#96: The Ultimate Positive Change for 2025 - Homecooked Meals!

What if we told you cooking more meals at home could help you save money, eat healthier, and spend more quality time with your family? 
In this episode, Roni and Riley talk about the different reasons why home cooking needs to be your 2025 resolution! Home-cooked meals have this amazing ripple effect on basically all aspects of our lives and we want to encourage you to cook at home more in the new year. This episode will help you stop making excuses and overcome the barriers you might encounter when it comes to making more home-cooked meals. Enjoy! 

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Transcript

Roni: [00:00:00] Hi, everyone. Before we jump into today's episode. I just want to apologize for my audio in this episode. I did not have my recording optimized, unfortunately, when we were recording, but I loved this episode with Riley so much. I didn't want us to rerecord to fix the audio.

So I'm sorry that I sound a little bit like a robot, but I hope you'll still get lots of good information from this episode. 

Thanks so much. Welcome to the Plan to Eat podcast, where I have conversations about meal planning, food, and wellness. To help you save time in the kitchen, reduce your grocery bill stress less about food. And delight in dinner time.

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Plan to Eat podcast. This is the last podcast of 2024. Riley and I are here to talk about what we believe is the ultimate positive change for your 2025. Do you want to say what it is, Riley?[00:01:00] 

Riley: I would love to, uh, we believe that the biggest change that you can make in your life is to start making home cooked meals.

Roni: Yeah, more home cooked meals. If you're making some home cooked meals now, we think you should increase it. If you're not making any home cooked meals right now, we think you should start doing at least some of it. Because home cooked meals have this amazing ripple effect on basically all different aspects of our life.

And that's what we're going to talk about today is all of the different reasons why we believe home cooking is amazing. We're going to help you overcome some of the barriers that you might encounter when it comes to making more home cooked meals. Um, maybe just talk a little bit about goals and resolutions and that kind of stuff going into the new year.

Riley: I honestly can't believe we're already talking about this. It feels like January 2024 was just a hot second ago. But I think. One of the most compelling things about this for me is, uh, how many resolutions it, um, [00:02:00] encompasses just by making this one change. And so I'm going to read to you real quick, the top resolutions for 2024, improving fitness, improving finances, losing weight, improving diet, making more time for loved ones, stopping smoking, learning a new skill, making more time for hobbies, reducing stress at work.

And then two notable mentions are saving money and improving mental health. So while, while home cooked meals does not solve all of those, it certainly solves the majority of them. And we're going to tell you how we believe this, but it's just, uh, it's just looking at it from a little bit of a different lens.

Like you wouldn't think that this encompasses all of them, but I think when you just take a little bit of a different look, you'll realize how many of them, um, it can actually help you meet every goal you could ever have.

Roni: Yeah, it actually really is amazing because, you know, cooking more at home isn't really just about the food, it's about this like bigger lifestyle change that could potentially take place that then leads to being more successful in these other goals or these other areas of your life. And so [00:03:00] we just really think it's so impactful, and we're so excited to talk about it today.

Riley: So excited.

Roni: So I think for me, one of the big things that I want to talk about with just goals and resolutions in general is the idea of intentionality. And, you know, being successful with goals and resolutions, it has a lot to do with being intentional about them, taking the time to really think about, that idea that like smart goal planning, you know, I don't remember what the acronym, all the things stand for, but it's like, you know, it needs to be timely and relevant and action based and whatever all of the, what all of them are.

But like a big part of that is intentionality and kind of looking at a goal through the lens of like, what are the things that could go wrong and how can I combat those things? And. You know, what does it look like for me to be successful with this goal overall? And really similar to the conversation that we had last month about like [00:04:00] planning your, holiday dinners, holiday meals.

And, you know, we talked about the mindset piece at the end and to kind of like doing this, like working backwards idea of like, what does this goal look like? And what is the success at the end of it look like for me and how can I work backwards to kind of create, uh, you know, a plan of action for myself around this, because I think the problem with most goals and resolutions is that we don't really go into it with a plan of action.

We mostly go into it being like, I want to be better at this, or I want to improve why. And. There's not a whole lot of like, here's the action plan that I'm going to put into place. I want to, you know, become a better runner. I want to run a half marathon. And so I'm going to run Monday, Wednesday, Monday.

What I could say the words I'm going to run Monday, Wednesday, Friday, every single week, I'm going to set up this plan through, you know, this running website, whatever. Those are the kinds of things that I [00:05:00] think help you achieve your goals. And I think. Cookie home cooked meals is really similar. Like starting with a meal plan is super important.

Learning how to grocery shop more quote unquote, smartly, you know, and like figuring out how to carve out time in your day to actually cook. Those are all of these like intentional pieces that I think go into making this a successful part of your life.

Riley: Absolutely. I'm not sure the smart, the smart acronym either. But the first thing that came to my head is how do you eat an elephant one bite at a time? It's the same kind of idea. You and I are both planners. So this, This idea of like planning out your resolution in order to achieve it is something that I would say is probably pretty natural to both of us.

You know, the running analogy is actually pretty good because, uh, you can't just up and go run a half marathon. Now you might be able to, I could not. But 

if you don't, it would hurt. Yeah, it would be long and it would hurt. But I'm just thinking like when I've trained for half [00:06:00] marathons in the past, like if you miss a training day or if you miss a piece of the puzzle, even a recovery day, right?

If you miss those pieces, then you don't achieve the end goal as well. Or if you, you know, I, I, there was some running thing, like, uh, let me see if I can tell a meme over a podcast, but it was basically the idea of like, just tell yourself you're going to run every day for 30 minutes. And if you don't, you tack it onto the next day.

