If there’s one aspect of life that changed dramatically for practically all of us over the past few weeks, it’s how we eat. We’re cooking more than ever before, purely out of necessity for some of us, but also as a creative distraction from the gloomy news cycle for many others.
Virtual communities are popping up all over social media, as newbie cooks and newly out-of-work chefs alike share photos from disheveled countertops on Instagram and loosely constructed recipes for impromptu creations on Facebook made with whatever they can scrounge up from their cupboards.
And many popular food experts and online culinary resources are jumping in with some virtual hand-holding — from their own home kitchens. Here are some of the most helpful we’ve found thus far.
Epicurious’ ‘Cooking Through It’ 10-Day Meal Plan
Five years ago, Epicurious digital director David Tamarkin kicked off the new year by pledging to cook three meals a day for the entire month of January, allowing himself only three passes for a restaurant meal, in a quest to prove that cooking is “economical, healthier than eating out, and even therapeutic.” Now an annual cooking challenge at the website, “Cook90” has inspired two cookbooks, and a flexible plan introduced this month for eating well while sheltering in place.
"Cooking Through It" is a set of easy master recipes made from one grocery list designed to get you through 10 days without shopping. Found on epicurious.com, each recipe offers suggestions for substitutions and add-ons. For Sausage and Greens Sheet-Pan Dinner, for example, you could make it vegetarian by going with a plant-based sausage, replace the potatoes with broccoli or cauliflower, or add a handful of grapes or some apple slices if you have them. As with "Cook90," the Epicurious editors are sharing what they cook on Instagram at @epicurious and inviting you to join their community. "Cook90: The 30-Day Plan for Faster, Healthier, Happier Meals" (Little, Brown, $30) would make an excellent supplement.
King Arthur Flour’s Homebound Baking Guide
The stress-relieving powers of dough-kneading and cookie-baking have been well documented on social media since the COVID-19 crisis began. And the staff at King Arthur Flour has fortified its already invaluable website to bakers of every skill level with features geared to the needs of this growing community of newbie bakers — whether it's walking them through the steps of making sourdough starter, or suggesting a substitute for all-purpose flour when there's none to be found. You can learn to make oatmeal bread by tuning into "The Isolation Baking Show" on Facebook Live, watch a video on how to braid a six-strand loaf, or call or chat online with a professional baker to guide you through a baking dilemma. Find it all at kingarthurflour.com.
Samin Nosrat and Hrishikesh Hirway’s ‘Home Cooking’ Podcast
Many of us became fans of the chef and cooking teacher Samin Nosrat watching her taste her way around the world as host and executive producer of the mesmerizing Netflix original documentary series "Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat," based on her James Beard Award-winning book by the same name. With her travels now on hold, she and her friend Hrishikesh Hirway have started a podcast called "Home Cooking," to help us figure out what to cook during lockdown. They chat about topics ranging from beans to latkes with celebrity guests and with each other, pick apart the finer points of a particular ingredient, and invite listeners to jump into the conversation. On its website, homecooking.show, they include a resource page listing their favorite cookbooks and food products.
The Feedfeed’s Pantry Plan
It's easy to get hopelessly lost in the blogosphere in search of cooking advice. Feedfeed, a crowdsourced digital cooking publication, makes the navigation much more enjoyable by employing knowledgeable community editors to curate and organize the best of that content into easy-to-navigate categories geared to various interests. One handy tool is The Pantry Plan, a weekly guide to help us figure out what ingredients to stock up on through the pandemic and recipes for using them. To stretch the longevity of fresh ingredients, they direct you to sites for turning your herbs into pesto, fruit into jams, or onions into a pickled condiment. Check it out at thefeedfeed.com.
Random House Pantry Recipes From New Releases
There's hardly been a less fortunate time for authors to try to draw attention to their new cookbooks. But publishers are coming up with some novel solutions. The publishers at Random House have quickly compiled a nifty little online booklet of ideas for comforting family meals and cocktails and nibbles for homebound happy hours from the current crop: "Our Spring 2020 Cookbooks: Recipes for Everything You've Got." Recipes for One-Pot Chicken with Orzo and Sun-Dried Tomatoes from Amanda Frederickson's "Simple Beautiful Food" and Chloe Frechette's Caribe Daiquiri from "Easy Tiki" are among the two dozen samples to choose from. Find "Pantry Recipes From Our Spring Cookbooks" at randomhousebooks.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/RH_Potter_TenSpeed_SpringCookbookSampler_2020_.pdf.
Ina Garten’s Quarantine-Cooking Tips on Instagram
"I know so many of you are very anxious about what's to come because I am, too," Ina Garten posted on Instagram several weeks ago, with a promise to share with her 2.4 million followers "lots of ideas for delicious things to make from your pantry and fridge." The Food Network star has made good on that pledge, and her comforting creations such as Peanut Butter and Jelly Bars and Ramen Chicken Noodle Soup are generating tons of likes and uplifting conversation in the comment feeds. Find her on Instagram @inagarten or visit her website, barefootcontessa.com.
Anne Byrn’s Blueprint Recipes for Skillet Meals
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution's former food editor became known for her practical, unintimidating recipes when her "Cake Mix Doctor" became a bestseller. Her most recent book, "Skillet Love: From Steak to Cake: More Than 150 Recipes in One Cast-Iron Pan" (Grand Central, $30), reinforces that reputation, and is proving itself to be one of the handiest guides to have on hand in a lockdown. Particularly helpful are her "blueprint" recipes made for adapting to what you have, such as fried rice and granola. You can watch her demonstrate the versatility of a skillet chicken pot pie on Hallmark's "Home & Family" show on YouTube. Follow her on Instagram at @annebyrn for links to other recipes and ideas to keep you cozy and well-fed during quarantine.
Serious Eats’ Coronavirus Cooking Guide
If you don't already have the Serious Eats website, seriouseats.com, bookmarked for quick reference to practically any cooking question, there's no better time than the present. Their beautifully organized Coronavirus Cooking Guide covers all the cooking basics, along with how-tos on setting up a prep station like a pro, advice for sanitizing your kitchen, and tips on stocking up for self-isolation. For a low-tech reference, consider investing in a copy of "The Food Lab: Better Home Cooking Through Science" by J. Kenji Lopez-Alt (Norton, $49.95), the website's longtime chief culinary adviser who now writes for The New York Times.
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