Home Cooking 101

If spending more time at home has you eating mac and cheese out of a box several nights a week, now might be a good time to learn how to cook. After all, take out is great but nothing beats a home cooked meal. If you’re ready to ditch the excuses and build a cooking habit, we have a few tips, and some great pasta sauces, to get you started.

Start simple

Learning how to cook shouldn’t be intimidating, so start simple! Look for recipes that use just a handful of ingredients with minimal preparation and quick cooking times. Preparing a simple pasta dish using a jar of prepared pasta sauce is a great place to start. This will allow you to get some quick wins and build your confidence. It also gives you an opportunity to work on the basics of home cooking, like cooking pasta to al dente perfection. As you acquire these basic skills, you can build on them to prepare more elaborate meals.

Stock your pantry

Keeping a well-stocked pantry not only makes you more likely to cook but it also makes it easier to come up with meal ideas. Focus on stocking up on pantry staples like pasta and other grains, pasta sauce, canned protein, spices, and high-quality olive oil. Having these staples on hand gives you a great starting point for a variety of dishes. By combining them with a few fresh ingredients from the fridge, you can create simple yet healthy and flavourful meals.

Explore recipes and techniques

Once you’ve mastered the basics and have a well-stocked pantry, it’s time to have a little fun. Explore new recipes and cooking techniques, get creative! Start by searching for recipes using the ingredients you have on hand in your pantry and fridge. To start, look for dishes that are familiar and that you know you enjoy. As you become more confident, you can get more adventurous and have a little fun exploring new dishes.

If you’re ready to try your hand at home cooking, try one of our favourite beginner recipes featuring a few pantry staples and Nonna Pia’s pasta sauces: