For many people, cooking at home can be a real challenge. Especially if you don’t have much time, can’t physically handle spending a lot of time in the kitchen, or are cooking for just one or two people, you might feel like it’s more convenient to eat out or eat less healthy meals simply because they’re easier to make. However, this doesn’t have to be the case.
Whether you’re an elderly person living on your own or a busy parent who simply can’t find the time, you can make home-cooked meals that are healthy and delicious. And if you like those foods with ketchup in them, you may also find knowing the history of ketchup interesting. To help make this more of a reality for you, here are three tips for cooking simple, easy meals at home.
1. Have Your Groceries Delivered
To make a home-cooked meal, you have to have the ingredients on hand. But when time is short, or you can’t make it to the store, there are other possibilities to ensure you have what you need at home.
According to Alma Schneider, a contributor to Reader’s Digest, one fast and easy way to get healthy food to your home is to take advantage of grocery delivery services. This is an easy way to get the groceries you need without spending any of your time going to the grocery store.
By choosing this option for your grocery shopping, you might also find yourself saving money and buying healthier foods since you won’t be as likely to be enticed into making impulse purchases.
2. Take Advantage of a Slow Cooker
Making a meal at home doesn’t mean you have to spend your time standing over the stove or watching something in the oven. In fact, if you have a slow cooker, you can create a great meal while only spending minutes on the preparation. In your free time, you can do something fun like visiting The Fable Casino or other great options.
Julie Curley, a contributor to Today.com, shares that the best way to use your slow cooker is to throw your ingredients in before you leave the house in the morning. Then, when you come home at the end of the day, you’ll have a delicious, hot meal waiting for you.
3. Don’t Be Afraid to Make Real Meals
When you’re looking for something easy to make for yourself or your family, you might be tempted not to make real meals and opt for just eating disparate items instead. But by making real meals, Elaine Magee, a contributor to WebMD.com, you’ll be able to keep the leftovers from the meal you’ve made and eat them on subsequent days, which can make your cooking life much simpler in the long run.
We hope these tips will help you make your food at home; besides, many notable benefits of cooking your meals at home.
4 Great Benefits of Cooking Meals at Home
Restaurant meals can contain lots of unhealthy ingredients and fat. On the contrary, cooking meals at home have valuable benefits, such as:
1. Money Saver
Saving money is a priority for everyone, and cooking meals at home can help you save your money in the long run. Some essential ingredients come in at a lower price than a single restaurant dish, and you can end up getting more meals out of a recipe you make at home than take-out. After just a few weeks, you would see noticeable savings in your budget.
2. Easier to Watch Calories
One of the best benefits of cooking at home is keeping an eye on your calorie intake. If you want to be fit, you have to balance your calories intake, or else you might have to face the extra fat. As you already know, restaurants foods are full of fat, and most of the time, you end up eating more calories than you need.
3. Proven to be Healthier
People who cook more often in their homes have a healthier diet than those who regularly take out or dine in. Restaurant meals typically contain higher sodium, fats, and calories than home-cooked meals. Many restaurants lack hygiene, due to which people may face various diseases. Therefore, it is better to cook at home and add fresh ingredients of your choice than to eat junk food full of unhealthy ingredients.
4. Reconnection with Family
Cooking together can reconnect you with your friends and family. Involve children in preparing a meal and try delicious and easy recipes of your choice. You will love spending time with your friends and loved ones and making memories to recall in the future.
3 Homemade Simple and Easy Recipes
1. Baked Parmesan Garlic Chicken
This baked Parmesan Garlic Chicken recipe is the easiest and delicious one with readily available ingredients. The ingredients you need are:
- Olive oil
- Skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
- Minced clove garlic
- Dry bread crumbs
- Dried basil leaves
- Grated Parmesan cheese
- Ground black pepper
- Salt
Directions
The first step is to preheat the oven to 350°F and grease a baking dish. Take a bowl, blend the olive oil and garlic. Next, mix the bread crumbs, basil, Parmesan cheese, and pepper in a separate bowl. Now, dip each chicken breast in the oil and bread crumb mixture.
Spread the coated chicken breasts in the prepared baking dish, and top with the remaining bread crumb mixture. Now, bake it for 30 minutes in the preheated oven or until chicken is baked and juices run clear.
2. Sweet Potato Chickpea Curry
Sweet potato chickpea curry is a simple recipe with healthy nutrients. You can serve it with rice and enjoy this meal.
Ingredients:
- Olive oil
- Chopped onion
- Minced cloves garlic
- Minced fresh ginger
- Drained chickpeas
- Diced tomatoes
- Red chili flakes
- Coconut milk
- Cubed sweet potato
- Garam masala
- Ground cumin
- Spinach
- Ground turmeric
- Salt to taste
Directions
Take a skillet, heat the olive oil over low to medium heat, and cook onion, garlic, onion, and ginger until softened. Now add chickpeas, coconut milk, tomatoes, and sweet potato to bring them to a boil. Reduce heat to low, and simmer until tender. Season this mixture with garam masala, turmeric, cumin, chili flakes, and salt. Before serving, add spinach, and your dish is ready to eat!
3. Beef Stir-Fry
Beef Stir-Fry is the quickest beef recipe, and you can easily make it even on a busy day.
Ingredients:
- Vegetable oil
- Beef sirloin
- Fresh broccoli florets
- Red bell pepper
- Thinly sliced carrots
- Chopped green onion
- Minced garlic
- Soy sauce
- Toasted sesame seeds
- Salt and pepper to taste
Directions
First, heat vegetable oil in a large wok over medium-high heat; cook and stir beef until browned. Now move beef to the side of the wok and add broccoli, carrots, green onion, bell pepper, and garlic to the center of the wok. Cook and stir vegetables and beef, and season it with salt and pepper, sesame seeds, and soy sauce. Cook and stir until vegetables are tender.
If you need an excuse to cook delicious food at home and make your meals a little easier, you can use these helpful tips, benefits, and recipes mentioned above.