And the funny part was like, now I have to run for three weeks starting tomorrow. And like, that's the same idea here. If you don't do these pieces of your goal, it's gonna be much more difficult to achieve it. Uh, and so. I think sitting down and looking at that end goal, like you said, and saying, okay, I want to be better at home cooking. I'm not going to just pick that up tomorrow. Especially if I have a bunch of roadblocks in my way, that's making me not do it already. And you sit down and you say, okay, I need to be better at cooking. I need to clean out the fridge or clean out my pantry. See what I already have. Um, is there a new kitchen gadget I [00:07:00] could ask for for Christmas this year or, or a gift for a birthday or something, um, that would help make my life a little easier?

Like what are these pieces that you need to put into place to get to that end goal? And this is true for any resolution, like just like running, just like. Saving money, just like becoming healthier. In whatever version of that you're looking for with your resolution, spending more time with friends, nothing just happens by accident.

You really have to put in some legwork.

Roni: That's a really good point. I like that. Nothing happens by accident. Really good. So you mentioned that whole list of popular resolutions and I totally think there's like two things on that list that maybe cooking at home doesn't solve. I don't think it helps you necessarily quit smoking. And it probably doesn't.

Might not reduce your stress from work. Well, it's debatable.

Riley: Although it's debatable. Yeah.

Roni: Yeah. But I mean, I think to me, like, the big things that stand out is like, if your goals for the [00:08:00] upcoming year, or just for your life in general are, you know, to be healthier. To save money, which I think a lot of people are doing right now and to be more connected with your family, spend more time with your family, eating more meals at home and cooking home cooked meals is like such a big ding, ding, ding to solve those things.

Like, it is really the one habit that I think can help achieve those things. You save money at the grocery store when you shop with a organized list and you buy the things you need and you're going out to eat less. That's That's a really huge one. I think that we often underestimate how much it actually costs to go out to eat particular.

I mean, for me, it's just me and my husband and we can easily spend as much on one week's worth of food at the grocery store by going out to eat one time, like, It's a little crazy right now. I can't even imagine for like a family of four or more, how expensive that can be. If you're going to like a sit down restaurant, you know, and then obviously you get to spend more time with your family.

Like it's like built in around the, you know, the [00:09:00] dinner table to be able to go and, you know, you have the, a lot of time for eating. Hopefully you can make that a lot of time also be spent with your family. And we have a great podcast that we did a couple of months ago, all about the benefits of. Eating more family meals together.

So if you need more reason to want to do that, definitely go check out that podcast.

Riley: Well, and one of the benefits of spending more time with loved ones, is that it improves your mental health, which then that ticks another one of these off the list of like, just this one change. affects three changes. So you, you save money cause you're not eating out. You're spending more time with loved ones.

And then you're also improving your mental health by spending more time with loved ones by eating a home cooked meal.

Roni: Yeah. That's amazing.

Riley: Yeah.

Roni: Yeah. And then if your goal is to, you know, have healthier habits, whether it's to exercise more or, you know, change your eating habits, You know, home cooked meals help you be in control of what you're putting in your own body. So if you have a fitness goal, you get to fuel your body with the things that make you feel the best [00:10:00] for your exercise, make you feel the most energized.

you get to prepare nourishing meals that align with whatever these like health and fitness goals are that you might have. So check in multiple things off the list there too.

Riley: A natural by product of home cooked meals is that they are, they tend to be healthier because you know, what goes in them. You're not putting excess, you know, I don't know. I'm just thinking about like even using an air fryer or buying French fries, deep fried, like just that little swap.

Like you're still eating French fries, but they're just not deep fried in something like just these little things will improve your diet. Also just by eating at home, you know, what goes in them, you know, how much of things go in them. And you can customize it to what you want, but just automatically eating at home is healthier.

Roni: Yeah, having worked in a restaurant for many years previous to working for plan to eat, you really see the restaurant food is not super great for you.

It might taste amazing, but a lot of times the things that make it taste amazing are not the things you should be eating like [00:11:00] every single day for every single meal.

Riley: Yeah. I mean, just simple things like, uh, I used to work at a coffee shop and just the amount of like sugar that goes into a coffee. Now I like sweet coffee from time to time, but just the amount of how much I put at home versus how much I would get at a coffee shop. Even just that little change is quite dramatic.

It's just, it's just kind of about just about knowing. And I think it works in a restaurant, I've worked in a coffee shop. You just start to see and recognize the difference. And yeah, it's just a, just a natural by product there too. Yeah. Yeah.

Roni: I agree. Um, let's see. I wanted to just talk about the last few ones on this list that we might haven't mentioned. 

Riley: So Ronnie, one of the ones you mentioned is reducing stress from work, being a debatable, resolution. Like, is this something that's helped by home cooked meals or not? And I was talking to my niece, who's an ER nurse.

And I was asking her because I know for a fact that she meal preps and like pre packages her meals every shift forever. Like once a week, she packages all of her shift food up. [00:12:00] And. Like I was asking her, like, why do you do that? Like, what does it benefit you? And her, you know, her examples were if she doesn't take it, then she doesn't get to eat sometimes because the food is maybe not accessible at 2 a.

m. Or whatever time it might be that she's at work. Or if it is, it's going to always be a drive thru. And can she even get the time to go do that? If something is going kind of hitting the fan in the ER, You know, she, she mentioned that, if she doesn't bring food, then like all that's really there to eat is junk food or hospital cafeteria food, which again can be an issue at 2 a. m. Cause not all hospital kitchens are open. And so she does it because it really does allow her to have a healthy nourishing meal while she's at work doing the crazy job that she does.

And like, she gets that break, she gets to eat something that's healthy for her, helps fuel the rest of her day. Shift and, and like, that's just a better, better for her. And she sees that how that's better for her. She feels how it's better for her. Um, and yeah, and then just overflows into her, her work day too.

[00:13:00] So I think depending on what you do, like she's also not spending extra money. You know, like if you think about going to work, you've got to go buy lunch or buy dinner, um, you're actually cutting into your profit. just like, you know, like. I always say like our home, our food at home is free. And my husband will always say we already paid for it.

And I'm like, yeah, exactly. I mean, it's not extra on top of the budget to go out to eat when you've already purchased the groceries for food at home. So I think it certainly is arguable that, prepping food, home cooking meals, uh, will potentially reduce stress at work.

