Cooking meals for one isn’t always fun, and for seniors it can actually be physically difficult. If your senior parent doesn’t seem to be eating enough, or isn’t eating healthy, and you’re concerned about them, the problem could be that cooking is becoming difficult.
In-home care for seniors is a fantastic way to help your senior parent with housework, cooking, and other chores. With in-home care, seniors will have the support they need to maintain a clean house and ensure it’s stocked with healthy food. And a care provider can help seniors cook healthy meals so they are eating the way they should.
In addition to getting in-home care seniors can use these practical tips to make cooking meals easier:
Have Some Easy Options Ready To Go
Planning meals is a smart idea, but some days your senior parent just won’t want the meal planned for that day. Make sure there are easy and healthy options in the pantry so that when your senior parent just wants a light meal or doesn’t want to cook they can reach for something healthy. Soup is a great easy option for seniors, just make sure the soup is stored in a container that your senior parent can easily open.
Keep Meals Low-Prep
Healthy meals don’t have to involve physically demanding tasks like chopping and dicing a lot of vegetables. Stock the pantry with pre-seasoned broths and cooking ingredients, and keep pre-washed, cut vegetables in the refrigerator. This makes it easier to prepare a healthy meal without strenuous steps.
Invest in Kitchen Gadgets
Make sure your senior parent has kitchen gadgets and appliances designed to simplify cooking tasks. Tools like a food processor, blender, or slow cooker can make chopping, blending, and cooking easier. These devices are designed to save time and effort in the kitchen.
Cook in Batches
When your senior parent has an in-home care provider in the house suggest that together they make big batch meals that can be cooked and frozen in small portions. Casseroles, stews, soups, and other meals that are easy to prepare in large quantities can be frozen so that seniors have a healthy quick meal option.
Embrace One-Pot Meals
Who doesn’t love a one-pot wonder? Your senior parent likely grew up eating meals all cooked in one pot. One-pot wonders taste good, are filled with healthy veggies, and eliminate the need to wash many pots, bowls, and utensils. You and your senior parent can search online for one-pot wonder meals, or you can create a cookbook out of your senior parent’s favorite one-pot recipes.
Organize the Kitchen For Your Senior Parent
Making pots, pans, and other tools accessible will encourage your senior parent to try cooking more meals. Put pots and pans at counter height so your senior parent doesn’t need to reach up or bend down to get them. Put a mobile cart in the kitchen to make it easy for them to get ingredients from the fridge or freezer or the counter. And place chairs or benches around the kitchen so your senior parent can sit when they need to.
If you or an aging loved one needs In-Home Care services near Sacramento, CA, contact A Better living Home Care today (916) 514-7006
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