If you make one change for the better this year, make it about eating more ‘real’ food. There are no hard and fast rules about this, it’s just a good way of thinking about it. Making and enjoying home-cooked food doesn’t have to be difficult or time consuming. To help you make better food choices, here are some of our top tips and tricks to eating real food.
“ It's much better to eat real food cooked in kitchens, rather than products made in factories"
Keep it simple
Home cooking doesn’t have to be difficult or time consuming. If you’ve had a busy day there is nothing wrong with going back to basics. A frittata or omelette can take just a few minutes, but can be packed with whatever you have in the fridge or freezer.
Small touches
A dollop of greek yoghurt and a tablespoon of toasted nuts and seeds will make almost any dish look great and taste delicious.
Batch cooking
If you are going to the trouble of cooking a meal from scratch, why not make extra portions to pop in the fridge for later? Or add one to the freezer for a time when you want a night off cooking.
Store cupboard staples
Stock up on the essentials; so you always have base ingredients to hand. Tinned lentils, chickpeas or beans are great to have in reserve and are a great basis for many any dish. Throw together with a can of tomatoes, herbs and a few veggies for a fab midweek supper. Jars of roasted peppers, anchovies and capers are also easy ways to add punch and flavour.
Weekly favourites
Have a few easy and versatile recipes such as lentil dahl, chicken casserole and bean stew that you can easily serve up in different ways. These sorts of dishes all freeze well, so can be reheated easily.
Keep things in reserve
Fridge foods like halloumi and feta can keep for months in the fridge and are both incredibly versatile. Crumble over fresh salads, add them to stews or bake in the oven for a creamy finish.
Freeze leftovers
If you don’t fancy last night’s dinner for lunch, pop it in the freezer and save for later. You can freeze just about anything- odd portions of mashed potato, cooked vegetables, slices of meat and half pots of things. All these leftovers can quickly and easily be added to all sorts of food and spruce up any dish.
Discover new and exciting home-cooked food made by people in your neighbourhood.
On those days where you fancy a night off, our Bristol cooks are always on hand to provide a home-cooked feast for friends and family.
Easy classics
Sometimes you can’t go wrong with simple things like dippy eggs, cheese toasties or baked beans on toast. These are all ‘real’ and nutritious, and make a great speedy meal.
Feeling inspired? Try Elly Pear’s freeze ahead Tuscan style cannellini bean stew that you can serve three ways to keep home cooking interesting.
This stew is especially great on chilly days, but as it uses really basic vegetables that are available all year round, you don’t need to keep it for the depths of winter.
I found out that All About The Cooks is looking for talented cooks all over the UK to make money cooking from home. I think you’d be great at this!
You can find out more here: allaboutthecooks.co.uk/become-a-cook/
We’re very proud that founder of All About The Cooks, Claire Ladkin, has been shortlisted as a Community Food Champion at the BBC Food & Farming Awards!
Our Bristol-born online marketplace for home-cooks is growing – Nick Davies and Will Hamilton join our advisory board!
For Refugee Week 2023, we look at how we’re making it easier for talented cooks from refugee and migrant backgrounds to enter the food industry!
It’s International Women’s Day 2023! Meet a few of our many amazing female cooks!
Try making Mireya’s vegan feijoada recipe for Veganuary this year.