Roni: I like it. I like the spin on that one because I see how, I see how that relates and how it's applicable for sure.

Riley: And I, you know, in the back of my mind, I'm feeling somebody say, yeah, but then I sit at work all day and I'm stressed out about what's for dinner. And I'm here, I'm sitting here thinking like, yeah, that's a reasonable argument. Unless you've planned your meals and you know what's for dinner and you have, maybe you have something in the crock pot already.

[00:14:00] Maybe you, you have a note on your planner that says, remember to thaw out the ground beef for dinners, hamburgers or whatever you're having. And so I think the argument to that is potentially just that if you plan them, you don't have to be stressed about them and it doesn't interfere with your workday.

Roni: Totally. Very good point. One more thing. Well, I guess there's two more on this list and it's learning a new skill and making more time for hobbies. We definitely think that Cooking is a valuable skill, a super valuable skill to learn. And I think you could potentially, it could be a hobby for some people.

I know a lot of people have you baking as a hobby more than cooking as a hobby, but I, I think that they can both like fall into that category. You and I both definitely view cooking as a crew, one of our creative outlets, like a place where we can just like tinker and have, you know, a little more fun because we're both more experienced home cooks.

But I really. I think that one thing that if you're not somebody who really enjoys cooking it can feel more like a chore [00:15:00] than like being excited about like I'm learning a new skill or maybe this is a new hobby that I'm taking up. And so I think that there's just some, some ways that you can try to reframe cooking in your head so that it doesn't feel so much like a chore like I think Julian from rich and regular. He was on the podcast a couple months ago. He specifically said like home cooked meals is not should not be viewed as a punishment for not being able to afford to go out to eat, like actually eating food that you made at your house is a really big privilege. And like viewing it that way.

And as somebody for him, like they're fairly wealthy and they do a lot of their cooking at home because they enjoy it more than they enjoy going out to eat. And so kind of like shifting your mindset to like, it's not really a chore. It's not really a punishment. Like this is something that you get to do to provide for yourself and for your family and like provide nourishment.

You know, not just for your body, but like, it can become like a mindfulness. Activity, you know, I think when we talked to the [00:16:00] ladies from Radiant Knowing, Carly and Carmen. They mentioned this too, where like they, you know, take a moment to like light a candle or something and just kind of have like a peaceful moment when it comes to cooking a meal, because it's actually like a moment where they might get to spend, you know, 10, 15 minutes doing something for themselves, rather than doing something that's like grabbing snacks for somebody else or picking up or, you know, whatever all the things are.

Riley: Totally. I, and, and I totally agree with that. I, I love to cook and now it does feel like a chore sometimes because it's like three times a day, every day for the rest of my life, you know, like that, like, but, this is like something that I've been thinking about when we, you know, prepping for this podcast is like, you can make it, um, An enjoyable experience for you by, I don't know, wearing a fun apron.

If that's your thing, lighting candles, listening to a podcast, music, audio book, just pop those little headphones in, have some quiet alone time. If it's safe for everyone else at your home, I don't [00:17:00] know, drink a fun beverage. Like if it's breakfast, have a lovely coffee dinner, like whatever you like to drink at dinner, you know, um, And just kind of making the experience an experience for yourself instead of drudgery, you know, like, Oh, every day it's like, no, actually like, Oh, I get to go have like 25 to 45 minutes of potentially alone time, depending on what your life looks like.

Uh, kind of a decompressed time. If, you had a stressful work day, just like you get to get lost in the motions of making dinner. If If that's something that you're able to do. And I love the idea that cooking, eating at home is actually a privilege. I think it's, I think that's an important mindset shift.

Like I have food in my kitchen. That's a gift. We have food to prepare for our family. That's a gift. You know, we got to go to the grocery store and buy those ingredients. Like all those things are, um, are gifts and it's not something to overlook.

Roni: Mm hmm. Yeah. And you could also look at the time for cooking, you know, more as a shared activity as well. It certainly, it can be alone time if that's what you want and that's [00:18:00] what you need, but it can also be a time when you can, you know, be teaching your kids these skills as well. You people that we've talked to on the podcast before, like Katie Kimball, that's like her big thing is like spend time in the kitchen with your kids.

It's a bonding experience. It's teaching them life skills. And like those things are really important. And so many of the people that we've talked to on the podcast who are, recipe author, you know, bloggers, cookbook authors, just like people who work in the food spaces. Almost, I can't actually can't think of a single one who doesn't have some sort of a childhood memory of.

Of somebody in their family, like bringing them into the kitchen and teaching them and fostering that relationship. So even if you just look at it from that aspect, like that's so impactful. How, how beautiful is that that you get to do that for your kids and the people in your life?

Riley: Yeah. I do love that. And potentially, depending on what your life situation is, like, it might be the only time [00:19:00] you get to really hang out with your kid if they're at school all day and you're at work all day or your husband or your spouse, partner, if like, that's the only time you get to see them. Then you could make it a time of hang, like a hangout time, you know, there are many nights where I'll tell my husband, like, come in here, just talk to me while I cook dinner.

Like, I don't really need you to do anything cause it's super like low key prep or whatever, but just come talk to me. Um, and I, and I love that too.

Roni: Yeah. 

Riley: I've been thinking about the flip side of this, of people who find home cooking to be a chore. Um, I see this all over Instagram. It's kind of a little bit of mom culture right now to like, say like, Oh, this is like, I hate this. Or, you know, the thing I mentioned earlier, like I have to do this three times a day, every day for the rest of my life.

I don't agree because I do love to cook. And so, and also there are so many things that can make it simpler for you. Just meal planning makes it simpler because you know what you're eating, you know, you bought the right ingredients and then you are in control of the plan, right? Like you can say, I need 15 minute dinners every night this [00:20:00] week.

I'm going to feed these people. It's going to be easy. Like you you're allowed to make that choice. You know, like you're allowed to choose that you're allowed to plan that. I think getting creative, if it does feel like a chore to you, I think this is that reframing, like it's a chore, period. I don't like it.

