With months of quarantine and most things still online nowadays, you may have found yourself having some extra time on your hands that you’re not sure what to do with. If you haven’t already picked up a hobby during the pandemic, a great one to consider is cooking!
The pandemic has changed the lives and daily routines for many, but it could be for the best in some ways. If you used to be so busy that you found yourself grabbing takeout most nights, now may be the time to start trying to cook from home. If you are already pushing this idea away out of fear that you would be a horrible cook, this doesn’t have to be true!
In the times we live in today, with so many apps at the touch of our fingertips, there are many resources out there with step-by-step instructions on how to cook certain recipes. To name a few, Healthy Recipes, AllRecipes, SideChef and Kitchen Stories are great tools to help you in becoming a COVID-19 chef!
Aside from just being a hobby, cooking has also been shown to save money and boost mental health. Here is a list of some of the benefits:
- Causes Feelings of Accomplishment– when you cook you are setting an achievable goal for yourself
- Allows You to Exercise Your Creativity- cooking gives you the opportunity to experiment in the kitchen
- Can Help to Improve Your Relationship with Food– teaching yourself how to cook can improve your confidence
- Can Help You Be More Aware of the Nutritional Value of Foods– recipes often come with nutritional facts
- Allows You to Practice Mindfulness- it can help you reconnect and focus on the physical world
Cooking can seem intimidating at first, but you can just start out trying one recipe a week and adding on more as you go. With the holidays coming around, you can even start practicing a recipe to bring to an upcoming family event. Hopefully you found this helpful and as the chef from the movie, Ratatouille, once said “anyone can cook.”
Resources:
- Seven Surprising Ways Cooking Can Boost Your Mental Health, Live Kindly https://www.livekindly.co/7-surprising-ways-cooking-can-boost-your-mental-health/
- Seven Ways Home Cooking Beats Ordering Takeout, Healthline https://www.healthline.com/health/food-nutrition/home-cooking-versus-takeout
– Sierra Schwierking, Nutrition Wellness Ambassador