Daily Life✓ Follow-up at 3 weeks5,670 views
I eat takeaway every single night because I genuinely cannot cook
A beginner-friendly cooking kickstart plan that teaches 5 simple meals in 3 weeks, breaks the takeaway habit with prep strategies, and saves over $400/month.
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Follow-Up Result
3 weeks laterHave not ordered takeaway in 3 weeks and actually enjoying cooking
The Problem
I spend about $50-70 per week on takeaway food. That's nearly $300/month on Uber Eats and Deliveroo. I know it's ridiculous but I genuinely don't know how to cook. I never learned growing up, my kitchen has basically no equipment, and every time I've tried to follow a recipe I've burned something or it tasted terrible. By the time I get home from work I'm tired and the takeaway apps are right there. I know this is bad for my health and my wallet but I don't know how to break the cycle.
The Plan
Week 1: Set Up and Learn 2 Meals
Buy basic equipment: one good pan, one pot, a chopping board, a sharp knife, a wooden spoon — that's genuinely all you need to start
Delete the takeaway apps from your phone — you can always reinstall them, but remove the temptation
Learn Meal 1: pasta with jarred sauce, garlic, and whatever veg you have — takes 15 minutes, nearly impossible to mess up
Learn Meal 2: stir fry with pre-cut vegetables, soy sauce, and rice — another 15-minute meal
Cook each meal twice this week — repetition builds confidence faster than variety
Week 2: Add 2 More Meals and Start Prepping
Learn Meal 3: sheet pan chicken with roasted vegetables — put everything on a tray, season, oven for 25 minutes
Learn Meal 4: omelette with whatever fillings you have — eggs, cheese, ham, peppers, takes 5 minutes
Do a weekly shop on Sunday: buy ingredients for 5 dinners only — don't overbuy
Prep vegetables on Sunday evening while watching TV — wash, chop, store in containers
Allow yourself ONE takeaway this week as a reward, not a default
Week 3: Build the Routine
Learn Meal 5: slow cooker or one-pot chili — dump everything in, come back in 4 hours to a meal that makes 4 portions
You now have 5 meals you can rotate through the entire week
Batch cook on Sunday: make 2-3 portions of something and freeze the extras
Start experimenting: add different spices, try new vegetables, make it your own
Track how much money you've saved — seeing the number is powerfully motivating
Resources
Mob Kitchen on YouTube — simple, cheap, delicious recipes for beginners
BBC Good Food "Easy Recipes" section — rated by difficulty, most take under 30 minutes
Mealime app — free meal planning with automatic shopping lists
r/cookingforbeginners — supportive community, no judgment, great tips
Follow-Up Result
3 weeks in: haven't ordered takeaway once. The pasta and stir fry became go-to meals within the first week. The sheet pan chicken is now a favourite — genuinely easier than ordering food when you've prepped the veg. Saved approximately $280 in 3 weeks. The biggest revelation was that most "cooking" is just chopping things and applying heat — it's not the complex skill I'd built it up to be. Actually enjoying trying new recipes now. Bought a slow cooker and it's been a game-changer for weeknight meals.Know someone with this problem?
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