A huge number of people prefer dining out instead of preparing food at home. If you ask most of them, convenience and time are the reason that they give. But the real answer is that they have never taken time to understand the many benefits of home cooked food.
You will be surprised by the benefits that come with preparing your own food at home. Research has shown that eating home-cooked linked to a happy and healthier life amongst many other benefits. In this post, we have rounded up the main advantages of preparing food at home.
Here are the 10 benefits of home cooked food over eating out:
1. Control Over What You Eat
One of the biggest benefits of homemade food is control over what you eat. That is something restaurants or eating out does not offer. The biggest control that comes with eating home cooked is the food portion. When you prepare your own food, you will be able to get the right portions for every ingredient you are using. If you are watching your weight, then preparing food at home allows you to control the number of calories that you eat.
2. You Avoid Overeating
Whenever we order food in a restaurant, very few of us, leave some of it on the plate when we feel full. We tend to overeat to avoid leftovers- which in another term is money wasted. When you force yourself to finish the food served, it means that you are overeating. We all know the result of overeating and more weight issues. When you have homemade food, you don’t have to overeat. You can preserve the leftovers in the fridge for another day. So you save money, and at the same time, you avoid overeating.
3. Cost Control
One of the biggest disadvantages of dining out is cost. You spend a lot of money on food, and in some cases, you don’t really get value for the money. Most of the dishes cost is exaggerated, maybe because of the status of the restaurant and other facts. But when you prepare food at home, the cost of food is significantly reduced. You can even opt to go to the farmer’s market where you buy food in bulk and at a lower price. So your food budget will significantly go down.
4. You Eat Quality Food
There is a lot of questions about the quality of food sold in some restaurants. There have been cases where some restaurants have been busted for cooking substandard and expired food. The hygiene of the hotel and more so that of the kitchen is also an issue. Do you know why only authorised individuals enter the kitchen? Because some of them are dirty and messy. When you prepare your food at home, you have control over the quality. You buy fresh vegetables, lean meat, and quality ingredients that add value to your health.
5. Maintain Nutrition
When a restaurant says that they serve the most nutritious food, don’t believe it. They are there for business and will only do what can add to their profits. So they will have to compromise the nutrition value of their dishes to adjust their profit margins. One of the benefits of home cooked food is that you have control over the nutritional value of the food you eat. Depending on the recipe that you are using, you can buy the healthier and nutritious ingredients to meet your needs. With that, you will avoid eating bad food in some restaurants.
6. Control Over Hygiene and Food Safety
When it comes to the safety of food, dining out does not offer the best option. From the terrible conditions of some kitchens, way the food is prepared to the kind of food that is cooked, you no guarantee on safety and hygiene of the food. When you have home cooked food, you have control over the entire process. From the buying of the food, the cleanliness of your kitchen to the cooking process as a whole, you have total control over the hygiene and safety of the food.
7. You Learn More About Food
When you prepare food at home, you will learn more about various foods by default. You find out which vegetables offer the best health benefits in the market. You will also find yourself researching more about food and reading diet blogs for more information. This is a kind of information that you cannot get when you dine out. After preparing food at home for a couple of months, you will become a dietician by default. That’s how powerful the habit of having a home cooked food can be.
8. Reduced Sugar And Processed Food
One of the biggest challenges of dining out is the high consumption of sugar and processed food. Most of the food that is offered is processed. Most of the drinks, including soda, wine also contains high quantities of processed sugar. Such food exposes you to a high risk of health complications such as heart disease, diabetes, obesity, and so on. One of the biggest benefits of homemade food is a reduction in the consumption of processed food. You have an opportunity to eat organic and unprocessed food which is good for the body.
9. One Makes You Happier
One of the biggest health benefits of home cooked food is the peace of mind. Cooking at home makes you happier. It helps you to deal with stress, anxiety, and that’s how it improves your mood. When you cook, all your concentration is on the food, and thus for a moment, you will forget things that were disturbing your mind. The smell of the food and the entire process also helps to stimulate your senses hence making you happier.
10. Saves Time
Although most people think that eating out helps save time, but that is not entirely the truth. Preparing food at home can help you save more time than eating out. For instance, you can prepare food in bulk in just 30 minutes and preserve the surplus for the coming days. That’s how you save time with home cooked food. If you thought dining out is the best option for you, now you know why that’s not. There are many benefits of preparing food at home that proves dining out is not the best option. Try home cooking today, and you’ll be impressed by the results in just a couple of months.