Hey Everyone! It’s Kat —
Cooking for me has always been the home-based task that I’ve struggled with the MOST. Until very recently, dare I say that I legitimately hated cooking, and how overwhelmed it made me feel!
It’s not just cooking. It’s deciding what to make. Reading the recipe. Checking the ingredients. Chopping. Timing. Coordinating. Remembering what step you’re on. Cleaning up. Waiting for the reward. If you have ADHD, you know how fast all of those tiny steps add up.
Even though I usually share cleaning and organizing tips here, this felt worth sharing too, because it's really about the same idea: reducing friction.
The Kitchen Tool I Wasn't Expecting to Love
The one I use, sitting on my counter and doing all the work.
I bought and tried a slow cooker, and I genuinely think it might be one of the most ADHD-friendly kitchen tools I've used. The recipes I've tried so far take less than 10 minutes of prep. Nothing has to be perfect. It's not precious. It's not fussy.
It's very much:
- Rough chop
- Throw it in
- Measure-ish
- Season with your heart
- Press a button
- Walk away
This is the entire prep. No precision required.
And that works so much better for my brain.
Why It Actually Works for an ADHD Brain
I don't have to stand over the stove. I don't have to coordinate five things at once. I don't have to keep checking the exact timing of every step. I just do the quick prep, let it cook for hours, and come back later to stir, blend, shred, or serve.
A few hours later, dinner just happens.
That is the kind of low-friction system I can actually use.
What Have I Been Making Lately?
Since we're heading into fall, it's been a lot of soups and stews, and just today I made my first daal. My husband is typically the cook in the family, and he makes an incredible daal, so we'll see if mine lives up to the hype.
It only took cutting about five vegetables, grating some ginger, chopping some garlic, and adding cumin, turmeric, and a bit of salt. Once it’s done cooking, I’ll finish it with a hand blender to make it smooth.
The One I Use
I linked the exact one I bought below, because I genuinely love it so far. It's an 8-in-1, so it does a bunch of other things too, not just slow cooking.
If cooking has always felt hard for your brain, this might be worth trying. For me, only having to prep for ten minutes or so, literally forget about it for 4–6 hours, then finish with another 10 minutes of prep has been a literal life saver!
Reach out to me and let me know what you think, or if you use a slow cooker too. Hoping to post some of my recipes to the blog soon!