Each project arrives with its purpose, milestones and first tasks written out. Here is how the first three read.
Two-week takeaway and ready meal audit
Most people who want to cook more have no clear picture of what they eat now, only a vague sense that it is too many takeaways. Writing down every dinner, meal deal and delivery for fourteen days, with what it cost, gives you the starting line you will measure everything else against. It also shows which nights you order in, which is where cooking has to win first.
First tasks
- Start a note listing tonight's dinner, where it came from and the cost
- Add the last week of delivery app orders from your order history
- Count takeaways, ready meals and cooked dinners at the end of day fourteen
- Circle the weekday evenings when you ordered in most often
Ten dinners you actually want to learn
Learning to cook goes faster when the target is dishes you already love rather than a cookbook's idea of basics. Choosing ten dinners you would happily eat every fortnight, mixing a few quick ones with a couple of slower favourites, gives your learning a finish line. When all ten are dependable, you have a working repertoire.
First tasks
- Write down twenty dinners you regularly buy, order or enjoy
- Cut the list to ten, keeping at least four quick ones
- Find one recipe for each of the ten from a source you trust
- Pin the list of ten where you plan your week
Ten-piece starter kit for cooking from scratch
A beginner does not need a knife block and a stand mixer; ten good-enough items cook almost every dinner on a first list. A large frying pan, a lidded saucepan, a roasting tray, one sharp cook's knife, a board, a wooden spoon, tongs or a fish slice, a sieve, a measuring jug and a set of spoons cover nearly everything. Buying only these keeps the cost down and the cupboard clear.
First tasks
- Tick off which of the ten starter items you already own
- Set a budget for the missing pieces
- Compare prices for a cook's knife and a heavy frying pan
- Buy the missing items and clear a drawer near the hob for them
