marinade and many different ones.
Even though it is much easier just to order takeaway and eat, it is not a healthy habit, especially when you are feeding your family. There are so many different meals that you can make fast and so many more that you can prepare meals for. All you need is patience and some experimenting.