The Importance of Knowing How to Cook
For some reason, society has a fascination with food. Is it because we associate much of our life with food? Maybe we get a craving or see food that reminds us of our childhood. Regardless, no matter where we look, food is all around us. While today's society has made it extremely easy to 'pick up and go', it’s crucial to get back to our roots and start cooking more for ourselves. Learning how to cook means using raw, fresh ingredients that nourish our bodies instead of picking up a pre-prepared meal that may or may not have 'mystery' ingredients in it. Learning to cook is one of the main keys to good health and a good life.
As someone who grew up in the kitchen, constantly cooking and baking with family, I never thought I would end up as 'that' person who makes five-minute snacks and calls it dinner because it's easy and time-saving. The non-stop of Today's society has a massive impact on the amount of time, effort, and care that we put into our meals, creating an unfortunate reality. Many families have no time to cook between work, kids, school, and other activities. For individuals, it often feels pointless to cook a homemade meal every night for just one person. But the importance of cooking isn’t just a skill or a hobby. Cooking is our health and survival-not only for ourselves but also for our loved ones.
Cooking vs. Take out/Fast Food
As individuals get busier, they have less time to cook homemade meals and often opt for more convenient options like fast food and takeout. While this may be a quicker meal, it's not a replacement for cooking a homemade meal. These convenient options are taking a negative impact on consumers. The amount of money wasted each year on these alternatives is enough to make anyone want to change. The average American spends approximately $1,200 each year on fast food. As for takeout, Americans spend on average $67 each week ($3,484/year) while Millenials spend a whopping $70 per week. What may seem like a positive note as individuals prove to be spending less on fast food than takeout does not exclude the fact that it still may not be a healthier choice overall.
Too often, we go out to eat or even buy products off the shelves at grocery stores, consuming them without truly knowing what we are putting into our bodies. Consumers are progressively choosing more budget-friendly foods as they are convenient, even if they are highly processed. Learning how to cook gives us the freedom to make meals from scratch, know what goes into them, and the ability to make any desired substitutions while still using the freshest ingredients.
Learning to Cook
Learning how to cook can only benefit us by offering several opportunities to make positive changes. Using nutritional and fresh ingredients dramatically improves the flavor, providing the nutrients that we would likely be missing out on when ordering takeout or fast food. Using a variation of ingredients offers the chance to experiment with foods you may not have known that you liked and may even give you a new hobby. Nutrients are also an essential aspect of our well-being mentally and physically. If you are uncomfortable in the kitchen and want to start with a less challenging recipe, attempt a simple five or ten-minute side or appetizer. Next time you find yourself scrolling through a page of cooking videos (like Tasty) and see a recipe that looks intriguing, save the video and try it out for one of your weekly meals. Your body (and your wallet) will thank you.