You know what they say, healthy habits start at home. And you can narrow it down even further to your kitchen. Diet plays a significant role in our wellbeing. So if you want to change your approach to health in 2020, here is the perfect place to start.
In this article, we are going to break down how you can create a healthier mobile home kitchen to kickstart your new lifestyle.
Tips on organizing your kitchen
Experts know that people often fail in their healthy eating resolutions due to organization, or rather disorganization. Even the best intentions can only take you so far if you don’t put them into action. And organizing your kitchen is often the long-term solution you need to follow through on your plans. By spending some time and effort now, you can save time and money late, and become healthier to boot.
Out with the old, in with the new
Almost every transformation starts by getting rid of everything that’s not working for you and starting fresh. So, the best place to start is with a cleanup operation. You want to get rid of any foods that are not going to help you reach your goals.
Exactly what you ditch will dpend on what you have in your kitchen, and what it is that you want to eat. But usually, you will want to get rid of the following:
- Sodas
- Chips
- Any sugar or sweetened foods like candy (and maybe desserts)
- Food that is packed with preservatives and additives
- High-calorie condiments.
In the end, you want the contents of your fridge and pantry to match your healthy lifestyle.
Stock up on pantry essentials
However, getting rid of unhealthy foods doesn’t help if you don’t replace them with healthy alternatives. One way to ensure that you can stick to your eating plan is to make sure you always have some essentials on hand so that you don’t have any excuse to skip cooking healthy food.
These are the dry foods that you can store in the cupboard and use for a variety of dishes. Once again, what you get depends on your taste and requirements, but some good staples are:
- Rolled oats
- Rice
- Dried beans and lentils
- Whole grains
- No-salt-or-sugar-added peanut butter
- Seeds and nuts
- Dried fruits like apricots and dates
- Whole grain pasta.
The fresher the better
Next, you want to complement your pantry staples with delicious fresh fruits and vegetables. These foods are packed full of fiber and nutrients like vitamins and antioxidants to keep you healthy. And they are great alternatives to unhealthy treats.
There is even some evidence that fresh fruits and vegetables can help you fight and prevent health problems like heart disease.
Front and center
Now that you’ve stocked up, it’s time to put your healthy foods in pride of place. You want the first things you see when you open your pantry or fridge to be nutritious options. This way, the chances are higher that you will grab healthy foods first.
Doing this will be especially handy in the beginning while you’re trying to learn healthier habits.
On top of this, you should also go out and buy yourself a beautiful fruit bowl. Not only will this make your kitchen more attractive, but it will also encourage you and your family to grab an apple or banana when it’s time for a snack.
Get some mason jars
Another pro tip for organizing your pantry is to invest in mason jars. Ditch all the cardboard and plastic packaging as soon as you get back from the shops and fill up the glass jars with your pantry staples.
Firstly, this is an effective method to keep your food fresher for longer. This means that you can save money by avoiding wasted goods.
Secondly, you will find it much easier to see what you are looking for. You can spare yourself the time spent rummaging for what you need (and skip out on the accompanying frustration).
Last but not least, these jars are a great way to make your pantry look more attractive and inviting. It just feels better scooping your oats out of a glass bottle instead of struggling with a packet.
Plan and prep
Unfortunately, we don’t always have the luxury of time, especially during the work and school week. It can be tricky to come up with healthy meals to cook when you are tired and overworked. This can send your entire healthy living plan spinning off the rails.
The solution for this is to plan ahead. Sit down each weekend and work out a menu for each day. Doing this will make grocery shopping far easier, too.
And as a bonus, it can help you to negotiate with stubborn family members. For example, give each person the chance to pick a meal.
Another strategy that has recently become very popular is meal prep. In this case, you will make a bunch of meals beforehand (or at least make part of them beforehand). As a result, you don’t have to cook every dish from scratch.
Remember to buy some Tupperware and glassware if you want to go this route.
Keep temptations out of sight
Now that you’ve placed your healthy food front and center, you want to make sure to keep any snacks or unhealthy temptations out of sight. Ideally, you should keep as few of these items in your home as possible. But nobody’s perfect, and we all want a treat now and again.
The less you see these types of foods, the less tempted you will be.
Besides this, you also want to make them hard to reach. Therefore, it can be a good idea to always keep these treats on the highest shelves of your cupboards or pantries. You won’t be so quick to grab a bag of chips if you need a step ladder to reach it.
Best appliances and gadgets for a healthy kitchen
Not all appliances are equal when it comes to healthy eating. A different style of food often needs a different way of cooking. Luckily, many innovative products can help you cook delicious yet nutritious meals.
Here are some of our top picks.
Air fryer
Who doesn’t enjoy fried food every now and then?
For some people, the crunch is irresistible. But unfortunately, this isn’t always the healthiest option and is usually very high in calories. That’s where an air fryer can be a great solution.
