There is nothing like time in the kitchen to make me feel good and feel all fuzzy when I serve good food to the family. Here are the reasons why cooking is good for our mental health and may as well be called kitchen therapy.
Nothing to Do But Eat
When the community lockdowns started in March 2020, we found ourselves without business and work and locked inside our building. We have nowhere to go and the only thing that got us busy was to keep tabs of what was going on around us through the TV and Facebook.
Needless to say, the usual buzzing in our commercial area was gone and the neighborhood was eerily silent. There was a sense of foreboding, as it felt like the end of the world already.
Since we didn’t understand much about the pathology of the virus back then, we strictly observed safety protocols. Moreover, we just stayed at home in order to be safe. As much as we could, we ordered food or had ingredients delivered so that we could prepare our own dishes.
Reasons Why Cooking is Good for Our Mental Health
We are an extended family unit in the house. Plus, we have stay-in employees. During the lockdowns, the city life that used to buzz with activity was at a standstill. My in-laws, who worked hard for six days a week had always looked forward to their one day off when they could go to church and unwind afterward.
During the lockdown, all we saw were our walls and each other’s faces.
I took it upon myself to get creative in the kitchen.
It was already bad enough to be locked in at home as a result of the quarantine, but it is worse to be locked in with boring food.
Coming from a family of cooks, I am quite handy in the kitchen but the lockdown helped me realize my cooking prowess. And here are the reasons why cooking is good for our mental health.
Produces good food for the family
Things got pretty boring at home, even though we continued with our homeschooling. One of the shows that got us hooked was MasterChef Junior, top-billed by celebrity chef, Gordon Ramsay.
We have completed watching all the episodes and we have been inspired to recreate some of the dishes at home. The show also widened our daughters’ food knowledge, encouraging them to eat many new things.
It was one of the reasons why I am also encouraged to keep cooking for them because the pandemic has certainly expanded their palate. We kept producing restaurant-style food from our kitchen and they are actually eating them. haha
Creative boost
Since it is not every day that we spend time in the kitchen, we took the opportunity to try something new. Sometimes, the recipe is from YouTube. Or the recipe came from a book that our kids stumbled upon in our little library.
We bought different ingredients, tried new cooking techniques, and experimented with tastes. Our eldest Shawna also enjoyed cooking with herbs.
Our times in the kitchen really stimulated our creative juices to create something new or fancy.
Physical activity
Our kitchen is not air-conditioned, so it can be really hot and humid, especially if are using the oven.
From collecting ingredients, washing, slicing, cooking, to plating, we spend a lot of time standing on our feet. We tend to really sweat it out in the kitchen. So many calories burned in a couple of hours.
Social connection
Cooking with my children has created a lot of happy bonding memories with the girls. We got to chat, argue, discuss, and eventually prepare something really nice for the family. Their sense of achievement after making every dish is worth all the effort and stress on my part.
Moreover, we get to enjoy the meals with our other family members where the kids get to discuss what they did. They especially find pride when the elders praise them for their kitchen stint.
Sense of Accomplishment
I am the kind of cook who wants to perfect a certain dish and I would keep doing it until I have achieved it. And the kids are with me, as they are probably the most brutal critics. Haha
It just makes us so happy to be able to accomplish our goal and eventually feed everyone in the family. Sometimes, we make big batches so that we can share the food that we made with our in-house staff. That also makes them so happy.
Stress-busting
Preparing good food and feeding that to my family is a passion for me. I do not really intend to get into the food business because I am a moody cook. This means that I cannot consistently produce the same quality of food and the same dishes over and over again.
But what I do notice is that, when I am stressed about something, I find myself spending a lot of time in the kitchen. Preparing the food that I am craving for and eventually eating it makes me happy. And being happy relieves my stress and helps me solve my problems. There is nothing like a happy tummy to help me come up with solutions.
Staying safe at home
Kitchen therapy has made us loved staying at home more. Since we can prepare restaurant-style dishes that we are craving at home and at a fraction of the cost, we no longer feel the need to go out. Not that we can. But at least, the self-quarantine that we imposed on ourselves has become much easier to bear.
Many People Got Into Homecooking and Doing Business, Too
I believe that many people also indulged in kitchen therapy ever since the pandemic started. It is no wonder why we now have so many homecooks with online businesses. The more enterprising lot of people have found that cooking for others can be a potential source of sustainable income. Or it could also be a side hustle.
Being able to do something you love, earn from it, and keep your sanity intact in this pandemic—these are what kitchen therapy has brought us.
- Try this at home: Pinoy Callos Recipe by Mommy Sigrid
Some Recipes that You Might Want to Try
- Hubby and I are fond of K-Dramas. The most memorable scenes for me are those where the actors are eating. haha I just enjoy watching them eat with gusto. One of our latest favorite is Vincenzo. So we made Baked Rigatoni Dinner for the Love of Vincenzo.
- Cooking for the husband means knowing what he likes. He likes curry and spicy food because while he looks like a Korean, he is into Indian cuisine. So I made Spicy Indian-Style Chicken Curry Recipe with Pita Bread for him.
- Our eldest daughter Shawna loves anything healthy. So together, we Discovered the Joy that Avocado Toast Brings.
- Showing you How to Make Baked Tuna Pie Melt Using White Bread. This is simple but it’s like snacks ordered from a restaurant.
- When you have a special occasion, here’s and Easy Boneless Lechon Belly Recipe for the Family
I agree with you Mommy Sig that eating yummy & healthy foods makes all of us happy. It helps a lot to lessen our worries & stress especially in this time of pandemic.
