Why Homemade Is Best.

The title of this post could mean lots of things and could include all multiple of aspects in its meaning, however today I’m going to talk about food.

 

I like food. A lot. People at work would probably say I get a bit too excited about food – after all, lunch time is one of my best times of the day. Why? Because I love food. I get excited about food. For me, it’s something to look forward to.

 

But, not all food is equal in this. Not all food is worthy enough for me to enjoy it as much as I do. Don’t get me wrong, I like chocolate and crisps and various junk food items as much as the next person, but I do try to limit my intake of those. For me, I believe that homemade food is best. It tastes better, it looks better, it probably costs less and it’s better for you. What can be better than that?

 

Lets break that down into aspects. The first: it tastes better. There’s nothing like coming home from work, spending some time in the kitchen preparing a homemade meal and then eating it, knowing it’s from your hard work and love. Fresh, homemade food will always taste better than the ready made alternative. That is because the freshly homemade food hasn’t been sat in a plastic container for goodness knows how long.

 

Second: it looks better. They say that food has to be appealing to the eyes first, as that’s the first sense that’s used when eating. Closely followed by smell and then taste. But, homemade food will always look better. They will be brighter colours on the plate as you use fresh ingredients with fruit and vegetables in the mix. The presentation of food on the plate will look better, as it has been placed on the plate carefully, rather than scraped out of a plastic container first.

 

Third: it will (probably) have cost less. Now, this obviously does depend on what you’re eating. But, the majority of homemade meals, no matter what you are eating, will cost less than eating at a restaurant or buying a ready meal. Now, this is not always the case; if you buy basics ready meals then these will cost lower. But at what cost to your health? Lots of additives and nasty things added to it. A good example of something that will cost less is homemade pizza. We quite often make homemade pizzas which cost pennies to make. The pizza dough is just flour, yeast, water and occasionally olive oil. Then chopped tomatoes on top, then topped with cheese and other topics if we fancy them. Much cheaper than the “fresh” pizzas or the frozen ones from the supermarket. Much tastier too. Another one is porridge/oatmeal. Those “quick” oats that you pay the privilege for are not better for you – there’s normally added sugar in there – and you’re paying much more than just buying a packet of oats.

 

Fourth: it’s better for you. There’s no doubt at all that homemade food is healthier for you. For a start, you know exactly what’s going into your meal. You can control your salt/sugar intake so that it isn’t an unhealthy amount added to the meal. You won’t add any nasty or strange additives to your meal (why would you?) as you don’t need it to mask difference tasks to make it taste “real’. You won’t add any preservatives because you don’t need the food to be able to last for weeks on a shelf until someone picks it up to take home. A case in point: the humble white loaf. Now, if you make one at home, the ingredients are: flour, yeast, water, pinch of salt and a tiny bit of sugar. That’s it. On the other hand, a store bought loaf has lots of ingredients, half of which I can’t even pronounce. If you can’t read something on the back of a packet of food because it’s a scientific word, you probably shouldn’t be eating it. 

 

Now, I appreciate that for some people, cooking from scratch is really daunting and they don’t know where to start. I’m going to do a series of posts about basic but healthy, tasty meals that anyone can do in the hopes that it will help someone. I’m a big advocate of cooking and making at home as I really believe that it’s best. It’s best for your wallet, as you’ll spend less, it’s better for your health, as you’ll feel happier about what you are eating and the types of food will make you feel better.

 

Do you agree? Do you enjoy cooking? Any recipes you could share? I’d love to hear from you in the comments below! 

 

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