7 Real Shortcuts That Simplify Healthy Living
Imagine walking into your kitchen and being greeted by the aroma of fresh herbs, simmering vegetables, and the promise of a nourishing meal you created with your own hands.
This isn’t just about food, it’s about reconnecting with your body, your health, and your wallet.
Something you can never get from pre-package stuff (more chemical formulas than food the body can recognise), takeaways or meals delivered to your door. While meal delivery kits and pre-packaged foods are marketed as the ultimate convenience, they may not deliver on the promises of cutting time in the kitchen, especially if you’re never cooked before, or be as cheap as their advertising led you to believe.
There’s also a growing movement to go back to the basics, which Nutrunity and Exquisite Private Chef are proud to be leading: Cooking from scratch and batch cooking as a path to better health, deeper satisfaction, and real savings.
The True Cost of Convenience
Meal delivery services and pre-prepared foods promise to save time, but at what cost?
These options are often three to five times more expensive than cooking the same meal yourself.
Over weeks and months, that adds up to hundreds, even thousands, of pounds (or dollars, if you’re in the U.S.) spent not on food, but on packaging, delivery, and someone else’s labor, and to cover the manufacturing costs, including their rent and utilities, as well as the cost of the raw ingredients. This means that the company must cut corners at all costs if they want to make profits.
Most meal kits and ready meals are not organic and rarely prioritise local, seasonal, or high-quality ingredients.
They often rely on industrially farmed produce and meats (the cheapest possible ingredients. All natural, if you need to be told, has no legal meaning and means nothing. Petroleum is all natural but can you use it as a dip?), heavily processed sauces, and excess packaging. This can impact your health on the long term and is an environmental disaster.
Meanwhile, organic food doesn’t have to be expensive. Many supermarkets or organic stores offer “yellow label” or clearance organic produce, and local markets often discount items at the end of the day. With a little planning, you can eat organic, delicious meals for a fraction of the cost of meal kits.
Tip 1: Why Cooking from Scratch Wins — Every Time
1. Healthier Choices, Every Meal
When you cook from scratch, you control every ingredient and portion size. You decide how much salt, sugar, and fat goes into your food, unlike restaurant or delivery meals, which are often loaded with table salt (the kind that is overly bleached, a dead white powder full of microplastics), saturated fats, and hidden additives, for the most part toxic or disrupting to hormone balance. Cooking at home is consistently linked to better nutrition, healthier weight, and lower risk of chronic disease.
You can also use leftovers to create more delicious meals. With a delivered meal, you often have barely enough to feed you properly, if you have a larger appetite.
2. Real Savings, Even on a Tight Budget
Batch cooking is the ultimate budget hack. By preparing large quantities of food at once, you save on ingredients, energy, and time. For example, a big pot of soup or stew can cost less than a single takeout meal, yet provide lunches and dinners for days.
I tend to make soup in 5-litre batches, which I divide into five portions, two I refrigerate and three I freeze. That way, I always have some soup on days I come home late and cooking will delay dinner even further. Although, I have to say I can whip up a 2-course or 3-course meal in 20 minutes or less. As a chef, it is very easy and I can do it my eyes closed; however, for people who were never taught how to cook, this is another story.
Another things I tend to do in batch are sauces, like Bolognese sauce, wine jus and ratatouille. Those freeze very well and you’ll be glad you have them on hands when you’re unwell or rushed, and cooking from scratch might not be an option on that day. Or perhaps, you have a few guests turning up unannounced and you’ve got nothing in the fridge.
When you buy in bulk, especially discounted or in-season produce, you can stretch your budget even further.
I have been known to buy six organic cauliflowers for £0.95 and make cauliflower velouté (it’s out of this world, especially with crispy shallots and coriander coulis). I also buy directly from the organic farm and always on the look out for special promotions. I love the organic chicken wings that can be barbecued, broiled or used as a base for broth, all for £4.50 a kilo. £3 is also the average for a chicken carcasse or £6 for organic chicken livers. These are unbeatable prices, cheaper than supermarkets.
3. Less Waste, More Sustainability
Home cooking means less packaging and less food waste. You can freeze leftovers, repurpose ingredients, and compost scraps.
Pre-packaged meals, on the other hand, come with layers of plastic, anluminium and cardboard, much of which ends up in landfill.
It is also important to recognise that those manufacturers use the cheapest labour possible. They often employ staff with basic training, paid at the minimum salary. This is a considerable problem for traceability and cleanliness. I have had experience in those and a few of them saw me In and out, disgusted of the hygiene and lack of training.
