It’s nearly dinnertime, and you’re sifting through vacuum-packed lumps of chicken and bags of frozen vegetables in hopes of finding something that can easily be turned into dinner. This is the third time you’re cooking dinner this week. Or maybe the fourth; you’re not sure. When most of your time is spent indoors, all your days kind of blend into one, and your memory becomes a bit of a blur. If this scenario sounds familiar, you’re not alone. The shopping, prepping and cleaning up that’s associated with cooking is a real drag for many.
Bad news first – there’s not much you can do about the fact that you need to cook and eat. The good news is that you can make cooking feel less like a chore. Here are some tips to help you prevent kitchen burnout:
Order Takeaways or Visit a Restaurant
Two hours of cooking, 10 minutes of eating is the most imbalanced effort-reward in the known universe. That’s why restaurants and delivery apps exist. If you can’t bear the thought of spending another morning chopping, dicing, and frying, it’s time to head to a Wimpy restaurant near you . A cup of premium blend coffee, a hearty breakfast, and health and hygiene measures with your safety in mind, versus more time labouring in the kitchen isn’t much of a choice. You’ll have a hard time finding someone who’ll pass up on the chance to enjoy a good meal, in an inviting environment, without putting in any effort.
Cook More Than a Day’s Worth of Food
Spending hours on a feast that disappears in minutes is unappealing; repeating the process every day is unimaginable. Which is why it’s best to get the most out of your time in the kitchen. Depending on the size of your family and their appetite, you should look into cooking two or three days’ worth of meals instead of just one.
Buy Meal Kits
Most people’s idea of fun has nothing to do with grocery shopping, chopping, and dicing vegetables, and figuring out the appropriate portions for a meal. Which explains the popularity of meal kits. Pre-portioned and partially-prepared ingredients slash cooking time in half, so you don’t have to stay in the kitchen longer than you need to.
Keep it Simple
What’s the easiest way to lose your kitchen mojo? Going gourmet every other day! There’s a time for lobster thermidor and pan-seared foie gras with port wine sauce; that time is not every weekday. Be realistic about the amount of time you’re willing to devote to cooking. Simmering a homemade pasta sauce might be out of the question, but there are plenty of meals that come together in a matter of minutes.
Get Help
Your kids might not know their way around a recipe book yet, but they can still lend a helping hand in the kitchen. If they’re young, they can set the table, toss a salad, or clean up after dinner. You can ease the older kids into the cooking process by preparing a simple meal with them once a week.
It’s one thing to cook every other night, it’s another to prepare breakfast, lunch, and dinner, every single day for months on end. This bag of tricks is ideal for the times when stepping into the kitchen is the last thing on your mind.