With this appliance, you can create meals with the same taste and crunch of fried foods, but without so much of the oil and fat.
Air fryers work quite similarly to electric convection ovens, which cook food by circulating hot air. However, with tricks like providing a perforated basket, an air fryer can lead to quite different and crispier results.
Multicooker
If you are looking for one appliance to do it all, you should get yourself a multicooker. These are electrical appliances that you can use to cook in a variety of ways. Many of these methods are incredibly healthy.
For example, you can use some multicookers to boil, steam, simmer, grill, bake, fry, roast, brown, and stew food. These all-around useful items are the centerpieces of many kitchens.
Blender
A blend is another type of appliance that can quickly become indispensable. These days, smoothies are favorite health foods as they are packed full of fiber and nutrients. However, you can use a blender for far more than smoothie crafting.
Both stick blenders and kitchen blenders are crucial if you want to make dishes at home from scratch. For example, you can use blenders to make pasta sauce, hummus, salsas, and more.
Digital scale
Another vital kitchen appliance is a digital scale. Many recipes require that you weigh out precise quantities. And if you’re planning to follow a strict eating plan, this will be even more important.
Juicer
Most experts agree that if you want to eat healthier, storebought juices are out of the running. Unfortunately, these products are often filled with extra sugar and artificial ingredients. Instead, if you still want to enjoy some orange juice, it is better to make your own.
You can choose from a host of different types of juicers. If you want to, you can even buy an electric unit. Or you can go with a simple manual squeezer.
Water filter
If you are serious about health, you might want to consider investing in a water filter. Clean water is a right. But unfortunately, many potential factors – from dirty, old pipes to chlorine – can reduce water quality.
That’s why people are increasingly relying on water filtration devices. Popular methods use reverse osmosis, distillation, and charcoal. There are whole home filters available. However, if you only want to clean your drinking water, a countertop filter will be a much more cost-effective solution.
Here are some of the key benefits of water filtration:
- Eliminate tap water odor and taste
- Remove potentially harmful substances like heavy metal and chlorine
- Gain you control over the mineral content of your water
- Reduce limescale
- Make it easier to drink water
In the end, this can help you lose weight and improve your overall health.
General equipment
If you want to cook great meals at home, you will need to get some tools. There are some basic pieces of equipment that you can use to make a variety of dishes.
So if you haven’t invested in any of the following, now is a good time.
- A sharp chef’s knife
- Several cutting boards
- Garlic crusher or press
- High-quality kitchen scissors
- Measuring cups and spoons
- Strainer
- Timer
Make your kitchen the heart of the mobile home
Making homemade meals is a tried and tested method to improve your diet. You get to control what goes into each dish, unlike when you eat fast food or even food at restaurants.
However, this does mean that you’re going to spend much more time in your kitchen. Therefore, one of the best things you can do is to turn that kitchen into a place where you want to spend time. You should look forward to making meals there.
So let’s look at tricks you can try to enhance the space.
Space for socialization
Many people have fond memories of the kitchen in their childhood homes. It’s a place where families often gather to chat or even to work together – cooking then sharing a meal.
Most people will definitely want to spend more time in the kitchen if they know they are going to spend it with their loved ones.
That’s why you want to make this an inviting area with enough space for everyone to gather in. To do this, you can install a countertop with some bar stools where people can sit. Or you can buy a table where the kids can sit and do their homework while you cook.
It can also be handy to get everyone involved in the cooking process. You can take turns making meals and delegating tasks.
Besides being tasty, making your own food can also help reduce your stress and improve your mental wellbeing.
Clean and uncluttered
One downside of cooking is that it can be pretty messy. And the resultant mess can then discourage you from using the kitchen until it’s all cleaned up. That’s why we recommend that you work out a cleaning strategy where you split up the duties.
Find what works best for you and your family. Do you prefer to wash the dishes straight away, or is doing it once a day more convenient?
Generally, you should also aim to keep your kitchen uncluttered. This will make doing the actual cooking much easier and speedier, as well as keep the space pleasant.
Tune in
Another way to beat stress and make cooking a ball is to play some music while you’re at it. Remember, cooking doesn’t have to be a drag. Instead, you can have some fun and enjoy the process. You can even assemble a playlist of your favorite musical accompaniments.
Set up a stereo or a Bluetooth speaker in the room to make sure this becomes a daily habit
Set yourself up for success
Sometimes, you need to make changes in your environment if you want to change your lifestyle. And that’s undoubtedly true when it comes to improving your health and wellbeing. Creating a healthier mobile home kitchen could be the first step to reaching your goals.
As a whole, you want to create a positive space that will encourage you and not hold you back.
For more tips on how to optimize your home, take a look at nine tips to living a happier life in your mobile home and rest & relaxation: make your dining room a place to mingle.
About EZ Homes Design Team
