Some people adore cooking; others can think of few things worse than spending hours slaving over a hot stove.
Obviously, cooking is a necessary part of life, unless you’re willing to live off microwave meals and takeaways. Since it is unavoidable, you might as well try to love everything about it: the creativity it affords you, the time to yourself, and the new foods you can experiment with as you think of new ways to nourish yourself and your loved ones.
So, without further ado, here are just a handful of ways you can fall in love with cooking, whether it’s for the very first time, or all over again.
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Get inspired
Most of us have a small rotation of dishes we can make and make reasonably well. But it’s hard to be passionate about your signature Bolognese when you’re making it for the third time in a month.
Search up some recipes online and see what piques your interest. It might be an interesting variation on what you already know, with new ingredients or spices (chorizo in Bolognese is a revelation, by the way). Alternatively, it might be an entirely new dish you’d never have thought of yourself. Few things are more thrilling than learning from the passions of others.
Be brave, be confident, and inspire yourself to add a brand new recipe to your repertoire.
Play some tunes
Home cooking shouldn’t be dull, or even serious; it should be fun!
Whether it’s singing along to the crooners while you’re dicing chicken, dancing to noughties pop while you mix your sauce, or trying to salsa as you fry some vegetables, music is a sure-fire way to ramp up the energy and bring out the joy of cooking.
Or, for those who prefer more mental stimulation, try finding a gripping audiobook or podcast. Your body might be seasoning potatoes, but your mind will be riding a dragon or solving a mystery.
Improve your equipment
Nothing takes you out of your kitchen groove quicker than a blunt knife or a wobbly tin opener. Before you switch on your playlist and try out that exciting new recipe, make sure all your kitchen equipment is fit for purpose, and if it’s not, treat yourself to some new ones.
One of the most overlooked pieces of kitchen equipment is the cooker hood. If your ventilation is good, you will hardly think about it; if it’s bad, you’ll be too hot and bothered by a face-full of steam to enjoy making anything, and your kitchen will probably smell like whatever you’re cooking for days afterwards.
You need a top of the range cooker hood. To find the best cooker hood for range cookers, visit Cooker Hoods UK. They provide top quality, attractive cooker hoods in a variety of styles to suit every kitchen. Their range cooker extractor fan will make cooking a quiet, smoke-free breeze.
Take shortcuts
No one likes a food snob, and no one actually likes chopping vegetables.
If it’s the time-consuming nature of cooking that’s putting you off, there’s nothing wrong with taking a few shortcuts. Pre-chopped veg, pre-cooked rice, and oven-ready potatoes are all just as good as the real thing and make cooking much simpler.
Make it an event
There’s no rule that says cooking has to be a solo activity.
Enlist your friends, family, partner or kids to help you out. It means company and conversation for you, as well as less work. Even if the person is just sitting at the edge of the workbench with a drink in their hand, a good chat will make the food prep fly by.
Reward yourself
When all else fails, bribery is the only solution.
Promising yourself a bit of chocolate or a glass of wine or beer while you’re cooking is the only way to get some people to set foot in the kitchen. And you know what? Fair enough. Just remember to drink responsibly.
Whipping up tasty meals might not be for everyone, but there are many ways to make it more enjoyable, and maybe – just maybe – help you fall in love with cooking again.
