As the coronavirus pandemic unexpectedly shifted our lives to a new normal where the entire world is increasingly practicing social distancing; employers give work-from-home directives; students are adjusting to the learn-from-home method of education—millions of Filipinos are staying at home more than they used to.
Today, dine-outs in fancy restaurants are replaced by hearty meals served at home. This is because more and more Filipinos turn to home cooking to provide daily sustenance and nutrition to their families. Not only that, but home cooking also provides a great deal of comfort and entertainment especially if a family gets to prepare the meals together.
To Eunice Pedrosa, a mother of three kids, home cooking is more than just a basic necessity. Cooking for her kids has become her favorite pastime which gives her a sense of comfort. For her, cooking allows moms to express their profound love to their families by painstakingly preparing delicious and healthy foods to the table.
Mrs. Pedrosa says cooking is not hard science. She says cooking is all about exploring and being unique in your own techniques. She reveals that she learned various recipes from different family relatives throughout the years. Now that she has more time at home, she can finally apply everything she learned.
Mary Christine Tanola, a single mom of two, says cooking is therapeutic for her and her kids. She says that cooking is the highlight of their everyday routine. Her kids are also helping her prepare the food. She said they are stocking up on chicken, fish, vegetables, and also fresh fruits which they wash thoroughly before storing.
Before the quarantine, Mrs. Tanola discloses that they eat out a lot. Since she is always busy at work, she can barely prepare meals for her kids. Now that the world is in quarantine, she says she is enjoying home cooking for her family.
While the scare of the virus remains prevailing in the outside world, dining at home gives families a sense of normality and relief inside their homes. Cooking can even be therapeutic to those who are suffering from anxiety amid the corona crisis. It gives young kids the healthy perception that everything is fine when they see their moms and dads busying themselves in the kitchen.
In this trying times, National Nutrition Cluster Advisory No. 2, series of 2020, encourages the Local Government Units (LGUs) to diversify and enhance the nutrient content of family food packs. LGUs are strongly encouraged to optimize the use of local fresh produce of dark green and yellow vegetables, root crops, legumes/beans/seeds, fruits, poultry, egg, meat/fish, or pasteurized fresh milk. On the other hand, households are advised to avoid or minimize the purchase and consumption of processed foods that are high in salt, sugar, fats, and low essential nutrients. Preparing home-cooked foods assure the family that food consumed is safe and provides nutrients necessary for family members.
While there are many benefits of home cooking to every Filipino family which spans from saving money, monitoring family’s nutrition to starting up a new hobby, cooking at home definitely brings people together. Home cooking is more than just a basic necessity—it’s a much-needed slice of normalcy amid the exceptionally abnormal times we are all facing today. #RyanRequiezRodriguez
