There really is nothing like a home cooked meal. Not only do you know everything that went into it but there’s a sense of satisfaction when you take your first bite, knowing that you’re the one who made this delicious food, that you really can’t get anywhere else. But, as will any other skill, there’s always more to learn, and just because you’re able to cook some really nice food, that doesn’t mean that you should be resting on your laurels! Here are a few simple things that you can do to take your cooking to the next level and really wow your friends and family at your next dinner party.
Get some better equipment
Most people don’t tend to think that much about which pots and pans they have. After all, as long as something cooks food then it’s perfectly good, right? Well, yes but only up to a certain point. Once you reach a certain skill level in the kitchen, you might start to feel as though the equipment that you have is holding you back. Perhaps you’re getting frustrated with having blunt knives, or you’re sick of your dishes sticking the bottom of your pans during cooking. When that happens, then it’s time to start looking for some better equipment. Whether you get a pizza stone to bring your homemade pizzas to the next level or you invest in a high-quality whetstone to keep your knives razor-sharp, a great chef needs great tools. Sure, you’re probably not going to need professional-level equipment, but high-quality tools can make a big difference to the way your meals come out.
Make sure your appliances are working
One of the most common issues that a lot of people run into is that, no matter what they do, their meals never seem to come out the way that they’re supposed to. A lot of the time people simply end up blaming themselves for this, assuming that they must just be a terrible cook. However, that might not be the case. Sure, we’re always told that a shoddy worker blames their tools, but in this case, that might actually be the problem. If your roasts come out undercooked or your cakes are totally uneven, the issue might be with your oven. Oven repair isn’t something that a lot of people think about but it can make a huge difference to your cooking. You really would be shocked at the sheer difference it makes when you’ve got an oven that actually works properly, heats up to a decent temperature, and cooks evenly all over. In an instant, your meals could well go from totally inedible to utterly delicious!
Learn new techniques
Cooking, like anything else, is built on a few specific building blocks. Of course, the equipment that you use is one of those building blocks, but one of the other most important of these is the techniques that you use when cooking. There’s nothing more frustrating than reading a recipe and being told to “blanch the vegetables” or “sweat the onions” and having absolutely no idea what that means. Luckily, thanks to the fact that we’re all connected to the internet these days, you can easily look up a list of the most useful cooking techniques to learn so that you’re never caught unawares by a recipe again.
Grow your own ingredients
You know what’s even more satisfying than cooking a meal from scratch? Cooking a meal from scratch using ingredients that you grew yourself! A lot of people assume that doing this would be incredibly difficult but it’s actually a lot easier than you’d expect. Whether you’re growing chillis and herbs on the windowsill or vegetables in a patch in your garden, home grown food just tastes better! Check out this list of fantastic foods that are incredibly easy to grow at home. Not only will it taste better but you’ll find that you’re also saving a huge amount of money on your groceries as well.
The wonderful thing about cooking is that, like any other skill, there’s always more to learn and new ways to develop. Not only that but, unlike a lot of other skills, you have the chance to see the impact of your knew knowledge and experience right away since you can quite literally taste how much you’ve improved. Sure, it might be comfortable and easy to cook the same old dishes every time, but being able to improve and expand your skills really can be one of the most satisfying things in the world.
