When the Kitchen Feels Like Too Much: How to Cook Without the Overwhelm
This week I really started to notice that I just do not have the desire to cook dinner. By the end of the day, I just want to take a hot shower, grab my cozy sweatpants, fuzzy socks, and watch my show (right now I can’t stop watching Great American Family… shout out Ellen Pompeo for keeping me addicted to TV). Whenever I think about the dishes, the million ingredients that I need to prep, the clean-up… ugh, no thanks. Not this week.
Don’t get me wrong, I love to cook and create new meals, but sometimes I just don’t have it in me.
And the worst part? I open Instagram or Pinterest and get hit with “healthy dinner inspo,” perfectly balanced “what I eat in a day” reels, and #cleaneating grocery hauls that look like they came straight from a farmers market in Italy.
Meanwhile, I’m staring into my bowl of boxed mac and cheese…overprocessed noodles and cheese dust.
Then I realized that diet culture officially invaded my kitchen.
The Diet Culture Fantasy Kitchen
Here’s what the food + wellness influencer world sometimes makes us feel:
You need to meal prep every Sunday, or you’re failing.
Every ingredient should be local, organic, non-GMO, and harvested by ~moonlight~
If it’s not gluten-free, sugar-free, dairy-free and grain-free… is it even healthy?
All of that? i’m tired of this grandpa ! (iykyk)
It’s no wonder people are searching for phrases like “easy weeknight dinners,” “low-effort meals,” and “realistic healthy eating.” Because we’re tired. And overwhelmed. And deeply over the idea that dinner has to be a performance.
So what if we shifted the script? What if feeding yourself didn’t have to be “perfect” to be nourishing?
Let’s Bring It Back to Reality
Cooking doesn’t have to be hard. In fact, the more we strip away the food rules, the easier it gets. Here’s how to make it manageable and actually kind to your nervous system:
Grocery List Hacks That Actually Help
Try building your weekly list around this rhythm:
3 easy meals you enjoy and can mix/match (like: tacos, pasta bowls, stir-fries)
A few proteins (tofu, rotisserie chicken, lentils)
Quick-cook grains (rice, couscous, quinoa)
Frozen + fresh veggies (whatever’s on sale)
Snack-y things you’ll actually eat (bars, fruit, crackers, dips)
And yes, it’s okay to buy pre-chopped veggies. And pre-cooked anything. Convenience does not cancel nourishment.
Put the Easy Stuff Where You’ll See It
You know how “out of sight, out of mind” works? The opposite is also true.
Keep grab-and-go snacks at eye level in the pantry and fridge (fruit, nut butter packs, hummus, protein bars).
Store leftovers in clear containers so you remember they exist.
Create a “no-think” shelf aka your emergency meals. Canned soup, frozen meals, boxed mac and cheese. Real meals count even when they come from the freezer.
Meal Anxiety Is Real (Especially in the Scroll Era)
When your feed is full of reels like “aesthetic anti-inflammatory dinners” or “how to eat clean for gut health,” it can mess with your head. Especially if you have a history with disordered eating, chronic dieting, or food guilt.
So here’s your permission slip:
Dinner doesn’t need to be pretty.
A microwave counts.
Your worth is not measured by your pantry staples
Your meal doesn’t have to be a moment. It just has to feed you.
Repeat Meals = Smart, Not Boring
Pinterest might have you thinking you need a brand new meal idea every night, but let’s be honest: we’re all just rotating the same five meals in different fonts.
If you like having oatmeal every morning? Do it. Leftovers three nights in a row? Iconic. Rotating chili, stir-fry, and tacos weekly? We love a structured queen.
Meal repetition doesn’t mean you’re lazy. It means you’re efficient.
Final Thoughts: Let Food Be Easy
The kitchen is not a stage.
Let’s ditch the guilt and the pressure! Your meals don’t need to be curated, organic, or performative. They just need to feed you in a way that feels doable and kind. Keep this in mind when you have a week like I did. As much as I love to be in the kitchen making fancy recipes, sometimes it's just too much.
So this week, let the frozen rice do the heavy lifting. Eat peanut butter toast if that’s what sounds good. And skip the spiralizer. (No one needs a spiralizer.)
Because at the end of the day, the most nourishing thing isn’t your meal it’s the freedom to feed yourself without shame.
See ya next time! xoxo Kristin
