Learn to Love to Cook

If you’re like me you make better reservations than you do meals.  I have made learn to cook as one of my New Year’s resolutions for the last several years.  However all my efforts have been unsuccessful – but it’s not from lack of trying.

Both my parents are good cooks and it’s very hard for people to believe that I didn’t inherit the gene.  My Dad says when it comes to cooking we are only limited by our imagination.  He also single handily claims that he invented the concept of adding dried fruit and nuts into salads.

If you’re learning to cook here are some tips to help you learn to love it:

Try your favorite restaurant recipes

This is how I started to like cooking.  Every day for lunch I would buy a Greek salad with pasta, feta cheese, cherry tomatoes and olives.  I thought to myself why am I paying for this when I can make it at home.  I even added in my own special tough by throwing in some sun dried tomatoes.  It tastes just as good and I’m saving $5 a day on my lunch.

Reuse the same ingredients for multiple meals

Cooking every single day is not fun, at least not yet.  So what we do is cook a large portion of something on Sunday and reuse it for several different meals throughout the week.  This lets us minimize cooking time and we don’t get sick of eating the same thing over and over again.  Right now we’re making a mixture of peppers and onions and using it to cook stir fry with rice, quesadillas and pasta primavera throughout the week.

Spend time in the kitchen with your spouse

Cooking doesn’t always translate into fun, but like most things it’s better when you do it with someone you love.  So get your sweetheart into the kitchen and learn to make something you love together.  It’s also a great way to spend time together and accomplish a task.  You may not be good at the beginning, but over time you’ll achieve it together. When it comes to learning two heads are better than one.

Enrol in a cooking class

If you’re starting from scratch it would be a great idea to take at cooking 101 class.  Check with local culinary schools, grocery stores and the YMCA to see if they offer single or couple’s cooking classes. Just like any skill cooking only gets better overtime with practice.

Make sure you have the time

As I’m learning to cook I know I don’t have a ton of time to spend all day in the kitchen.  I am currently working my way through Rachael Ray’s 30 Minute Meals.  The recipes are usually simple, don’t have too many ingredients and take less than 30 minutes total including prep and cooking time.

If you’re limited in time make sure to pick an appropriate recipe otherwise you’ll be rushed and stressed and the meal won’t turn out as good.

Kristina Tahnyak

Tahnya is a Certified Financial Planner and former Investment Advisor turned marketing and communications professional She holds a degree from Concordia University, is debt free and currently works in the field of digital marketing.