How to ‘friction maxx’ your way in the kitchen through Atlanta’s winter weather
The phrase started popping up quietly on social media, and then all at once: friction maxxing. It sounds like something dreamed up by a fitness bro to shred your muscles, but the idea is much gentler than that.
Friction maxxing is the intentional choice to make things a little harder on purpose. Not punishing or joyless. Just less smooth. It’s opting out of the constant convenience of our modern world in favor of going analog. It’s choosing the long way because, more often than not, the long way teaches you something.
In a culture obsessed with removing every obstacle between desire and fulfillment, friction maxxing asks a radical question: what if ease isn’t always the goal?
This weekend’s winter storm, which meteorologists have alarmingly labeled a “bomb cyclone,” is an opportunity from Mother Nature to dip your frozen toes into the world of friction maxxing. In this town, even the whisper of ice or snow can shut down interstates, empty grocery stores and have you digging for batteries and emergency chocolate. (Please tell me I’m not the only one with emergency chocolate.)
For most of us, the plan for this weekend is to stay put. Which makes the kitchen the best room in the house to try any of these five food-centered ways to friction maxx your way through a winter storm.
1. Make coffee the slow, from-scratch way
Skip the pod. Pull out the French press, the pour-over cone, the kettle that whistles like a high-pitched alarm. Grind the beans. Measure the water. Wait. Find comfort in watching steam rise from your cup when everything is gray and cold.
Try these coffee recipes from metro Atlanta coffee shops.
2. Bake bread when panic buying sets in
Are the bread aisles emptier than a politician’s apology? Perfect! Coat your counter in too much flour. Let the dough stick to your fingers. Knead, knead, knead to warm your hands and quiet your thoughts. Peek at the oven every five minutes while your house is perfumed by the nutty aroma of bread baking.
Here’s a great recipe for milk bread.
3. Choose low and slow dishes that take all day
This is not the moment for a speedy meal. A pot of beans that simmers for hours. Greens that soften slowly. A chuck roast that needs browning, deglazing and a wide-open bag of patience before it becomes as tender as a love song. Let “Low and Slow” become your mantra.
Try cooking one (or all three) of these hearty stews.
4. Cook from a cookbook, not a recipe app
Opt out of the algorithm and pull a cookbook from the shelf. Let a recipe catch your eye. There’s something deeply calming about cooking from a page. There are no notifications, no scrolling, just instructions that require you to stay and pay attention.
Check out our cookbook suggestions.
5. Ferment food now, eat better later.
Start a jar of pickles. Salt some cabbage for sauerkraut. Feed a sourdough starter. Yes, it’s work now, but you’ll get a reward later. Granted, it’s way later. But that’s the whole point! Fermentation is friction maxxing stretched over days and weeks.
I love this tried and true recipe for kimchi, or try a kimchi slaw from Heirloom Market BBQ. And in a similar vein: dehydrating food requires a little extra patience but results in snacks that will last for weeks. Here’s how to dehydrate food in your home kitchen.
A winter storm strips life down to essentials. Heat. Food. Shelter. Once you’ve got those covered, find purpose in slowing down. When the roads clear and the supermarkets fill their aisles again, you’ll remember the meals that asked a little more of you. The ones that warmed your house, occupied your hands and made the waiting feel intentional to the maxx.
