Learn to cook

“Anyone who cooks themselves is ready to broaden their own horizons.” I can 100% endorse this statement. If you cook yourself, you can also decide for yourself what is on the table, which ingredients are used and how long the procedure in the kitchen should take.  Read here why cooking yourself has so many advantages.

Why is cooking so important as a young person

An interesting study was published in the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior that followed the eating habits of adolescents over several decades.Researchers from the USA and New Zealand examined a total of 1,158 adolescents and young adults and came to a very interesting conclusion:

Adolescents aged 18 to 23 who were familiar with cooking in the kitchen, on average, had a much healthier diet than those who had little or no cooking experience at a young age. If a family was then added to this, meals were eaten together and more value was placed on a healthy and balanced diet.

The conclusion of the study is that those who involve their children in cooking as early as possible will later have fewer concerns that they will only eat fast food. They thus learn independence and responsibility at an early age.

Tips for Beginners

• Pick an easy recipe!
  • Having a hard time deciding which dish to start with? It is important that you choose a simple recipe so that it does not become too much for you at the beginning.
• What cooking utensils do I have available?
  • At the beginning, check whether you have enough pots, pans and the like at home. If necessary, your grandmother or your best friend will certainly lend you something.
• Make a shopping list!
  • First see what ingredients you already have at home and put them on the kitchen table. Then you make a shopping list with all the missing ingredients.
• Pay attention to the durability!
  • If you want to start cooking afterwards, no problem! If you plan to cook a few days later, then you should pay attention to the shelf life of the food you have bought. Vegetables, dairy products, but also meat and fish should always be bought fresh.
• The right spread!
  • So before you can really “get started”, you should prepare your ingredients accordingly. For example, do the vegetables have to be cut in advance? Then always prepare such things first before you really start cooking.
• Everything ready to hand!
  • Everything you need for cooking should be within reach. The pot, the pan, but also the spices. You should have everything set aside in advance. This way you avoid stressful situations while cooking.
• Schedule more time!
  • Plan for buffer times. This prevents you from getting unnecessarily stressed when cooking.
• understood?
  • So that you can get started, you should internalize the recipe again so that you know exactly how to proceed. As a little help, you can print out the recipe and stick it on the cupboard next to the stove. So you can be sure that you won’t forget a step.
• And finally!
  • Don’t forget that cooking should be fun. have patience with you Maybe turn on your favorite music in the background, so cooking will certainly work all by itself.

Tips from the experts

In general, you should think simply when choosing recipes. Start small and pick an easy recipe. A recipe that you can prepare quickly and easily. After that you can keep improving. This approach increases the chances of success and the desire to learn more about cooking enormously.

My tip: Try out some classics of Italian cuisine such as “One-Pot-Pasta” or the vegetarian version of Spaghetti Carbonara ! With the recipe for one-pot pasta, all you have to do is put all the ingredients in a pot. That’s super simple. With the vegetarian spaghetti carbonara you can try the sauce, which is great for beginners. You can find both recipes here on my blog and I have linked them for you.

And why not learn how to cook for two or in a group? It’s a lot more fun and you can talk about it at the same time. The next time you invite your boyfriend or girlfriend over to you, why not have a “cooking evening”. Find a simple and delicious recipe and cook it together. You’ll notice how much fun it can be.

Or you can attend a cooking course and cook together with others in a group. This way you not only learn how to cook but also get to know new people.

Basic equipment for cooking

The first thing you should think about is which dishes you would like to cook for yourself in the future. In the next step, you compare this with the following list, which is part of a basic set of necessary kitchen utensils for regular cooking:

When choosing the right cooking utensils , you should pay attention to the following:

1. Pay attention to the quality. Cheap doesn’t always mean good.
2. The heat distribution in pots and pans should be even. Then your food will be cooked and it won’t burn.
3. A high heating speed saves time and energy.
4. In addition, the material of your pots and pans should be heat-dissipating. This keeps your food warm longer.
5. A lid that closes tightly also saves you energy.
6. With pans you should make sure that they are coated. This allows you to sear and cook your food with little fat.
7. The chef’s knives should have been forged from a single piece of steel and have a high edge retention. Because then you will have a lot of fun with a good blade for a long time.
8. Dish washer safe. This saves you a lot of time. It is better not to put knives in the dishwasher, as they then lose their function much faster.

If you not only want to learn how to cook, but also want to try your hand at baking, then the following baking utensils are essential. Because homemade fresh from the oven simply tastes best, right?

Der richtige Lebensmittelvorrat

Diese Lebensmittel solltest du als Vorrat immer im Schrank haben. Denn damit bist du nicht nur flexibel, was das Kochen angeht, sondern hast auch immer mal etwas da, wenn du gerade nicht einkaufen gehen kannst.

• Butter
• Konserven wie Tomaten, Mais
• Eier
• Essig
• Olivenöl
• Gemüsebrühe
• Kartoffeln / Süßkartoffeln
• Knoblauch
• tiefgefrorene Kräuter
• Mehl
• Milch & Hafermilch
• Nudeln
• Parmesan
• Gewürze wie Salz, Pfeffer, Paprika, Oregano
• Reis
• Schafskäse (eingeschweißt)
• Senf
• Speisestärke
• Tomatenmark
• Weißwein
• Zitrone
• Zucker / Zuckerersatz
• Zwiebeln

Einfache Rezepte für Anfänger

Hier findest du eine kleine Auswahl meiner Rezepte, die sich perfekt als Anfänger Köche eigenen. Diese Gerichte kannst du wirklich kinderleicht selbst zubereiten! Viel Spaß beim Ausprobieren. Führ mehr Rezepte, schaue dich gern auf meiner Seite um.

Feta melon salad

Shakshuka

Pumpkin Potato Soup

Summary

Learning to cook is really not an art. Whether you try it alone or with others, it is definitely a lot of fun and also broadens your horizons. Make sure you have good quality basic kitchen equipment at home and a proper supply of groceries. This allows you a bit of flexibility if you are not able to go shopping at short notice.

With the tips for beginners and the simple recipe suggestions, you can actually get started now. Have fun learning to cook!