I don't want to do it. I know people who feel this way. Um, in a lot of cases, when people feel this way, they are not equipped because they don't know how to cook. And so that barrier to entry is really difficult to overcome. But a lot of people who, who, you know, have a general idea of cooking, just feel like it's a chore that it's added to their every day.

But getting creative and, um, using some like convenient items to make your, uh, make your meal simpler. And by that, I mean, jarred spaghetti sauce or, like, I don't know, a rotisserie chicken from the grocery store. No other items are coming to my mind at this exact moment, but there's plenty of things like this in the grocery store available to you.

You know, there's tons of rice kits that are, that have seasonings and everything pre made for you. I am not against that. If it allows you to have a little bit more brain space, a little bit less stress, [00:21:00] it makes your meal come together in a more simple way. That's totally fine. Like these, you can get creative to make this feel like less of a chore.

And I think it's important to remember that like all these things I've just mentioned, if your life is crazy, six nights out of seven and plan, easy meals. Or, make something on the one day you've got time, make it ahead of time, put it in the freezer, or prep it for the whole week, it's just a grab and go situation, or not grab and go, but like, grab it and heat it up to eat together.

Like, there are things that you can do, but like we talked about at the beginning, you have to be intentional about those choices, or it doesn't happen. You know, even I, there are weeks where I don't meal plan, and it's Tuesday, I always meal plan on Sunday. And I'm thinking, Oh my goodness, what are we going to eat?

And that strut, like, I am so glad I don't feel that way every day. I know people who do feel that way every day. And I just want to say, Hey, there's so many ways to make this feel better for yourself. And just, just by meal planning, just by saying, okay, I'm going to make this easier. It can be simple meals.

Like there's no, nobody's [00:22:00] sitting here judging you saying like, you're not allowed to do that. And if that's what makes, if it makes your life better than that, it's okay.

Roni: Yeah. Right. Semi homemade is still homemade, you know, and it still accomplishes all of these goals that we're talking about. You're still saving money. You're not going out to eat. You're still eating healthier. It's better than going for fast food. Hopefully you can still make time to sit down at the family dinner table together.

All of the things like it's still semi homemade still accomplishes all of these goals. We're not coming in here saying that everything you have to, you know, start making all of your own spaghetti sauce and, you know, soup

Riley: Your own pasta. 

Yeah. 

Roni: if you want to do those things, I love it. More power to you. Um, but that's not, that's not the core of what we're saying here.

You know, the core is just that it can be still. Anything that you make at home is preferable. I think to going outside of your home, in my

Riley: Yes. Especially since we're sitting here saying that home cooked meals, really is like the umbrella resolution for [00:23:00] all the, uh, almost all the other ones as we've already established. Like, it, yeah. Great. More power to you. If you can make your own pasta at home, I don't do that. But when I do make some things at home, I feel really successful.

Roni: Yeah.

Riley: But also I have plenty of weeks where I am that person who says I need a 15 minute dinners. What can I make? What's convenient? What can I purchase that makes my home cooked meal more convenient?

Roni: Yeah. And I think that there's the, this is part of, I think what could be a mindset shift from cooking to being a chore to being something more enjoyable. Is that sense of accomplishment. If you're, if you are currently developing your skill for how to cook view, every recipe that you cook as an accomplishment, because that's super cool that you're learning and you're getting better at it. And I can guarantee that things will not turn out perfectly a lot of the time. I cook most nights of the week and I would say two out of five meals are mediocre.[00:24:00] 

Riley: it happens to the best of us, Roni. 

Roni: It happens, you know, like you can't guarantee that everything is going to be amazing. Sometimes I'll have my husband, uh, I'll be like, okay, zero out of 10, like, how is this meal? And he's always very generous. He's very sweet, but he does the, like, Points, you know, like a, like a decimal point, you know?

And so, so the other night we, we made dinner together and I was like, I feel like this is really good. Like what, what's your at a 10 scale for this? And he was like, it's like a 7. 6. And I was like, what? It's terrible. And he's like, well, if 10 is the best meal I've ever eaten in my entire life, he was like this dinner that we put together in like 20 minutes.

I'm it's not like. It, it's a 7.6. It is not like, let's be practical here.

Riley: I love that. I love the realism. Like, I love the like, just the reality of that. Whereas you as the cook is like, no, it's a nine. 

Like, 

Roni: Like,

excuse me. Yeah. Uh, so, you know, look at it, you can look at it from that, frame of reference as well, [00:25:00] that it's like compared to the very best meal you've ever had in your entire life, most weeknight meals might not reach that standard and that's totally okay.

Riley: we, our scale is one out of 10. I mean, I get, I never say zero, but one is basically terrible. \ but one out of 10, but you can't choose seven because seven is the most mediocre. Like, well, it's not terrible. It's not a five, six, you know, it's not, it's not an eight.



Roni: Okay. So let's move into some more of these barriers to entry about home cooked meals. I think talking a little bit about that chore aspect, we kind of started to get into it. But one of the biggest things, like you said before, like, feel like I'm hearing somebody talk to me from behind my shoulder. I feel like the biggest thing that that person is going to bring up is like, okay, but I don't have time every night.

To cook a meal for my family. and I will agree that a home cooked meal is faster than going through the drive thru or maybe having Uber Eats delivered to your house. [00:26:00] But also there are so many quick meal options out on the internet. I remember when we talked to Rosemarie, of the busy budgeter, and she talked about her like 15 minutes.

Recipes that are like actually 15 minute recipes. I think sometimes the internet can be a little deceiving when it's like, this is only 30 minutes and they just assume that you've already done all of your like chopping and prepping and everything, and then it's 30 minutes. But even still, there are tons of recipes out on the internet that do not take very much time.

