The Benefits of Cooking at Home

By Andrew

There are several benefits to preparing your own meals:

1. Yes, that hair in your food is yours
2. You have the choice regarding the origin of your food, and how it is produced
3. You know exactly what you're about to eat
4. You're learning a life skill
5. You're taking the opportunity to make a statement about your political, ethical, and nutritional priorities

Over the past few weeks I've found myself smack in the middle of a healthy eating binge.  Not surprisingly I wasn't motivated purely by the desire to become healthier.  This challenge was another one of my attempts to save a little green and eat great tasting food.

If you take a look at the layout of your average grocery store, you'll quickly realize that it's a staging ground for pre-fabbed foods.  All of "the good stuff" tends to be lined along the outside walls.  So that is where i plan to do the majority of my shopping in an attempt to avoid the cardboard, plastic packaging, and those preservatives that seem to have the magical ability to survive a nuclear winter.  Unless those effects are directly transferable, I want as little of that stuff inside me as possible.

From a cost perspective, pre-processed and prepared prepackaged foods look quite appealing.  Individually packaged meals such as pizza or lasagna can cost anywhere from $8-12.  However, if you compare the price of the individual ingredients you would need to buy in order to make each of these meals from scratch you can usually save up to half the price.  You can save even more if you buy certain ingredients in bulk.  Not only that, by doing this you'll reduce the amount of packaging that is needed to ship and store these items.

The best part about cooking your own food is that you can ensure all of your produce is locally and sustainably produced.  If you want to take it a step further you can buy everything at your local market.  Two markets that immediately come to mind in the Toronto area are the St. Lawrence Market and the market at the Evergreen Brickworks.  In my opinion there is nothing more satisfying that fresh food cooking away after a day at the market.

And hey, do you remember those little life skills that we're trying to build? Cooking is one that will be an invaluable asset. What lady doesn't love a guy that can cook a fine meal (and vice-versa, or same-versa... whatever your preference)?!

So the next time you're in the grocery store or market, don't rush to those highly processed foods.  Man/Woman up!  Take on a challenge and try a new recipe each week.  See below for one of my favourites.

Chicken Karahi (serves 2)

You need:

• 2 Chicken breasts (1/2kg)
• 2 Plum Tomatoes
• 2 cloves garlic
• ½ a red onion
• 1 thumb sized piece of ginger (or less to taste, I love ginger)
• 1 spicy green finger chili (or more to taste)
• 1tsp of black pepper (ground)
• 2tsp salt (to taste)
• Dash of lemon juice
• 1-1/2 tbst of Garam Masala or Indian Masala
• 1/5 cup of vegetable oil

Preparation:

1. Chop up the tomatoes and red onion into small pieces. 
2. Mince the ginger, garlic and green finger chili.
3. Cube the chicken to bite sized pieces. 

Cooking:

1. Set your wok/frying pan on medium heat. 
2. Pour in the vegetable oil, onions, ½ your garlic, ½ your ginger, and ½ your finger chilies. 
3. You’ll want to sauté these for 2-3 minutes until the onions are slightly caramelized. 
4. Once this is done add your chicken and salt and mix thoroughly ensuring that the chicken is cooked.  Add a little more oil if the mixture starts to stick to the bottom of the pan.
5. When the chicken has cooked, add your tomatoes and turn up the heat slightly until the tomatoes are reduced to a juice. 
6. At this point you will want to turn down your element to slightly under medium heat.  Add the remainder of the ingredients and mix with a spatula. 
7. Let the mixture simmer for approx 20-35-minutes until the liquid forms the consistency of gravy. Remember to mix occasionally so that the sauce doesn’t burn on the bottom of the pan!

Serve with rice or naan bread, and enjoy.  If you’re feeling adventurous, mix it up a little and add your own side dish.