• How to recreate favorite foods

    ByKristin food

    We all have that one dish from a restaurant that we absolutely love and always look forward to having. It may be an Indian curry, a Japanese ramen, or a Mexican enchilada โ€” sometimes we just think of them and instantly crave them. But what if you could recreate these dishes at home with much more ease than youโ€™d realize? Itโ€™s possible! With a little effort and the right ingredients, you can start serving up your favorite meals at home.

    After a recent cruise, my kids have all kinds of ideas about the food we should have at home! But they’re not going to get New York Strip Steak nightly or late-night pizza snacks at home like they did on the ship. Even so, I loved seeing them try new foods, like my boy eating his first lobster tail, which he had mixed feelings about.

    Research

    To get started, you need to do your research. So start by looking up recipes online, watching cooking tutorials on YouTube, and reading cookbooks. The more you know about the cuisine, the easier it will be to replicate it. Look for the key ingredients and techniques that are used in that particular cuisine. It might be that you need to know exactly what does into chicken gyros or what spices make a Thai curry pop. Doing your research will help you understand the flavors and techniques of the cuisine and give you the confidence to experiment a bit more in the kitchen.

    Get the right ingredients

    Once you have done your research, it’s time to gather the right ingredients. In my small town, Iโ€™m going to need to find these at Kroger or Walmart. Iโ€™ve been known to ask Alexa for substitution possibilities! Just make sure to keep the essence of the cuisine intact.

    Practice makes perfect

    Recreating your favorite cuisine may take a few attempts before you get it right. Don’t be afraid to make mistakes. Cooking can be about experimenting, so keep trying until you achieve the desired taste. Start with simpler recipes and then move on to more complex ones. I always follow the recipe the first time and then tweak it in the future. Make adjustments according to your taste buds and experiment with different spice combinations. And then itโ€™s always best to share a meal with friends and family who appreciate the meal and gathering.

    Some people would say presentation is the key, but we arenโ€™t formal people around here. Sometimes after Iโ€™ve spent time preparing a meal, I just want to eat it โ€“ on my pretty plastic Pioneer Woman plates. Of course, others may want to break out the garnishes and china. 

    Enjoy the process

    And finally, recreating your favorite cuisine should be a joy. So make sure that you enjoy it and don’t get too hung up on the outcome. Remember, cooking is all about experimenting and having fun. Be creative with your dishes and try new things. Cooking is a skill that takes time to master, so don’t get discouraged if you don’t get it right the first time. Keep practicing and before you know it, you’ll be a pro in the kitchen โ€“ and your family will thank you!

  • How to cook new recipes

    ByKristin food

    Iโ€™ve become a better cook in the past two decades as a wife and mom. I honestly just used not to know how. Iโ€™m still not a famous chef or anything like that, but Iโ€™m not afraid to cook anymore. Of course, trying a new recipe can be both exciting and nerve-wracking, but I want to share some tips on how to get that new recipe to turn out well.ย 

    Read the recipe

    When cooking a new recipe for the first time, it’s essential to read it thoroughly before you begin. I say this from experience. Nobody needs surprises while theyโ€™ve got things mixing and heating. This way, you’ll know what ingredients and supplies you need, and you’ll be able to plan ahead so that everything is ready when it’s time to start cooking.

    Cookbooks are your friends for both inspiration and instructions.

    Prepare all the ingredients

    Just yesterday I texted a friend who is coming over later this week: What soup sounds good? She gave me a couple of ideas, and then I was able to buy the ingredients I needed to make Tortellini Corn Chowder. Planning meals is a good way to make a grocery list and ensure you have food your family wants to eat and you want to cook. 

    I usually get out all the ingredients before I get started so I can mix and assemble them as I go along. If you really wanted to be prepared, you could measure out all the specific ingredients and then prepare the dish. 

    Do you have any foods incorporated into your holiday traditions, such as black-eyed peas for New Yearโ€™s Day? I donโ€™t love black-eyed peas specifically, but I do love a good Crock Pot recipe and foods as traditions. 

