Coping With Cooking When You First Move Into Your Own Place

When you first move into your own place, you can often have this grand visions of all the meals you’re going to cook, the time and attention you’re going to put into each and every meal, and even the desserts you’re going to make.  But when you realize that life is no different, that you’re still tired when you get home from work, and that you still don’t have much time to dedicate to cooking, you may have to that you’re a lazy gastronome after all – not that there is anything wrong with that!

That’s okay, because you’ve come to the right place.  I too am a lazy gastronome!  When you’re time poor but rich in hunger, you need to figure out how you’re going to be able to make meal when you really don’t want to slave over a hot stove.  And you’ll be glad to know, that coping with cooking is easier than you first thought.  Better yet, you can focus on healthy cooking and come up with some incredible meals too.  So let’s take a look at how you’re going to do that.

Plan Ahead

Firstly, the best way that you can ensure that cooking doesn’t cause you chaos in your new place, is to plan ahead.  Although you’re busy, you will find that planning out your meals ahead of time is in your best interest.  By ensuring that you know what you’ll be cooking for the week ahead, you won’t stress over what to make.  Better yet, you can even buy everything you need, so the cooking comes easier.

Buy In Bulk

And this takes us nicely onto the nice life-saving point – bulk buying.  You’ll find buying most of your items in larger quantities will mean that you’re unlikely to run out.  Not only will you then have most of your meals planned out based on the things that you’ve bought, you won’t have to worry about not having the right ingredients in the house and ordering a takeout instead.

Make Extra

This is a trick I use often -you could also make some extra portions to go with what you’re currently cooking up at night.  Whether you make something up to have for lunch the next day or for dinner that night,  put the extra portions in the freezer for another day.  You’ll find that making more will save you cooking time later on down on the line.

Stick To Simplicity

You should also  keep your meals simple, especially on weeknights.  When you try to over-complicate things, you can become less interested in cooking.  So you need to find perfect meals for non-experienced cooks that you can knock out in an instant.  Remember, after work, you’re tired and hungry, so want meals that are simple to make but also taste great.

Season Well

To ensure that your simple recipes actually do taste great, you’re going to want to think about your flavors.  Sometimes, the best way to ensure that you’re bringing out the best in your food, you need to season it well.  Although you’re not going to want to go too wild with the salt, you should at least aim to salt and pepper everything.  You may find that investing in some key seasonings can really transform your cooking too.   We have one full cabinet shelf dedicated to spices!

Go Green

Next, you should also think about the vegetables that you’re making for each meal. If you want to ensure that your health is taken care of, you need to include them.  But, again, you’re going to want to look for quick and easy vegetable side dishes to make – and nothing too complicated.  You should stick to greens for goodness, and steam them for simplicity.

Slow Cook

When you want to have something ready as soon as you walk in the door, you should think about cooking more with a slow cooker.  There are so many easy slow cooker recipes that require minimal effort but produce maximum taste.  So when you want full on flavor with no hassle at all, turn to your crock pot. They’re especially great for cooking up comforting winter meals.

Make Ahead

And finally, you could also think about making ahead a lot of meals ahead of time.  Although it’s a great idea to be able to have extra portions of your meals in the freezer when you have leftovers, it’s even better to stock them there ready for the week ahead.  So if you can spare an hour or two at the weekend, you may find that making ahead a few meals can make your cooking in the week all the more easier.

So there you have it – some great, easy ideas to turn you into a great cook in your new place – even if you are a  lazy gastronome (like me)!

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One Response to Coping With Cooking When You First Move Into Your Own Place

  1. Pingback: Preparing Food Fit For A King On A Beggar's Budget - The Lazy GastronomeThe Lazy Gastronome

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