on lazy cooking for dummies
what happens when inability meets necessity
have you ever…
burnt white rice in an instant pot (2021)
set off the fire alarm while cooking protein, not once, but twice (2019)
undercooked chicken thighs and served them to your ma (2015)
this is by no means a pissing contest, though this resumé proves that i have always been an absolute disaster in the kitchen.
it likely goes without saying that i hate cooking, and i find it to be a huge waste of time. in fact, me writing a post about cooking will likely get a chuckle or snicker from my friends.
my love for food
my ma always invited me to try everything once. though it was scary in my ripe elementary school years to dip my toes in more dangerous activities like meeting new people or traveling to foreign places, food was a safe way to engage in this concept. i didn’t have to risk fatigue or rejection or an old-age disease; all i had to do was open wide for ma to fork the worm into my mouth.
because i grew up in a multicultural house, i ended up falling in love with the nuance of flavor in my childhood: the smoky aroma of dutch kidney bean stew; the crisp bite of indonesian corn fritters; the nostalgic tang of fújiàn red rice wine chicken1. i was the ideal child to raise: a non-picky eater, just no hot chili, please.
another reason why i dislike cooking is because i felt that i could never achieve these flavors on my own without hours of prep time and years of practice—time i never bothered to put in, until the entire world yielded to a pandemic.
the pandemic hobby
as covid introduced recipe trends that people wouldn’t normally partake in (e.g., sourdough bread and dalgona coffee), i, too, only learned how to make the most impractical, time-consuming dishes with little nutritional value: klappertaart; tiramisu; boba. they were delicious but obviously unsustainable for everyday meals.
saying that covid was when i started enjoying cooking would be false; i only cooked to kill time and take my eyes off the many screens that filled my days. if anything, i learned that i didn’t love cooking, that i still preferred my couch.
when covid dissipated and forced me into the real world—to a career where i have limited time to hang around the kitchen and into a city where three tacos with rice and beans cost $20 before tax and tip—i knew i was in trouble.
forcing myself to cook
new york is a haven for food lovers. when i first moved to the city, i was adamant on indulging in the diverse cuisines that pepper the boroughs, relying on restaurants and fast casual joints to fill my belly. i didn’t make time to think about what i was putting into my body until i started to notice a decline.
i was losing weight.
though i received compliments, i wasn’t healthy. in fact, i was losing weight because i was under-eating, and the little i ate was junk.
i often cruised through my 12+ hour work day on two cups of coffee and a grain bowl from a fast casual joint—which, by the way, corporate america, isn’t as healthy as you think—split into two meals. on tougher work days, i was too swamped with work to get food and substituted meals for a granola bar and more caffeine. and the weekends were simply a hedonistic carnival of grease and sodium and sugar.
i wasn’t doing this intentionally—in fact, i didn’t notice my poor eating habits until i started experiencing sluggish days, existential sadness, and energy levels so crippling that i dreaded my mornings.
i decided, then, to start being more conscious of what ingredients entered my body, and the only way to fully know this was to control what i put in my food. so i learned how to cook and started small—chickpea pasta with pesto and a veggie medley, quinoa salad with sausage and store-bought ginger dressing—but at least the meals i ate were clean, well-balanced, and somewhat tasty.
i have since switched jobs and work from home now, which definitely makes this healthier lifestyle a little easier.
then, i found home cooks on instagram who showed me how to make asian dishes i recognized, dishes that i could easily recreate and quickly fell in love with.
the more meals i made, the more i realized that cooking wasn’t as terrible as i thought. dare i say, i began to tolerate it.
what’s in my fridge: freezer edition
as cooking became ingrained in my daily routine, i found ways to cut corners in the kitchen while prioritizing nutrition, efficiency, and taste—in that order.
this post not a hero’s journey; i am in no way a chef. if you relate at all to my struggles, hopefully these tips can help you jumpstart your cooking journey or make it a little easier.
buy portioned/cut-up produce to freeze. my freezer is a lot more full than my fridge because i hate prepping and keeping track of expiry dates.
my picks: fuzhou fish balls, dumplings, peeled shrimp, chicken tenderloins, ground pork, veggie mixes
only save recipes that already fall in your condiment rotation. this helps you minimize food waste and decision fatigue when at the store. though i like experimenting with new recipes, my weekly grocery list stays the same.
my western picks: butter, cashew milk, pesto, marinara, grated parmesan
my asian picks: soy sauce, minced garlic, sesame oil, rice vinegar, oyster sauce, chili crisp, chicken bouillon, mirin, dashi, miso, kimchi, gochujang
me making kimchi jjigae that is lacking broth, lol
keep a glass measuring cup. like this pyrex cup with a spout. it functions as a tool to measure liquids and grains, to set cooked meat aside, and a non-stick mixing bowl for sauces and beaten eggs. three-in-one function = less dishes!
add, don’t subtract. this is more of a balanced eating “rule” to keep me accountable, but i try to modify recipes to suit my cravings, nutrition, and what already i have in the pantry.
e.g. making peanut noodles? throw in a boiled egg and salad greens!
weee! if you’re based in the u.s. and need asian groceries, i cannot recommend this delivery service enough. weee! has a massive collection of imported and locally available asian snacks, condiments, and produce for extremely affordable prices. plus, they deliver for free for orders above $35.
what now?
i wrote this post as an encouragement, to say that even though you may suck at and hate doing something, there are always ways to make the experience tolerable and slightly easier. going from burning rice to making this one pot chicken and rice dish in two years is absolutely well-deserving of an offer to cook for a michelin star restaurant, hence why i have landed on substack to brag.
and, more importantly, i want to acknowledge that though i try to prioritize nutritional balance, i’m thankful for the privilege to be loose with my diet. my health is an asset i don’t take for granted, so i hope you don’t, either.
thanks for stopping by,
<3 tasha
these are not my family’s recipes, just references with pictures for context!
Get an airfryer 👀