And all it takes is a simple search, you know, to just find some of these. And there are also, I think, ways within those that you can make things a little bit faster, you know, like you can get the bag of pre chopped veggies or something. If you don't have time to do those kinds of things or, um, you know, utilize things like the crock pot or the instant pot or the air fryer, like all of those, either they get your food done really quickly, or it's like, getting cooking your food without you doing the actual work like a crockpot.

And so [00:27:00] even with all of those potential, ways to reduce the amount of time that you actually spend cooking, I also think that there could just be maybe Shift in mindset or like maybe we kind of rethink how we're spending some of our time. You know, if food and, you know, creating nourishing meals for your family is something that's really important to you, then I would argue it needs to be moved up on your priority list for like how you're spending your time in your evening.

In general, I think that. You know, particularly United States culture does a really good job of telling us that like, what was needed to be productive. We always need to be like efficient and on the go and getting all of the things done and booking our lives like super busy. But ultimately, like, we're the ones who get to decide how we spend our time and what we put our, what we put as our top priorities.

You know, the very last interview, um, the beginning of December was with Alison Kay and she actually schedules her life [00:28:00] around her food versus scheduling food around her life. And I don't think everybody needs to do that because I do think that's like literally the extreme of what like society might tell us about how we should spend our time.

Uh, but I just, I think that it's just an interesting idea when we're thinking about time and thinking about, I don't have time for these things. And just maybe trying to figure out if this is something that's really important to you, how can I make more time in my life for this? And that can be things like batch cooking and freezer meals and Nick, all of the things that we've talked about on lots of our other podcast episodes.

But it's just an interesting like restructuring maybe of our time and of our day to prioritize something that, as we already discussed has so many amazing like snowball effects.

Riley: Mhm. Well, and I think that it's okay to say that cooking is productive. Like you are producing something, you know, and I agree with you that there is this big push for be [00:29:00] productive, get more work done. You got to clean your house or go to the gym, whatever it is. But, I think cooking is productive.

obviously it is actually productive because you are producing something by the action. But telling yourself a different story and kind of rewiring your thinking around, well, I don't have time to do that. Let's just get people fed or whatever. Um, but like rewiring your thinking and saying, this is a useful, helpful, nourishing, joy producing family unifying task.

Like it actually puts a lot more weight on it. And like you said, it's just about kind of shifting your priorities to make this, This task be weightier in your life. Now I'm thinking of myself and like, I. plan around food because I have two toddlers and they are required to eat. Otherwise things don't go well.

And like, they like to eat at certain times. And, like if I don't have dinner ready by six, they're going to have had seven snacks before that. And then they won't actually eat dinner. You know, like every mom listening to this is like, yeah, you have to really wire your whole day around. Like, when do I give them a snack versus not, et cetera.

[00:30:00] But I mean, I think the meal prepping thing, like if you don't want to cook dinner or don't have time to cook dinner every night. How can you take some of that time back of your life and say, okay, I can't do this, but on Sunday afternoons, I can grill a ton of roasted vegetable or roast a ton of vegetables, grill a bunch of protein.

And then like, we've talked to plenty of people on the podcast who do that every week and then they just make a new sauce every night, which probably takes five minutes or less. And then you've just got a new sauce or you put it in a pita or you wrap it up in tortilla. And you just kind of modify.

And then every week you have the same, you have the same things just with a bit more of a, with a bit of variety to them. Some people hate that because that's not enough variety for them. You know, they want a new meal every night. Particularly people who don't like. Leftovers. Um, they're not going to love that, but, I think it's just a bit about reframing.

It's just a bit about making a choice and saying, okay, Sundays is the day I cook. Here's what we're having this week. And you go buy a ton of those items, make them, you're done. Um, it's still a home cooked [00:31:00] meal. Even if it's reheated or wrapped up in a tortilla instead of the way you ate it the first time or, you know, like last night I, I cooked dinner in the crock pot.

So dinner was pretty simple. But then after the kids went to bed, I was, I made a batch of granola because. I hadn't had time to do it. I knew I wanted to do it. And now I've got breakfast, like yogurt, both granola for the rest, like two more weeks. Cause the batch is huge. Just kind of fitting it into the like non traditional times, right.

Of getting things done. Like I didn't make the granola at 5 PM or two in the afternoon or on a Saturday, like I made it at 8 45 at night. But it accomplished, uh, like a big goal of like having food ready to be eaten, home cooked food. And I just kind of did it when I had some space and I just put it on my to do list.

Like make this when you have time.

Roni: Yeah, and you mentioned, you know, one of the ways to make cooking a little more fun is potentially listening to a podcast or an audio book or something, you know, and I think combining [00:32:00] those things as far as like time is concerned. Don't think anybody likes to just be like, go, go, go till the end of their day on their feet the entire day.

However, if you do have a situation where you're like, cool, my kids go to bed at seven 30 and normally, you know, starting it from like eight to 10, me and my partner just like watch. Get the news or Netflix or something until we go to bed. Like you could take part of that time. And if you like the distraction of, you know, listening to a podcast or listening to an audio book while you cook, like you could combine these things together.

I just think that potentially there are obviously some people's lives who are like, so rigidly scheduled, you know, and there is not a whole lot of free time to be able to cook elaborate meals or anything, once again, we don't think it needs to be elaborate. Okay. Um, but I think that in general, there's a lot of time that we spend doing things that are not as meaningful as cooking could be.

And so, potentially, like, again, [00:33:00] just, Kicking it up on the priority list of like, maybe watching, you know, maybe binge watching the episodes of that show are a little lower on the priority list of making this meal. If you happen to have a TV that's close to the kitchen, you could do a little bit of both, but, Yeah.

I think that, that, that there are a lot of time, a lot of places in our lives and in our weekly schedule that probably if we really took a bigger picture, look, we could say, yeah, I do have a little extra time there where I could make something. Even if it's just as simple as, chopping things or making a batch of rice or like simple stuff.

Riley: for sure. Yeah. Just getting something. I mean, just getting something to marinate overnight, just like real quick before the end of the day. Uh, you made me think of my, my daughter is really into the great British bake off the great British baking show. Very into it. It's kind of amazing. She says things now, like, Baking powder, powdered sugar.

