While I’d like to consider myself a true foodie—booking reservations at busy hotspots and sharing under-the-radar favorites with my inner circle—I wasn’t always much of a cook. When I lived in New York during my 20s, I much preferred dollar slices and bodega stands to being in the kitchenette of my studio apartment (which famously had a mini-fridge).
But when I moved to the West Coast and the pandemic hit six months later, things changed. With so much free time on my hands and restaurants off the table, I was curious to see if I could start cooking more.
When I did, I was pleased to realize that I’m actually not half bad at cooking. Bad news? Eating the same thing day after day became boring; less of a culinary adventure, more of a job. Towards the end of 2022, after spending two years cooking the same four meals week after week, I was desperate for a change.
In very Julie & Julia move, I bought a subscription to New York Times Cooking and promised myself I would make at least one new recipe during each of the 52 weeks of the year. Not only is the app super easy to use, but they also had a great deal for Black Friday.
And, to my great surprise, I succeeded. Despite getting married, enjoying my honeymoon and traveling, I cooked over 50 new recipes during the year. The cooking challenge became much more than a feat I passed with flying tastes: it’s now a joyous hobby baked (or pan-fried… or stewed… or slow-cooked) into my weekly routine. If you’re even slightly interested in cooking, it’s a challenge I couldn’t recommend more highly.
If you’re looking to break out of your cooking rut or make it more of a habit, here are a few ways it might help you as much as it did me.
Meal planning has become second nature.
As soon as I vowed to cook at least one new recipe a week, I realized that I couldn’t just improvise our weekly meals with what was lurking in our pantry. Instead, I spent (and still do) time every Monday morning fine-tuning the menu for the week. What did I want to cook and when? Can I offer a second or third new recipe this week? And how does Taco Tuesday fit into the equation?
Now that I’ve planned our dinner cooking plans, I’ve also been strategic about lunch time by thinking through which dinners will yield leftovers and what we’ll eat on other days. Although planning meals ahead of time helped streamline the rest of the week, I have to admit that having a set menu has the added bonus of making me feel like Sydney Adamu. Yes, the chef!
Saves me time and money at the grocery store.
Not only does the plan help me automate my weekly meals, but it also makes me a more efficient (and economical!) spender. Spending too much time in the store can make it easy to pick up things you want but don’t necessarily need. Unless you know when and how you’re enjoying the latest finds from the supermarket, they can often take up precious space in your pantry and shopping budget – only to spoil when you remember to use them.
I shop differently now: if it’s not part of my meal prep, it won’t go in my shopping order. To stretch even a dollar more, I try to plan recipes that use similar ingredients like tomato paste or tahini. While we were spending close to $200 a week at the supermarket, a little planning saved me as much as $75 on groceries. Smart consumption that helps reduce waste? It’s a win-win.
It helped me slow down.
As a freelance journalist, my days are usually spent juggling a bunch of deadlines, coordinating interviews and doing administrative work for my business. With the exception of a 30-minute Peloton ride and my daily walk, I don’t take much time to just… be. But since I started preparing new meals regularly, what I thought was routine work turned into a moment of self-care. I turn on the podcast and then get to work turning an assortment of ingredients into something really tasty. It’s not just cooking a meal, it’s “me time”. That doesn’t mean I spend hours in the kitchen though – I tend to focus on relatively simple recipes that can be made in 45 minutes or less.
It feels like a creative outlet.
I used to think of cooking as just combining a bunch of measurements, but these days I think of it more as an art form. Since my year of new recipes, I’ve noticed how comfortable and confident I am in the kitchen. Before starting my challenge, I felt pressured to follow the recipe directions to perfection. But now? I have no problem improvising as needed. For example, my husband loves dishes with speed, so I’ll often add some hot sauce or extra cayenne to a mild meal. I’ve noticed that my oven takes a little longer to get the proteins to cook properly, so I’ll often adjust the baking time accordingly. And, if I happen to forget something for the recipe, I’ll work with what I have to get a delicious final product.
It’s a fun and functional hobby.
When your days are packed with deadlines and important meetings, it can seem like there’s very little room for fun things. However, since starting my culinary journey, I finally feel like I’ve found a hobby that’s more exciting to talk about than my Peloton classes or penchant for true crime podcasts — and it brings me so much joy, confidence, and nourishment. Trying new recipes has not only become a conversation starter, it’s something I actively look forward to every day. A hobby that is fun and functional is truly a *chef’s kiss*.
And who knows? As I enter the second year of my 52-week challenge, I might kick things up a notch and try different cuisines or more complicated recipes. There is literally a whole world of possibilities.