We know that lots of you are avid cooks already, but some of you will still be learning. We’ve put together our tips for cooking from scratch.

1. Stock your cupboards

If you’re going to be cooking food from scratch, then, of course, you are going to need food to cook. Start by making sure your fridge has basics including butter, milk, and cheese. Pick something like a cheddar which will be useful in almost any cheese dish.

For baking, you will need eggs, all-purpose flour, cake flour and pastry flour on hand.

Grab some pantry staples such as canned tomatoes, dried pasta and rice. Pick up some basic herbs and spices, as well as olive oil. Sometimes you can buy a pack of herbs and spices, but a good place to start would be with some salt, pepper, dried oregano, basil and parsley, bay leaves, ground cumin, paprika, chili powder, and garlic. You could also stock up on vinegars and sauces.

There are so many possibilities when it comes to cooking, but these basics will give you a good head start when it comes to making most recipes.

2. Get the right equipment

If you’ve never been a cooking fan before, you might not have the right utensils. At the very least, you will need a standard cooking pot, frying pan, spatula, mixing spoon, mixing bowl and a roasting tray. These will get you so far but you’ll gradually want to add more items as you get more adventurous. Looking out for back to school sales, when stores often have great kitchen packs available.

3. Plan your meals

To avoid randomly shopping and then creating food waste or being unsure what to make, plan your meals. Find recipes in books or online and use these to make your grocery shopping list for the week. If you are really new to cooking, you might want to commit to only cooking from scratch one day a week, or at the weekend, so keep in mind that you can be flexible with your plan.

4. Start simple

You don’t need to wake up one morning and attempt to be a world-renowned chef. Start with simple dishes that you would like to conquer. These could even be side dishes, to begin with. Find a recipe and read it all the way through before beginning to cook. Make sure that you have everything you need, including the equipment required. Follow each step in turn and pay close attention to make sure that you use each ingredient.

5. Ask for help

If you know someone who is a great cook, ask them if they might consider giving you some lessons in exchange for a fun evening or even a bottle of wine. If you don’t know anyone with cooking skills, you can also find great courses online or even simply watch YouTube videos. This is great for techniques such as how to chop vegetables or how to check that something is cooked.

We hope that you have enjoyed our tips to help you start cooking from scratch. If you’re an experienced cook, share your top tips in the comments!