But, uh, she [00:34:00] loves, but like, we've taken it from, we watched the show to now we bake together. And just kind of like, it just bounced, like, it's still time together. It's still time in the kitchen. She's learning a great skill, but she's so influenced by watching the show and, um, the technical challenges and learning how to do things and the judging of it.

Like sometimes after I've cooked dinner, she'll say, and the winner is. Mom, like, and it's very cute or sometimes she'll critique me right because she's learning that too from the show like Well, this could have been a little bit more seasons a little needs a little more salt but it's it's very funny But it's like a it's a thing we get to do together and then we get to go to the kitchen and do that thing Together too.

So I'm kind of a twofold

Roni: I can't wait until she starts using words like stodgy and claggy.

Riley: We use stodgy because, uh, I do a lot of gluten free baking,

and, uh, if you're a gluten free eater and you're listening to this podcast, you know there's some stodginess going on. Every once in a while, it's stodgy. Yeah, it's pretty, it's pretty great.[00:35:00] 

Roni: Okay. So one of the other big barriers that, you know, maybe not very many people who are listening to the podcast experience this, because I think a lot of people who are listeners probably like to cook at home. But what if you don't have very many cooking skills? One of my tips would be that there are so many YouTube accounts dedicated to teaching you how to cook all different types of food.

there are certain cuisines that you like, if there are certain methods of cooking that you like, so many people teaching all different levels. You know, there are, there are quite a few, um, YouTube channels that I found that are cooking very basic meals, you know, actual like 15, 20 minute meals, teaching you very basic skills of how to chop an onion.

What's the, you know, when do you put your garlic into the pan? You know, very, uh, I would say like beginner level things that are actually pretty nuanced and will help like enhance the flavor of your dishes and help you be a better home cook. [00:36:00] In the long run, And then another thing too is, you know, utilize the people in your life.

If you have, a parent or grandparent or an auntie or an uncle or somebody in your life who is consistently the one that you're like, they cook the most amazing meals and I love going to their house to eat, invite them over or, Come over to their, you know, go over to their house and bring all the stuff and just like ask them to teach you while you guys are cooking together to glean some of the things that they know.

A lot of the times though, they have just like little tips and tricks that come out of the woodwork that they don't even realize they're doing until they're teaching somebody that they're doing it, or you're like watching them. And then you're like, wait, why do you, you know, flip the spatula that way when you're doing this thing?

And they tell you all about how it brings more air into the eggs or something, you know?

Riley: Yeah, yeah,

Roni: There's all of these things that you can learn from people who have a lot of experience in the kitchen. And then before I turn it over to you, Riley, my last one is just simply [00:37:00] read recipes. There's tons of recipes out there that are literally written for people who are learning how to cook.

So it's like very basics, very like, I'm not using overly complicated words. I'm not telling you what a sous vide is when you're not ready for that. Um, There's lots of recipes online and in cookbooks that are designed specifically to help people learn how to cook.

Riley: And simply reading recipes. Dude, I was gonna say this earlier, but I am so guilty of not reading recipes. And then I get in and, uh, Particularly baking has been doing a lot of gluten free bread baking lately, and I realized like, Oh, this needed to rise for two hours. We're not having this for breakfast or whatever.

So yeah, simply reading recipes is just a huge step forward in the cooking process. Yeah, I agree with you. There are so many. There's just so many ways to learn. And. I mean, there's cooking classes. You could go take, um, you could [00:38:00] go get a bunch of girls together, girl, like a little girl can go to a girl's night and go to a cooking class, or you could go to someone's house.

And, I've had friends who've had babies and we'll do a cooking party together where everybody brings a recipe. We batch cook for the one mom who's about to have a kid. And she puts all that food in her freezer. And that process. You do learn from other people. Like maybe your recipe is something simple, like lasagna or something.

Lasagna is pretty simple to make. But somebody else's bring something more complicated. You're sitting there watching them make it. You're kind of gleaning. You get the recipe from them. You are gleaning how they did it. Um, you're picking it up just by being almost in the presence of that person cooking.

And I think if, you know, if 2020 taught us anything, it's that technology really can bring us together. So if you don't live near. People in your life who you want their recipes or, or they're the, like, you know, your great grandma, who's just like the pinnacle of cooking in your world. FaceTime them video chat them, or, I mean, as simple as audio messaging a friend and saying, [00:39:00] Hey, what do I, how do I make that thing you had the other night?

Just like, or I should have a gluten free sourdough starter, which I have shared with many, a friend in the world around me. And so often they'll audio message me and say, Hey, Uh, something's not going right. What was I supposed to do? How much was I supposed to feed my starter? Um, what, what recipe is your favorite?

Can you tell me how to make it? You know, those kinds of things all through audio messages and that's super helpful. Video messages, whatever it is, like, but leaning into those things, like we're in a technical techie digital age, like we can use those things too. And so, like don't get caught up in like, Oh, I don't live near that person.

You can actually kind of overcome that barrier by doing those kinds of things. And then one more thing I've You mentioned this, so many YouTube accounts dedicated to cooking and teaching people how to cook, but then there's also people who are on Instagram, specifically easy recipes, specifically quick, very diet oriented, specific diet, Trader Joe's meals that are made out of four items you bought at Trader Joe's.

You whip it together. [00:40:00] The options are honestly endless. And I think if you can dream it, someone is creating it out there. So just like taking a little, like spin down Instagram spin on Instagram. Is that what people do? Um, just go, you know, like go look around. I think you're going to find a creator that kind of suits what your needs are.

If it's budget, if it's, crock all, all crock pot meals, I'm literally not cooking. I'm jumping in the crock pot and I'm walking away. Cool. Somebody does that. And I just am so confident that they do.

