Cooking Day – Healthy, Fresh & Simple Meals in 20 Minutes

Bringing Meal Prep Skills to Life

Meal preparation is a key part of the support our Care Assistants provide to Clients every day. Building on the success of our previous Cooking Day, and responding to feedback from our Carers about what they would like to learn, we organised another Cooking Day on 2 October, packed with practical tips, demonstrations, and interactive learning.

Part 1 – Efficient Cooking & Food Safety Tips

The day began with a short presentation covering essential kitchen safety, time-saving techniques, and basic cooking principles. Topics included:

• Food pairing to enhance flavours
• Quick fixes for dishes that don’t turn out as planned
• The importance of teamwork

The session provided Carers with tools to make meal preparation both faster and safer, reinforcing how collaboration and communication are key in providing the best care for clients.

Part 2 – Live Demonstrations

Next, our participants enjoyed live cooking demonstrations of popular and requested dishes. Step-by-step guidance was provided, with practical tips for handling ingredients efficiently, making the process clear and easy to replicate in their daily work. Thanks Natasha and Hannah being our chefs.

Part 3 – Your Task: Planning a 20-Minute Meal

The final session invited Carers to apply what they had learned in a fun, interactive way. Participants planned a simple 20-minute meal using a task sheet, discussing approaches, timings, and ingredient handling. While it wasn’t a real cooking challenge, this exercise encouraged problem-solving, teamwork and creative thinking in meal prep.

Looking Forward

The Cooking Day was a great success, combining practical learning, hands-on demonstrations, and team collaboration. Our Care Assistants left with new ideas, skills, and confidence to prepare healthy, fresh, and simple meals efficiently for our Clients. We look forward to hosting more events like this to continue supporting our team and enhancing the care experience.