Very satisfying and rewarding.Im really appreciate it,those things that we need to cope up stress and anxiety.
although I bake, I’m not a good cook. But I’m always willing to try and learn 🙂
Cooking time is family bonding time!! Cooking healthy meals is a must especially right now that we need to keep our immune system up. Getting from someone you love you a Yum! is a such a feeling of satisfaction to one’s heart.
Isa ito sa mga solusyon simula nagkapandemic, ang pagluluto. Nakakawala ng stress ang pagluluto at kasama pa natin ang pamilya. Nakakatuwa na kasama pa din natin ang ating pamilya sa nararanasan nating pandemya.
Cooking is the best way to relieve stress..This is my way too to express love from others
Yay! Mouth watering! I wish I could cook too! Yan tlaga ang aking failure..kusina…magaling lang akong kumain..
It’s nice to know na therapy pala ang cooking for some people like you mommy Sig. Ang pag naggogrocery namn for me is a therapy😚
ako din sis! grocery shopping. Gusto kong mapag isa kaya si hubby may separate shopping cart din. mwahahaha but dahil sa pandemic, halos di na din ako nakaka punta sa grocery 🙁
I really agree to this mommy. Cooking is really good for mental health. Aside from you can cook food for the family , you are also expressing yourself and your love for them. Nakakarelax din talaga. Thanks for sharing this mommy❤️❤️❤️
Napaka helpful talaga ng cooking not only physically but mentally .. ganda ding bonding time
Para po sa akin ang pagluluto ang nagsave sa mga kababayan natin sa pagka boredom nung nagsimula ang pandemic at nagbigay din ng pagkakakitaan.
Indeed mommy if we are in charge in the kitchen may choice tayo mamili at maghanda ng pagkain which is healthy and fresh at ang pinakaimportante is Alam natin kong ano ang gusto nila.
Not a good cook eversince, but thankful ako kasi nasasarapan parin family ko whenever i cooked☺️and i’m willing to try new recipes and learn more.
Hilig ko din po ang magluto. Nakakawala po talaga ng stress and at the same time napapakain ko pa ng healthy at home-cooked meals ang mag ama ko.
I am your exact opposite! I always want to perfect the dish the very first time, and that’s my ultimate gratification. I’d cook or make that dish again. But once I fail, hmp! Balakayujan!! Hahaha
Plus, I hate the hulugasan! Don’t you?? 😂😂😂
I don’t! hahaha I have manughugas. If I don’t ah te wala luto. :p
Mas masarap ang kain ng kids ko pag ipinagluluto ko sila, very rewarding kapag nakikita mo silang ganado kumain. Kaya I tried to think other recipes na healthy at siguradong magugustuhan nila.
Hi mommy.. Thank you for always sharing your yummy recipes ❤️ also your Blessings ❤️❤️❤️
Masarap talaga ang mag luto lalo na at para sa family nakakatanggal stress
That’s why I love cooking Mommy.. sarap ipaghain mga mahal sa Buhay sa sariling luto mo bilang Nanay kasi nga po may kakaibang sangkap which is LOVE.
Agree with you mommy even with out pandemic cooking is one way to Express our love to our family.we Mother’s always want the best for them.if we see their happiness in our menu it brings so much joy in our hearts
Not a good cook but i love to cook for my family, ang sarap din sa pakiramdam na pag sinasabihan ka ng mga anak at hubby mo na “ang sarap ng luto mo ma” nakakawala ng pagod, naappreciate nila pagluluto ko para sakanila, pero hindi lang po sa pamilya ko ako nagluluto even for my relatives i cooked for them lalo na pag bumibisita ako or sila hinAhanap nila luto ko, namana ko po ata sa papA at lolo ko pagiging cook sa family 😅 kahit hindi sa cooking ang course ko ng nagaaral ako mas nageenjoy parin ako sa ang pagluluto 😅. Marami pa po akong pag aaralan na mga recipe gaya po ng sainyo, matutunan ko rin yan 😁
Thank you mommy sigrid na inspired po ako sa blog mo.😊❤
agree with you mommy nkkwala tlga ng stress at nkktulong sa mental health dahil nalilibang sa pagluluto lalo na pra sa family at kapag npakacreative 😍
I love cooking to momsh, thank you for sharing your recipes po💛😋
Stress reliever nteng mga mommy ang mag experiment sah kusina eh . Bonding with the kids nah dn
Thank you for sharing this mommy Sig. actually laking bagay ung may naggawa ka for the famiiy talaga and para na din malibang because of the pandemic. Andme dn talagang magagawa like cooking nakakarelax at nakakacomfort din lalo ung magexperiment and explore about any recipes to cook para matikman natin at ng buong family. 👍🏻
Ang sarap magluto Lalu para sa pamilya natin ang ating ihahanda at nakakaawala ng stress..makakapili pa Tayo ng gusto nating ihanda para sa kanila.
Tama po..one of the things I learned from cooking is dapat pag nagluluto ka galing sa puso mo.Dapat masaya ka na gingawa mo Yun at focus ka , Kasi po kapag galit ka , Hindi po tlga masarap at Hindi maganda kalalabasan.
Nakakawala din talaga ng stress ang pagluluto. Maganda din itong maging hobby lalo na kung ang pinagluluto mo ay ang family mo. Sarap sa pakiramdam 😊.
Stress reliever talaga ang pagluluto. Sobrang nakakawala ng stress lalo na kapag hobby mo na talaga. Mas maeenjoy mo din talaga ang pagluluto kapag pamilya mo an paglulutuan mo, siguradong mas masarap at special.