This is the same in certain restaurants, particularly chains. I remember once I was asked to help a chef, and upon arriving I noticed that the kitchen was extremely small and could not safely accommodate two people. The head chef, in front of me (as I just arrived), decanted some vegetables he just sautéed into a small gastro pan and pulled another from the fridge below. It removed the cling film covering what appeared to be marinated salmon that was raw and positioned the same piece of cling film over the piping hot vegetables. Horrified, I asked what he was doing and his answer was: « Do you know how much cling film costs? » and I replied almost immediately « £4.50 for 300 metres! »
I packed my things and ran out. During this small instant, I heard the restaurant manager bring complaints from four tables. Perhaps, it reflected poorly on my word, that I would help for the day, but individuals like this are (to my own personal view) extremely dangerous. How not more people dies from food poisoning puzzles me a lot when I see crazy things such as this.
Four years ago, I written an article for a very large online wellness group, about how much butter is in each dish. French cuisine is famous for using a lot of butter and cream and until I deviated from the « Escoffier-style » of cooking, I did the same. Rich, rich, rich food that no longer appealed to my clientele.
In a jus (that’s your typical wine sauce that comes with meat or fish), you can have up to 100 grammes of butter per portion. The same in your mash potato. And your steak was also probably cooked in as much butter. Now, in just one meal you ate more than one block of butter. Imagine having a rich starter and dessert and you probably ingested two blocks of butter. That’s an issue if you’re following a dairy-free diet or are lactose intolerant, or you’re watching your weight or have digestive issues (I would invite those to always carry digestive enzymes with them at all time, just in case they are eating out). Plus, don’t forget about the cream that will be found in almost all dishes.
4. A Chance to Reconnect with Food, Yourself and Nature
In case you don’t know, cooking is not a chore; it’s a creative act, a chance to slow down and engage your senses.
It is the only time when you can reconnect with nature, touching, smelling and tasting food as you prepare it. It also ignites your digestive process, allowing your body to secrete digestive juices you need to break down your food into tiny nutrients you can then absorb and utilise. It is also very calming.
Sharing a meal you made with loved ones builds bonds and creates memories. It is also a great way to feel you achieved something and can boost your morale and confidence to become more adventurous.
Even cooking alone can be meditative, a way to check in with your body and mind. For many like me, it is a natural state. The same way I feel when I am gardening. I grow my own food, pick it when it’s ripe and delicious, and cook it to exactly my taste, all the while minimally processing ingredients. Will get back to this in a moment.
5. Skill Building for Life
Every time you cook, you build confidence and skills that last a lifetime. You learn to improvise, to taste, to adjust. These are gifts no meal delivery service can provide.
— Batch Cooking:
Batch cooking is the practice of preparing multiple servings of a meal at once, then storing portions for later. It’s the antidote to “I’m too busy to cook” and the secret behind many healthy, budget-savvy households.
How to Get Started
- Plan Simple, Flexible Meals: Think soups, stews, curries, roasted vegetables, and legumes. These dishes store well and can be remixed throughout the week.
- Shop Smart: Look for discounted organic produce, bulk bins, and weekly specials. Don’t be afraid of “ugly” fruits and vegetables, they’re just as nutritious and often much cheaper.
- Cook Once, Eat Many Times: Double or triple recipes. Freeze individual portions for busy days.
- Repurpose Leftovers: Roast chicken can become soup, salad, or tacos. Cooked beans can turn into chili, hummus, or salad toppers.
- Invest in Storage: Reusable glass containers make it easy to portion and store meals safely. You may also use freezer bags that you freeze flat on a tray and pile up very easily. Great space saving tip too!
Real-Life Inspiration: A Week of Batch Cooking on a Budget
Let’s say you find a yellow-labeled bag of organic carrots, a clearance bunch of kale, and a discounted whole chicken. Here’s how you might stretch these finds into a week’s worth of meals:
- Day 1: Roast the chicken with carrots and potatoes. Enjoy a hearty dinner. Perhaps you have frozen peas too, you can add for an extra boost of nutritients.
- Day 2: Shred leftover chicken for sandwiches or wraps; toss roasted veggies into a salad with olive oil and balsamic vinegar.
- Day 3: Simmer the chicken bones with kale stems, onion peels, and carrot tops for a rich homemade broth.
- Day 4: Use the broth and leftover chicken to make a nourishing soup with beans and greens.
- Day 5: Blend any remaining veggies into a creamy soup or sauce for pasta.
With a little creativity, you’ve made five different meals from a few discounted ingredients, each one fresher, healthier, and cheaper than anything a meal kit could deliver.
— Overcoming Barriers: Time, Energy, and Skill
“But I don’t have time!” is the most common objection to cooking from scratch. Yet, studies show that home cooking can actually save time in the long run, especially when you batch cook and use leftovers. Tools like slow cookers, pressure cookers, and even basic stovetop pots can make meal prep nearly hands-off.
If you’re new to cooking, start small. Master a few basic recipes, then build from there. There are countless free resources, videos, blogs, community classes, to help you gain confidence.
— Cooking from Scratch: The Ultimate Act of Self-Care
In a society that pushes us to outsource every aspect of our lives, choosing to cook from scratch is a radical act of self-care. It’s a way to reclaim your health, your budget, and your connection to real food. Batch cooking amplifies these benefits, turning a few hours in the kitchen into days of delicious, nourishing meals.
