Want to cook faster and save some time in the kitchen? Then you've come to the right place! For many of us, a more sustainable and balanced diet is at the top of the list. However, busy schedules, old habits or the occasional hectic day often put a damper on this wish.
Another reason for this is the misconception that healthy and climate-friendly cooking seems to require a little more time and planning. Seemingly! Because there are ways and means to prepare healthy, delicious meals quickly and efficiently.
In this article, I'm going to give you my best tips that will not only save you time in the kitchen, but will also make cooking more fun. Let's go!
1. clean up and organize the kitchen
Order is half the battle! If you Everything you need for cooking in one fixed place you avoid long searches for ingredients or cooking utensils. You can also see at a glance what is still in stock and what needs to be bought in.
For example, organize your food by category! This speeds up the preparation and also helps, Avoid food waste. A well-organized kitchen ultimately saves time, nerves and waste! 🙂
2. roughly plan meals in advance and have ingredients in stock
Good planning is the be-all and end-all if you want to save time when cooking! Plan your meals at least roughly in advance and create a weekly plan and a Shopping listso that you have all the ingredients on hand. Then stick to the plan - also to avoid spontaneous purchases of unhealthy or unnecessary food.
Festive cooking evenings can also help you to cook in a more structured and therefore faster way.
Additional Tip: Use up your leftovers too (e.g. carrot greens or pumpkin seeds) by using them in new dishes instead of throwing them away. You can find inspiration for this in the linked article.
3. choose quick recipes
Not every dish needs hours before it can be served! Simply make a conscious decision to Recipes you already know or ingredients that can be prepared quickly.
Experience has shown that dishes with short cooking times are, for example Pasta with fresh sauces, Salads or Wok dishes with vegetables. Over time, try to keep an ever-expanding collection of quick and easy recipes to hand for stressful days.
In modern recipes from the internet you will always find a Information on preparation and cooking timethat you can use as a guide.
Here are a few quick recipeswhich are located in less than 20 minutes can be implemented:
- Pasta with green basil and cashew pesto
- Red cabbage salad with orange
- Quick rice noodles with peanut sauce
Book Tip: Have a look at my Book "Kochen fürs Klima" inside! There you will not only find background information but also practical and climate-friendly recipes to cook. If you like, get it here*.
4. have the right kitchen utensils to hand
The right equipment can save a huge amount of time when cooking - the more versatile your kitchen utensils are, the better! A good example is a KitchenAid Food Processorwhich, among other things, offers you the Chopping, pureeing, grating and mixing and can pre-portion ingredients.
Utensils such as a Induction stove, by high-quality chef's knife, by Pressure cooker or a Microwave help you to work more efficiently in the kitchen.
5. provide all ingredients from the start
To cook even faster, you should take a quick breath beforehand and check not only the appliances, but also the Food you need for thisin the correct quantity.
This way, you ensure short distances in the kitchen, don't waste time searching and avoid nasty surprises that mean you have to go back to the supermarket. And if that does happen, then do the Quick shopping best in the eveningwhen you don't have to wait so long at the supermarket checkout.
6. don't cook everything yourself
One of the biggest time wasters in the cooking process is having to prepare and cook everything yourself. This is another reason why processed "convenience products" and ready meals are unfortunately - and unhealthily - quite popular.
However, it is still healthy and perfectly fine to go out for a walk every now and then. Pre-cut vegetables (e.g. carrots or zucchinis) or Frozen food (e.g. peas or spinach) to cook a little faster. They no longer need to be cut or prepared and speed up cooking considerablywithout compromising the quality of the meals.
Notice: How to cook your own Freeze food plastic-freeI will be happy to show you in detail in the linked article.
7. cook more than you eat
Not only the cooking process itself, but also, to cook something new every daycosts time! If you're already cooking anyway, why not cook a few basic ingredients (e.g. rice, lentils and pasta) or even a whole meal for the next few days in advance?
Simply prepare several portions straight away, which can then be served as Lunch during the next lunch break or as earned Dinner the following day serve. So you always have an environmentally friendly and healthy meal to hand when you need it quickly.
Tip: How you can vegan meal prep for the week in the linked article.
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Cookbook Vegan cliché goodbye!20 € -
Eat animals13 € -
Vegan is nonsense!24 €
8 Use waiting times sensibly
When the water is boiling or the oven is preheating, this creates Time gaps in the cooking processthat can be put to good use!
ceiling during this period, for example, the Table, rinse the used Kitchen utensils or prepare the Ingredients for the next step. A little structured multitasking will save you a lot of time in the end and allow you to enjoy your cooking skills more quickly 😉.
9. ensure a shorter cooking time
Cooking takes a lot of time - but with a few tips and tricks you can effectively shorten it! For example, leave the Lid on the saucepanwhen you boil hot water for the potatoes - or simply heat the water in a kettle beforehand for smaller quantities.
Also cut the potatoes into smaller piecesbefore you throw them into the cooking pot. Such simple cooking tips not only save you energy costsbut also a lot of time.
10. don't stress!
Probably the most important piece of advice: don't let yourself be rushed when cooking so that you can always enjoy it! Not everything always has to be perfect and it's It's perfectly all right if a dish is not quite so succeedsas you had imagined. And it doesn't matter whether it takes five minutes more or less. You'll get faster with every cooking experience you gain.
Faster cooking, made easy!
Cooking doesn't have to be laborious and time-consuming. With the the right planning, suitable kitchen utensils and a few simple tricks you can conjure up healthy meals in no time at all, even in hectic everyday life, without getting stressed.
"Good food is the foundation of genuine happiness."
Auguste Escoffier (more at Food quotes)
I hope that these tips will help you to cook faster, more efficiently and yet in a relaxed manner, and that you will find your way to a more sustainable lifestyle to pave the way. Do you have any questions, suggestions or further tips? Then I look forward to your comment!
Stay healthy,
PS: I have been eating a vegan diet for many years. My Reasons for the vegan lifestyle - and how you too can Starting a purely plant-based diet I will explain how you can master each of these in the linked blog posts.
