Healthy eating can be challenging at times, especially for those of us that need a little help with our cooking skills. Did you know that the most searched cooking term on the Internet is “how to boil an egg?” Close behind is “how to sauté” and “knife skills.”
I can totally relate and vividly remember calls to my grandmother in desperate help for cooking advice (including how to boil an egg and how to boil pasta).
Cooking Skills have not been top of mind with families in past years but that tide is beginning to shift.
Michelle Obama was quick to point out last year that even she, with a Harvard Degree, didn’t know how to cook when she had kids. She loved feeding her kids from a jar. But as her kids got older, they were suddenly faced with how to cook and what to cook.
Just like Michelle Obama, many of us turn to quick and easy foods when our kids are toddlers. Mac-N-Cheese is so easy to make because it has step-by-step instructions on the package. It’s hard to mess that up. But put a fresh chicken breast and green beans in front of us, and we’re suddenly at a loss for whether we should grill, sauté, bake, broil, or poach.
Some blame TV cooking shows for adding intimidation to the cooking process. Their complex dishes coupled with unusual ingredients leave us entertained but rarely inspired to try it ourselves.
Despite what can sometimes feel overwhelming, cooking at home has so many benefits:
- Home cooking is one of the simplest and most impactful ways to get your kids eating healthy.
- Home cooking is an even better predictor of how well the family eats than income.
- When you cook at home, you’re in charge of the ingredients, which generally means fewer trans fats and calories than what you may eat out or purchase with processed foods.
Cooking is a life skill that gets developed over time. The more we practice, the more confidence we gain in the kitchen. And that’s ultimately what we all need to adopt a healthy eating lifestyle.
If you’re looking for a little inspiration, here’s a snippet we filmed at the 2014 PHA conference featuring Michelle Obama. In this clip, she talks about home cooking and her infamous “Jar Stage.”
And if you're looking for a few healthy recipes to launch your healthy eating efforts, be sure to check out our HKI meal planner. It's a meal planner unlike any other, that will change the way your family eats. Learn more here.