    Follow the recipe

    Yes, getting creative in the kitchen is tempting, but I found I have the most success when I follow the recipe โ€“ at least the first time! Of course, after Iโ€™ve made a recipe once, I may start tweaking it to fit my preferences. I donโ€™t love green peppers, but bring on all onions. Or maybe I will give my husband the mushrooms nobody else in our house wants. 

    Taste test

    A perk of cooking is definitely eating! Tasting the dish as you go is another way to ensure that your new recipe turns out perfectly. This will help you balance the flavors, adjust seasoning if necessary, and ensure everything comes together as planned.

    Don’t be afraid to add more of a certain ingredient or spice if it needs it. Cooking is a science, but itโ€™s an art too! One of our favorite easy summer meals is what my kids call โ€œgreen pastaโ€ โ€“ aka the Pioneer Womanโ€™s Pasta with Pesto Cream Sauce. One evening we were eating this on the porch and my son said, โ€œThis would be really good with bacon in it.โ€ You better believe we eat it with bacon now! (I also use pesto from a jar, which makes this recipe even easier!)

    Now, back to cleaning those dishes from the last meal we cooked! 

    *****

    Here are some related posts that may encourage you in the kitchen:

  • How to enjoy cooking

    ByKristin food

    Everybodyโ€™s got to eat, right? I used to think of cooking as a means to an end, but now I enjoy it more. Last week we unexpectedly had two evenings at home in a row. Thatโ€™s unheard of during soccer season with three kids playing and practicing. I told my oldest one of the reasons I was excited to be home was to cook an actual meal.ย 

    Our family prioritizes dinner together, even if that means eating Zaxbyโ€™s after soccer practice. But itโ€™s even better when we gather around our own table with a homecooked meal. The truth is, I run out of inspiration, though.ย 

    So letโ€™s talk about where to go when we need more ideas for cooking.

    Screens

    I know, I know. Screens get a bad wrap, but letโ€™s be honest, sometimes when we arenโ€™t even trying we might be inspired. TV shows sometimes prompt ideas and scrolling on Facebook sometimes leads to an irresistible recipe. Iโ€™ve been known to email myself some links! Plus there are plenty of food documentaries out there available on TV channels and online.ย 

    After a documentary episode or an Instagram story, you may be ready to try cooking a new and exciting dish. Perhaps a creamy and delicious chicken florentine?ย 

    You can find a lot of food ideas on the Internet. This is how I learned to cook salmon, steak in the oven, and French Toast Bake. There are so many recipes online! I save them on my phone in a bookmark folder so I can find them again.ย 

    Vacations

    We love traveling to South Carolina so we can eat low-country seafood. And yes, weโ€™re attempted to replicate that at home. My husband and son like to go trout fishing, and I sure do love it when they bring fish home. Lots of locations offer food different from whatโ€™s right here in our hometown Kentucky, so leaving home helps me bring new recipe ideas home. 

    Restaurantsย 

    When we were social distancing in 2020 and cooking multiple meals a day at home, I would think about restaurants we loved and what food they served. In some instances, I improved upon the food we love. Cooking was so fun then, when we had a ton of time to experiment in the kitchen and put more time into each meal. 

    Itโ€™s hard to recreate restaurant dishes, but itโ€™s definitely a great source of inspiration. You probably won’t be able to make the dish exactly the same at home, but even if it helps you improve your cooking by 30%, you’ll notice the difference.

    Do you love to cook? What are your favorite dishes to make? Iโ€™m always accepting new recipes, so send me your favorites and share any good stories that led to good recipes. Speaking of which, Iโ€™m going to stir the taco soup I have simmering.ย 

    *****

    Most of y’all know my love for gathering together & nourishing souls, like I talk about in my book, “Bringing Home More than Groceries.” Food often is a way to invite others in and build community. If that’s your perspective, that definitely gives cooking a broader purpose. You can download a free printable with ideas on how to be hospitable in every season.