Now I have no idea what a fresher’s culinary skills are supposed to be like, but pre-university the thought of cooking all my own meals filled me with dread.
Cooking at home was not one of my favourite pastimes and therefore I learnt to cook absolutely nothing bar the odd beans on toast. Embarrassing I know; but I’m sure there are plenty of you like me (or at least I hope). Who needs to cook when at home tasty meals are whipped up, the table set and all you need to do is pick up the knife and fork and shovel the food in?
And so, predictably, food in fresher’s week was a disaster. Packet pasta was literally the only thing in my cupboard even though I had completed a lovely supermarket shop before embarking on the journey to York.
Supposedly easy, the packet pasta turned into a nightmare when
distractions occurred in the kitchen and the water and milk (sigh) overflowed and burnt the floor and hob. Oops.
I needed a saviour and it arrived in the form of an email from my wonderful mother – a weekly shopping list and ideas for easy meals. Perfect.
I’ve learnt in no time how simple cooking ‘proper’ meals can be and my first York supermarket shop armed with the list was hardly expensive. My first attempt at chicken fajitas earlier this week worked a treat and my flatmates commented on how yummy they looked. I’m not one to be smug but they didn’t need to know I’d never made them before.
My cooking confidence is growing with every meal I make and I’m not ashamed to say that when I sit down to eat, I’m proud I made it myself!