Is your wife or husband annoyed that you’re not helping in the kitchen? Are you tired of beans on toast yet again? Do you want to invite that girl or boy over for dinner and wow them with your skills? Or do you just want to make friends a beautiful lunch? It’s not hard to up your game.

 

The key is to find a few recipes that work and do them a few times. As you do, you’ll notice significant growth in your confidence and skills and naturally expand your range. The recipes you know will become second nature, and you can knock them up in no time and with no recipe needed.

 

It’s easy to cook from scratch. People think it’s difficult, but it’s not. I will grant you that it takes a little longer, but it tastes far, far better. As with anything, the more you do it, the better you get.

 

It surprises me how few people cook from scratch. When I say this, I don’t mean  heating up some oven chips and fish fingers. I mean making a lasagna from the constituent ingredients, making a sauce to go over some fish, or creating a salad from what you have in the fridge.

 

Life is not about impressing people, but people really are easily impressed by a home-made meal. Also, what’s better than having friends over and producing and sharing something fantastic for them to eat?

What to Buy – Essentials

You don’t need to buy hundreds of things to help you in the kitchen, but here are a few things that make a big difference and can get you flying.

 

A good knife – A good knife elevates your cooking and makes preparation much easier and fun. One knife can do everything—dice onions, slice bread, carve chicken, cut a pizza—so you only need to buy one.

 

I have a Global G2 – 20.5cm Cooks Knife. It’s pricey but excellent, and it will last a lifetime. You will not regret it.

 

If thans too expensive, try Victorinox knives. They are fantastic for the price, very sharp and recommended by many chefs. This Victorinox Tomato Utility Knife Serrated Edge 11cm is smaller but superb.

 

Kiwi Knives from Chop Chop are again quite a bargain, and I’ve resharpen  mine.

 

Microplane Grater—These make zesting fruit and grating garlic or hard cheese so much easier. Again, they are worth the investment.

 

Little Silicone Spatulas—I’m not mad to be using plastic, but these are incredibly
useful and make it so easy to scoop stuff out of jars, bowls, and boxes.

 

A good baking tray – these from IKEA are excellent and very reasonably priced.

 

A good set of pans – there are so many to choose from it’s hard to recommend.

 

A good start would be –

A quality large frying pan – can also act as a wok and can go in the oven if a
recipe requires it. There are some many to choose from. For starters, you could try Ninja ZEROSTICK frying pans that come in various sizes, have good reviews and are Which (consumer magazine) recommended.

 

Casserole dish – this is just a big high-sided pan. The heavier/thicker the bottom,
the better. Food will quickly burn and catch on thin stainless casserole pans. Cast iron has great heat distribution and can be put in the oven. They are expensive, but do last forever. You could go second hand via the internet or scour the charity shops.

 

Habitat (UK) has well-priced cast iron pieces.

 

Saucepans—The IKEA 365 range is good. The base are thickish, not super heavy, but it does a good job and is easy to wash.

 

In the UK, TK Maxx tends to have a good selection of reasonably priced cookware, especially cast iron, and you can sometimes find a bargain.

My Favourite Books

A Wolf In The Kitchen: Easy Food For Hungry People – Linsdey Bareham

 

Published 24 years ago, I’ve had it good for 20 or so years, and it is faded and stained, just as a well-used cookbook should be. The recipes are very achievable, taste good, and, as the title suggests, are hearty dishes. There are no pictures, but do not let that put you off. The haddock chowder and Thai-style corn chowder recipes alone are worth getting the book for. The Shepherds Pie is simple and delicious. It may now be out of print, but second-hand copies are available.

 

From the Veg Patch (10 favourite vegetables, 100 simple recipes everyone will love_ – Kathy Slack

 

I bought this to try different recipes for the gluts of vegetables from the allotment. It’s a bit more adventurous but still contains some simple recipes that are
winners—especially the Roast apples with cider, sausages, and sage hasselback potatoes, which, although a “traybake,” is good enough to serve to friends coming for lunch or dinner. It’s so tasty. The Green bean carbonara is a triumph, too.

 

Dominique’s Kitchen– Dominique Woolf

 

This book won Channel 4’s The Great Cookbook Challenge. I did not watch the TV show, but I wanted a Thai recipe book that was achievable recipes. I borrowed this from my local library and then bought it a few days later. The Thai Red Beef & Peanut Curry with Cucumber Relish recipe is so easy (it uses Thai Red Paste), so no mashing of lemongrass required. It’s almost foolproof. Great with sticky jasmine rice (which comes in microwavable pouches) if your rice cooking is not yet on point.

Other recipes

Here are some recipes* to also help you get started, which are absolutely amazing-

 

Sausage Ragù with tagliatelle – a Rick Stein recipe that I’ve shared scores of timeswith friends and family. It’s one pot and simple. Take your time, and people will be blown away.

 

Hairy Bikers Sausage Casserole – a one–pot recipe that is hard to get wrong. You can improvise with the ingredients. It’s great for Sunday lunch or dinner.

*I seem to have many sausage recipes!

Take Action

Give the Sausage Ragù with tagliatelle, Rick Stein recipes a go and let me know how it goes.