So next time you see a meal kit ad promising convenience, remember: the real shortcut is learning to cook for yourself.
Seek out those yellow-label organic deals, fill your fridge with fresh ingredients, and batch cook your way to better health, deeper satisfaction, and true financial freedom.
Your body, and your bank account, will thank you.
Tip 2: Save time with pre-cut and pre-packaged ingredients.
Yes, we should all be eating more whole foods – but that doesn’t mean we can’t take shortcuts with fruits, veggies and other whole foods. Buy already cut veggies or fruit, pre-washed salad mixes and canned beans at the grocery store to save time on prep without sacrificing nutrition. You can even find pre-marinated or pre-seasoned organic proteins at your usual farm or some supermarkets, making meal prep quicker.
Check labels to avoid added sugar, salt and other unwanted ingredients. Many prepped veggies are often packed with additives to extend child life and keep them appearing fresh. They also packed in toxic plastic or aluminium trays.
One thing that can save time, energy and be healthier is buying already cooked beans or chickpeas. Rinsing them thoroughly allow you to remove most of the lectins and phytic acid, making them easier to digest, even if you add them directly to salad or make hummus.
Tip 3: Use a fitness app or take an online class.
Planning your workouts is a fun challenge, but unless you’re a trainer or experienced athlete, you’re better off spending more time working out and less time thinking about working out. You can save time (and often see better results) by using a fitness app or taking an online class. Apps often include features like guided workouts, progress trackers and motivational reminders.
These are often cheaper than a gym (and you save the time you’d spend driving there), and you can still get a good workout from home.
Plus, why would you want to drive to the gym to exercise!
Tip 4. Don’t like capsules? You have options!
From curcumin extracts and fibre supplements to probiotics, there are plenty of ways to take supplements that aren’t a traditional “pill” format. Gummy vitamins are always an option, but so are gummies for stomach soothing, metabolism and digestive support. There are even gummies that can deliver 5 grams of fibre! You may also choose supplements in liquid form if you don’t like tablets. This is particularly useful for supplements like liposomal vitamin C and curcumin, also maximising their passage through the digestive tract.
Tip 5. Turn to kitchen gadgets for help.
Small kitchen appliances can make a big difference in your cooking and eating habits! A slow cooker or Instant Pot lets you prep meals with less effort. Food processors make prepping healthy salads a breeze. I use mine to shred carrots, celeriac and cabbage, and slice cucumbers in seconds to make delicious crunchy salads (bought for £179 in 2000). I also use my spiraliser at least 3 times a week. A great investment at £24. I spiralise courgettes, carrots, sweet potatoes, regular potatoes and even beetroots.
The newest gadgets can be pricy, so prioritise appliances you will use regularly. Buy during sales for 40% off! Check social media Marketplace or apps that sell second hand appliances or give them away for free. I picked up a nutribullet from a very nice lady who bought it and never used it, giving it away practically new. I am using it nearly every day. I make my nut and coconut milks, coconut cream, coulis, sauces and blitz soups…
Tip 6. Pack snacks to stay ahead of hanger!
If you spend more time on the go than at home, save money and fight “hanger” by keeping healthy snacks with you. Mixed nuts, whole-grain crackers, protein bars and jerky don’t require refrigeration.
You can also make your Own!!! Protein bars can be done in batch, costing a fraction of the price! Plus, you can choose what goes inside and ensure that the main and first ingredient ain’t sugar (even so-called healthy bars have excessive levels of sugar, no matter it comes from too any dates or fruit juice).
Have access to a fridge or cooler? Take lean proteins, hummus and veggies, a smoothie with fresh fruit and protein powder or Greek yogurt with you. You can now find smoothie-makers that you take with you and blitz when ready to drink, ensuring that your drink is packed with alive nutrients!
Struggle with portion sizes? Choose single-portion snacks or divide up bigger bags ahead of time.
Even gas stations and convenience stores have caught on to the healthy snacking trend. The chips and candy are still there – and taking up most of the space – but you can also find plenty of the healthy options we shared, including nuts and organic hummus!
Tip 7. Subscribe and save — Your personal shopper assistant.
Subscriptions let you free up a bit of brain space by automating purchases so you never run out — and never have to remember when to reorder. In addition to household staples, cosmetics and toiletries can be found on most trusted websites and supplement companies, shipped straight to your door at your convenience whenever you need at a huge discounted price (plus you can pause or cancel anytime).
Also check the farms that allow you to buy when they have sold the entire animal, meaning that your choice has a massive impact on the environment, preventing over killing and waste, something that supermarkets are infamous for.
Many farmers also provide in-season boxes. They are often cheaper because more produce means more than demand, bringing the price down. The opposite applies for imported produce out of season.
Sources
Exquisite Private Chef
Healthline
Wiltshire Farm Foods
Ontario Home Economics Association
Forbes