Roni: I think there's something cool about that, the Instagram or the Tik Tok videos too, because a lot of times those creators do point out the, you know, the secret ingredient or the secret, the secret technique that makes this recipe really work, that maybe you wouldn't get if you were reading their blog, just because a lot of times we skim, you know, or like, don't read the whole blog post, but you would watch it in the video and then be like, Oh, I get it.

So I think that's. 

Riley: And just 

Roni: advice.

Riley: cooking is such a visual task. Like when you

Roni: Mm [00:41:00] hmm. 

Riley: seeing, okay, this is what it looks like when the garlic is aromatic and fragrant. This is what it looks like. I mean, maybe over video and Instagram, you can't smell it, but just like being able to watch someone do something and see like, this is when they add that, or this is when this is how they stir it. I mean, I have toddlers. I, I'm literally witnessing people not know how to stir things 

Roni: Yeah. 

Riley: They have to be taught, you know, we're scrambling eggs and my whole stove gets scrambled, right? Uh, so just like actually watching somebody do it and then attempting it yourself, I think is a really cool part of that.

Roni: Totally. Related to this, might be the idea that you don't have very many cooking supplies. Maybe you're newer to cooking or there's only one, you know, maybe you have only ever cooked the same five recipes and you want to start branching out. And so you need some new things. Um, in general, I think you can do a lot with just simple cooking supplies.

You'd really don't need all the fancy, fancy gadgets and things to make really delicious recipes. Ultimately it comes down to like the things [00:42:00] that I think you're the most comfortable with in general. I think like. Having a sharp chef knife, um, having the thing that I think is important is having skillets and pans that don't frustrate you.

Because we have all had those things that are like, it's nonstick, nothing will stick to it ever. And then the first time you use it, you're like, everything's stuck to it and it's burnt. And I hate this and I want to throw it across the room. So maybe some trial and error of finding the pans that work right for you.

But You know, finding the skillets and pans that work for you. And also maybe knowing exactly how to use them. Like we only use the stainless steel pans, on our stove because we have an induction stove. So it has to be that stainless steel with the magnet on the bottom. And actually the best way to use it is to like.

Heat the skillet up on super high heat to like literally like you can put something on it and it'll just like swish around like you could put an egg on it and it would not stick at all. But it takes a lot longer than you originally anticipate it's going to take to heat up that much. So like just a little bit of trial and error, a little bit [00:43:00] of research, and you can learn a lot about how to be successful with some of the things you have in your kitchen.

And then I just think. Having a lots of spatulas, both the flippy kind of spatulas and like the kind that you, you know, wipe out your peanut butter jar with, having a lot of those in your kitchen. I go through a lot of spatulas when I'm cooking.

Riley: I, this is a little bit of a side tangent, but I really like mini spatulas. I, my most used kitchen tool. Besides a thermometer is, um, is mini spatulas, like the tiny ones. Like I love the tiny ones. I'm not sure why 

nobody else in my house really.

Roni: Talk about getting peanut butter out of a jar. It's like the perfect application for it.

Riley: I use them for everything. Scrambling eggs, flipping stuff. Okay. Anyway, um, I agree with you. And I was actually going to share the exact same tip about the skillet. It's just, just that one little tip. Just if it gets really hot, you're going to be more successful. Like what a tiny little thing. What a tiny tweak.

That really helps like just eliminate some frustration. I, I, the only thing I [00:44:00] have to add to cooking supplies, I guess I have two things to add. One of them is thrift stores are a great place to get some kitchen supplies. If you're trying to build a kitchen and you're trying to save money, glass dishes, storage containers, fun bakeware, like a funky Bundt pan or something.

Uh, cooling racks, silverware, I mean, mugs, glassware, like, Serving trays, serving dishes. Like, I don't know that I would buy everything from a thrift store because I think, you know, sometimes pans. Questionable, right? How long they've been used and things like that. I maybe wouldn't buy everything at the thrift store, but those are things that are, I certainly would go grab from there, and can make your, you have some fun kitchen items that not without spending a ton of money. And then the other thing I did want to say is like a really, um, Almost like a generic spice cabinet is also a really good thing to have.

I think it's a great thing for somebody who's not a very experienced cook to be reading a recipe and it calls for, I don't know, cumin, cardamom, something nutmeg, and not You know, obviously reading the recipe is [00:45:00] important. Knowing what you need from the grocery store is really important, but getting to it and not being like, well, I'm not going to buy that.

But that might be a pivotal ingredient in the recipe. I have a savory chicken soup I make that has nutmeg as an ingredient and it actually enhances the soup tremendously. Um, so just having kind of like a generic set of cooking spices, I think is, is really helpful when you're getting started. Just because flavorful food is better and that it really adds a lot.

And then you're going to feel more successful when your food has great flavor.

Roni: I'm really glad you brought this up. I didn't have this in our notes, but you know that this is one of my pet

Riley: I know, I know, what you're about to say.

Roni: So. I recently have had the experience of trying a lot of new recipes and salt is not an ingress and is not an ingredient in the recipe at all. There's no like salt to taste salt at the very end. Salt does not exist in the recipe. Okay. And if I did not know better, I would make the recipe [00:46:00] with zero salt and it would taste terrible because salt is a really important ingredient when it comes to food and to cooking.

One of the reasons why restaurant food can taste really good is because they salt it. And one thing that you learn that people in restaurants do is they salt at every single stage of the cooking process, which really helps like lock in the flavor of the different aspects of a recipe. And so if you are new to cooking, just remember that salt is needed and it's important.

And I could go on a really long rant 

about how I'm frustrated about recipe authors not including salt in their recipes because it's so essential and food can taste so bland and terrible without salt. And I know like, there's arguments against not using so much salt in your recipes for, you know, high blood pressure and all the different things.

I think that if you're buying high quality salt, especially sea salt, it kind of mitigates some of those issues and it just tastes really good in your recipes. So, along with [00:47:00] having a well stocked spice cabinet or a moderately stocked spice cabinet, have some good salt on hand too, not just like crappy, you know, iodized table salt.

