Pune: After participating in various social media challenges that gained momentum when the lockdown began, enthusiastically baking, plating and taking ‘Insta-worthy’ images, people are at their wit’s end trying to keep things interesting in the kitchen.
Six months after staying home, people are going through a cooking burnout. “I love to cook, but thinking of what to make has become frustrating of late. We’ve tried many different recipes from various cuisines — Mexican, Spanish, African, and so on, to shake things up between regular Indian home food. But even that has become boring now,” said a cooking enthusiast in the city.
Chef and restaurateur Rachel Goenka said, “It’s unfair to burden one person with deciding what to cook. We usually plan a menu in advance for the week. We think about splitting up the week into vegetarian and non-vegetarian days or deciding on what day you would like to cook certain protein. At my house, Sundays is always about biryani.”
A meal plan can also help a person alternate between carbohydrates — rice and roti. Introduce variety by adding ground oats, ragi, buckwheat, grated paneer or vegetables to the dough, the play of colours and textures could spruce up a meal.
Chef Irfan Pabaney added that sticking to a weekly meal plan takes effort. “And the family isn’t helpful at all,” he said, adding, “The key is to be fairly well-stocked so you can wing it. Challenge yourself to make three things a week that you’ve never made before. Make a heavy-ish lunch with Indian food and a lighter dinner that could be anything from a stir fry, pasta or a salad. Cold cuts, sausages and eggs help tremendously. Finish your dinner prep between 4-6 pm so that putting everything together doesn’t take time,” he said.
Six months after staying home, people are going through a cooking burnout. “I love to cook, but thinking of what to make has become frustrating of late. We’ve tried many different recipes from various cuisines — Mexican, Spanish, African, and so on, to shake things up between regular Indian home food. But even that has become boring now,” said a cooking enthusiast in the city.
Chef and restaurateur Rachel Goenka said, “It’s unfair to burden one person with deciding what to cook. We usually plan a menu in advance for the week. We think about splitting up the week into vegetarian and non-vegetarian days or deciding on what day you would like to cook certain protein. At my house, Sundays is always about biryani.”
A meal plan can also help a person alternate between carbohydrates — rice and roti. Introduce variety by adding ground oats, ragi, buckwheat, grated paneer or vegetables to the dough, the play of colours and textures could spruce up a meal.
Chef Irfan Pabaney added that sticking to a weekly meal plan takes effort. “And the family isn’t helpful at all,” he said, adding, “The key is to be fairly well-stocked so you can wing it. Challenge yourself to make three things a week that you’ve never made before. Make a heavy-ish lunch with Indian food and a lighter dinner that could be anything from a stir fry, pasta or a salad. Cold cuts, sausages and eggs help tremendously. Finish your dinner prep between 4-6 pm so that putting everything together doesn’t take time,” he said.