How to Get Inspired About What the Hell to Cook and Eat
Right. Let’s talk about food.
Not eating—we’ve got that part down. We're excellent at that.
But deciding what the hell to eat? That’s where the modern human completely unravels.
Despite having a phone that can call up any recipe in human history within 0.3 seconds, despite entire TV networks dedicated to flambéing things we’ll never cook and despite a fridge filled with more sauces than any one household should legally own—you're still eating the same damn thing. Over and over.
You, my friend, are in a Food Rut.
Cue the dramatic music. Cue the limp lettuce. Cue the internal sigh every time you open the fridge and think: Ugh. Again?
You Know You're in a Food Rut When…
Dinner is a Netflix rerun. Same episode. Every. Bloody. Night.
You’d rather order Uber Eats for the third time this week than think about defrosting chicken thighs.
You have the nutritional habits of a uni student in finals week: toast, coffee and existential dread.
You eyeball your folder of “healthy meals” and feel about as inspired as you would by a wet sock.
And the most absurd part?
We are SURROUNDED by food ideas. Recipe blogs. YouTube channels. Celebrity chefs pretending a 47-step tagine is “super quick.”
There is no shortage of inspiration…
So why does your brain feel like it’s trying to choose between beige, beige and slightly warmer beige?
What the Fork is Going On?
Let me unravel the psychological spaghetti:
1. Decision Fatigue
When you’ve already made 79 decisions before 9am (coffee or tea, jeans or joggers, which lie to tell your inbox today…), your brain is tapped out.
“Choose a recipe!” becomes code for “scroll until your eyes bleed and then make toast again.”
2. Life Is Just Too Bloody Busy
You’re juggling work, family, emails, that pile of clean laundry giving you side-eye.
So at the shops, you grab what you always grab. Habit food. No thought required. Because who has the bandwidth to ponder polenta?
3. The Jamie Oliver Illusion
You think, Oh! This one says 20 minutes!
You, however, are not Jamie Oliver.
You don’t have pre-chopped herbs in a rustic little ramekin.
You’ve got a toddler hanging off your leg and a chopping board that smells faintly of last week’s onion.
So that “20-minute meal” becomes a 52-minute descent into rage.
4. It Just Doesn’t Excite You
You’ve got a Pinterest folder full of recipes that read like a Gwyneth Paltrow cleanse.
Lots of chickpeas. A distressing amount of quinoa.
But let’s be honest—they sound virtuous, not delicious.
And you, glorious human, deserve food that makes you feel alive. Not punished.
So, What’s the Fix?
Brace yourself. It’s stupidly simple.
🔥 DO. ONE. THING.
That’s it. That’s the fix.
Not seventeen things. Not a colour-coded meal plan with macros.
Just one.
One new recipe.
Or one new ingredient.
Each week.
Because here’s the truth no one puts on Instagram:
Trying five new recipes at once will burn you out faster than garlic in a too-hot pan.
You’ll hate it, bin it and go back to peanut butter on rice cakes before you can say “spiraliser.”
But one small change? That’s manageable. That’s doable. That’s how momentum starts.
How to Choose ONE New Recipe (Without Losing Your Mind)
Keep It Simple.
Look for short steps. A handful of ingredients. Nothing that requires a sous vide machine or saffron sourced from a Himalayan monk.
This is weeknight dinner, not a Heston Blumenthal audition.
Make It Familiar.
Don’t leap from chicken stir-fry to Tunisian octopus tagine.
Ask yourself: what kind of meals do I usually like? Soups? Salads? Bowls of things with sauce? Start there. Stay close to home base.
Ensure It’s Balanced.
Want to stay full and not end up elbow-deep in snacks at 9pm?
Make sure your plate has:
Protein (meat, legumes, eggs, tofu—you do you)
A low GI carb (quinoa, brown rice, sweet potato, something other than white toast)
Colourful veg
Healthy fat (like our lord and saviour: extra virgin olive oil)
Or Try ONE New Ingredient…
Not vibing with the new recipe idea? No worries.
Try just one new ingredient.
And by ingredient, I don’t mean fermented yak butter.
I mean:
A veg you usually avoid (hello, fennel—you weird licorice beast)
A new protein (tofu, lentils, salmon instead of sad chicken breast)
A different herb, spice, marinade, dressing, or sauce (because let’s face it, a drizzle of tahini can turn cardboard into cuisine)
It doesn’t have to be a culinary revolution. Just a gentle nudge out of the rut.
And Finally…
If this all still feels like a lot, it’s not because you’re lazy or hopeless.
It’s because modern life is exhausting, food decision fatigue is real and we’ve confused “eating well” with “achieving gastronomic perfection.”
So let’s make it easy again.
Cook something that tastes good.
Try one new thing.
Let food be a source of pleasure, not pressure.
And if you need support, ideas or just someone to remind you that eating well doesn’t have to be a full-time job—you know where to find me.
(Also, I run a food planning course that helps with exactly this. Shameless plug. Zero shame.)
Now off you go.
Try something new.
Or don’t.
But for the love of your taste buds—step away from the plain grilled chicken at least once this week.
Photo by Mariana Medvedeva on Unsplash