Get some of that really good, get some really good sea salt or some diamond crystal salt. That's what they use in the restaurants. Pay attention to

Riley: Yeah. Roni, I can't tell you the amount of audio messages I've gotten from her telling us all telling me this, not all of us telling me this. I Made this awesome recipe. It didn't call for salt. It was terrible until I added salt because salt does add so much flavor. Flavor and it enhances the flavors that you're adding.

So like, this doesn't mean you don't put in the cumin and you don't put in the, I don't know, saffron or whatever else you're cooking with, but you'd still need those things. But the salt adds to it for sure. I love that tangent. Thank you.

Roni: There's a reason that the salt, fat, acid, heat book starts with salt. Literally, she says it at the beginning of the book, like this book starts with salt. Cause it's actually like one of the most important components of cooking. So if you need an argument as to why to add more salt to your [00:48:00] food, go read that book, please.

Riley: I am very guilty of writing recipes for friends, for plan to eat, whatever I'm writing a recipe for and just putting salt to taste because I, probably add too much salt. Like sometimes, I miss it. I think things aren't salty enough. My husband even will think they're too salty. Cause we just have different preferences for salt.

And so I am guilty of saying to taste because I think that it is kind of person to person, but a recipe should still call for salt.

Roni: It's it should call for some amount of salt in my opinion.

Riley: buttercream for crying out loud, buttercream frosting, like you put salt in that and

Roni: You put salt in bread. Yeah, like it matters. Okay, our last barrier because we've been here for a little while. Our last barrier to talk about is just organization. Like we talked about at the very beginning, there's some intentionality and some planning that goes into having successful goals and habits.

And so. I think the first step to being a successful home cook is just being [00:49:00] prepared. Start with a meal plan. Meal plan with recipes that you know and love. You know, you don't have to start branching out to all these new recipes that are unfamiliar to you right off the bat. Just start with things You know how to cook, you know, your family likes to eat them, you know, start doing them on a rotation, keep your meal plan relatively simple.

And then, grocery shop with an organized consolidated list. That's also a very important part of the planning process because. You know, grocery, we could have listed grocery shopping as its whole other barrier to entry 

um, for, for people cooking at home. Grocery shopping can be super frustrating.

Riley: Do we need a part two? I feel like this is so long, but there's so many aspects to this, but you're absolutely right. Yeah.

Roni: Yeah. this is what we do. Plan to Eat has so many resources for getting started meal planning, making your meal plans, Making your meal plan simpler, you know, planning around your specific lifestyle. If you're not naturally a planner personality, or you don't feel like you're naturally an organized person, that doesn't mean [00:50:00] that this is something that you just say you can never do or never get better at just like cooking, being more organized is something that's a skill that you can build and kind of a habit that you can incorporate more in your life.

If this is something that's important to you.

Riley: Roni and I are on the extreme end of the planning a planner personality types, but I know many people who use plan to eat who aren't crazy planners and it, um, it's still, it still works for them. It's still a tool that they use to store their recipes, which is another hurdle we haven't even really talked about.

It's just the massive amount of recipes on the internet in cookbooks at Barnes and Noble for crying out loud. You know, there's so many recipes, so saving recipes, creating that meal plan and then the grocery list. I mean. I think Plan to Eat in and of itself is just such a one, two, three process. Um, it just is such a tool.

But no matter which piece of it is a bigger piece for you, cause I think there's so many people out there who are saying the recipe [00:51:00] books, my favorite part. Cause I get to store all my recipes in an organized way. The meal planner is my favorite part. Um, for me, honestly, the shopping list is the best part because.

I cook without recipes sometimes. And so my meal plans are ingredient lists. I just need to know what to buy at the grocery store. And I know what I'm making. I just don't have a recipe for it, you know? Uh, so yeah, we can have a whole nother conversation about the shopping list, but having it be organized, going to the grocery store, eliminating that barrier to entry of like the grocery store is humongous.

And I have a list of 50 things. I'm going to have to be zigzagging all over this place. Um, The Plan to Eat shopping list eliminates that and it groups categories together. If you have never used it, it groups things together. So dairies together, breads together, produce, freezer, frozen goods, all those things.

Organization in and of itself is a new habit, right? It's a new, it could be a resolution. But I think that that's another one that home cooked meals really kind of covers 

Roni: Mm hmm. 

Riley: Rearranging your kitchen before you start doing something new or just in order to be more organized in your home helps with the [00:52:00] home cooking home cooked meal process. Just kind of spruces things up, get you ready to make your meals. But, uh, yeah, there's so many, so many aspects of this that we could continue to talk about.

Roni: Totally. Yeah. I mean, was it last year that we did our pantry clean out episode? You know, I mean like that's a part of this as well that, you know, it could be a barrier to entry where you're just like, my kitchen is a hot mess and, you know, taking the time to clean things out and realize like, what do I have?

What needs to go in the trash? Yeah. There's a, there's a lot of things you could make a lot of excuses for why you can't cook more meals at home. And I think we could combat almost all of them. Absolutely.

Riley: more stressed by all these tips that we've given. But I think just to leave it at meal planning, home cooked meals, home cooked meals is the umbrella. For so many resolutions and by just simply saying, we are going to eat at more meals at home [00:53:00] this year, 2025, and as a by product, like we've already said, you're going to save money.

You're going to save time. You're going to eat together. Your mental health will improve. Your health might improve. Most likely it will, because you're eating food at home. Your fitness goals can be more attainable. Um, the list goes on and on and on. You're going to be more organized. You're going to all these things.

So. I just think like when you look at it that way and you say, instead of making a list of 10 resolutions, I'm going to make this one resolution and it will meet all of those, man, that feels good to just say, okay, I'm going to do this one thing, but I'm actually reaching all these other goals too. And, and that's going to feel like you're on a really successful 2025.

Roni: I love it. All right. Well, let's sign off. Thank you as always for listening to the Planty podcast. We hope you have a great rest of your 2024. An amazing start to 2025, and we will see you again in the new year.

[00:54:00]