Awaken the Chef Within
While cooking is certainly an art form, not everyone feels like an artist when they set foot into a kitchen.
In fact, for many, it feels like a chore.
Chances are, even if you usually love to cook, you still have those moments when nothing in your pantry feels like it creates a complete dish, when all of your ideas seem to be on a repetitive loop, or when picking up the phone and ordering take out is too tempting to resist.
While this isn’t a problem if it happens on occasion, you don’t want to find yourself in this rut on a regular basis.
In order to escape the rut and get off the loop of the same recipes over and over again, the best thing you can do is seek out a bit of inspiration to awaken the chef within.
There are many ways you can do this—there isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution. Below are a few ideas myself and my friends have used to get the juices flowing.
Start Pinning
If you are an avid social media user and you haven’t found your way to Pinterest, now is the time to do so.
Pins of recipes are plentiful on this site and there is something for everyone.
You can create a board for different types of cuisine, different meal times, or around any other theme that interests you.
Then you just browse the “food” feed and pin whatever catches your eye.
Later, when you feel your creativity is lacking, you can just log-on, review your boards, and pick the recipe that tempts you the most.
Follow Food and Cooking Blogs
There are so many cooking blogs out there run by both home and professional chefs around the world.
A quick search based on what interests you will bring up many different blogs for you to follow.
Are you interested in eating on a budget? Do you want to focus on a specific cuisine?
Perhaps time is a big concern for you so you want to find meals that can be prepared in 15 minutes or less.
Whatever it is that you need, there is a blog out there catering to your concerns.
Tune into Food-Travel Shows
If you are in a rut where you keep cooking the same old thing, a food-travel show could be just the thing to get your thinking about new possibilities.
There are so many techniques, ingredients, and dishes that you may never have considered or even been aware of.
Spending an hour exploring a culture through its food can reveal many new prospects that will inject a bit of life into your cooking.
Watching a Cooking Program
If you need a bit more instruction, a cooking program is the way to go.
You still get the chance to be exposed to something new, but the focus is more on the process than the product.
This is perfect for those who are hesitant to simply jump into a new recipe.
Take a Cooking Class
If you learn better one-on-one, a cooking class can help you perfect new techniques and become an expert in no time.
Plus, there is a social aspect to this that is missing with the other ideas.
The bonds you can develop with your friends and family while taking a class are precious and the process is incredibly fun.
Remember, you do not need to accept boredom when it comes to cooking.
There are many ways you can awake the chef within and find yourself enjoying meal-time once again.