General (and good advice) during these times is to stay home and stop the spread of the dreaded Coronavirus/ COVID-19. And as expected in a pandemic, our normal life has been disrupted enormously. Going out seems a thing of the past, home workouts have taken over our social feeds, and we’ve been through everything there is to watch on the telly. We’ve all found a way to replace our favourite activities with things to do at home, but what about eating our favourite meals? What do you do when that favourite restaurant of yours doesn’t do deliveries anymore? You take things into your own hands – things like knives, spoons, and maybe an apron! Here are 5 ways to keep your meals interesting –
Sign up for a meal kit
Don’t know where to begin? A meal kit is the easiest thing to do to get your feet wet in cooking proper meals. They send you everything you need for a 2-person or 4-person meal (depending on the service) – groceries, flavorings and a detailed recipe with all the steps to go from chopped veg to final plate. Bonus? No need to step out for grocery runs!
Get a veg box
Feeling creative? Sign up for a veg box and get organic, seasonal and/or exotic veg delivered to your doorstep. Find recipes online to incorporate the different veg into your meal. Apart from not having to shop for veg at the grocer’s, an added bonus is expanding your recipe repertoire for use long after we’re back to normal.
Get a meal-planning app
Happy with your own recipes? Get a meal-planning app, dump your recipes in there and plan out your cooking days in advance. Not only will it get you excited and looking forward to certain days and meals, it’s also a good way to get just the pantry and grocery items you need – fewer trips, lower wastage, and no more wondering what’s for dinner five minutes before the actual meal!
Follow Recipe videos
Total noob to cooking? Youtube has opened multiple doors to learning these days. And just like with other skills that can be picked up via the internet, cooking can be too, with patience and time. Time is all we have, so add a pinch of patience in there and find youtube chefs to follow. Pick your poison – quick and easy, french or other exotic cooking, one-pot meals – there’s a youtuber for that that will teach you to make a meal from start to finish. Bonus? Pause, rewind, watch multiple times if you don’t get the hang of it the first time.
Take an online cooking class
Want personal attention instead? Find a private chef who is willing to give you lessons over Zoom or Skype – set up times for cooking, get groceries beforehand, then jump on a video call and have them expertly guide you through that complicated Beef Bourguignon or a simple yet amazing soup and salad.
Whatever the option, sharpen those knives and immerse yourself in the joy of cooking – and knowing exactly what you’re putting into your body. And if you don’t like it that much, well, just a bit more time until we’re out of this pandemic and able to try our favourite restaurants again!
