Cooking—is it self-care?

Devin Owen
MSMU Class of 2026

(3/2025) At our monthly meeting for our Four Years At The Mount staff, we discussed how there are so many common aspects of life that we really don’t pay much mind to. We thought it would be interesting to discuss common topics and give our takes on them and pay the mind to them that we typically don’t.

The first thing that popped into my head when we decided on this prompt for writing was cooking. Now I find it important to clarify that I have been an absolutely horrendous cook for the entirety of my life. I actually made a dinner so bad as a teenager that my family still talks about it to this day as a way to make fun of me. It was a lemon chicken over rice and veggies. I kid you not the second my brothers took a bite, they immediately spit it out. Life lesson learned: don’t use lemon juice concentrate in place of a squeeze of a lemon. Cooking was such a staple in my household growing up. We used it as a way to bond as a family and spend time together after long days at work and school. The one thing I miss the most about living with my dad is getting to have homecooked dinners multiple nights per week. Our family dinners—even being just three of us—were my favorite part of the day.

This is the first year of my college career that I have had the absolute pleasure of having my own kitchen. It has been wonderful. So far, I have made numerous dishes to share with my boyfriend and my roommate Abby (she’s also my best friend), both of whom get very excited when I cook dinners.

Abby and I have a go-to, favorite simple dinner for the nights that we don’t have the energy to cook an extravagant meal. For all of my sushi lovers out there, we make a California roll sushi bowl. It includes spicy mayo, white rice, imitation crab, cucumber, avocado, sesame seeds and soy sauce. It is such a simple and cheap meal; we absolutely love it!

I must say Pinterest has been a life saver for learning how to cook. I get a majority of my recipes from the platform, at least for new dishes I have yet to try. For example, last week I made a delicious crockpot chicken pot pie filled with potatoes, peas, carrots, and celery and even dried herbs. I also made Abby and I steaks and brussels for dinner a couple weeks ago, perfectly seasoned and cooked, paired with garlic roasted brussels covered in balsamic glaze and caramel (Abs was a bit hesitant on the caramel but I promise it makes it better).

I have found that I am definitely a much better baker than I am a chef; pastries, cookies, cupcakes, and the like are much more my forte. Just last night I made homemade raspberry turnovers to share with my household and friends. I’ve said in articles prior about how raspberry turnovers were my Uncle’s favorite baked good I could make, so baking them after he has passed feels like a way to keep a piece of his memory alive with me and share it with those closest to me now. Baking has also served as a connection between my grandmothers and myself since I was a little girl. My Grandma Cathy is one of the best bakers I know, and my Gigi and Grandma Pat always set aside time to bake cookies and pies with me over the years. They made the process and the wait worth it, getting a sweet treat was a plus too.

All that being said, cooking has begun to feel more and more like a form of self-care to me. Let me paint the scene for you: candles burning, a light pink and yellow hue illuminating the kitchen and living room, music playing in the background offering the opportunities to sing and dance along, the aroma of a home cooked meal filling the small college apartment to the point that it smacks you in the face as soon as you open the door, the sound of dishes being cleaned as you go, and a mocktail in a fancy glass in hand. I dance around the kitchen, singing along to whatever play list I have decided on for tonight, my roommates trickle in and out of the house and I am just in complete and total bliss.

Now when I heard the phrase "self-care" growing up I typically thought of facemasks, taking a long, hot shower, eating a healthy meal, and reading a book of my choosing. However, my understanding of self-care has changed drastically as an adult. Self-care isn’t just about doing a fancy little mask of some sort and having a treat, it’s actually about taking care of yourself—crazy concept, I know. Now self-care consists of making sure to eat multiple meals a day, drinking enough water, making time for joy and laughter, spending time outside and socializing, and cooking and cleaning!

Cooking has offered me an opportunity to let go and be creative while also taking care of my body and my mind. I have so frequently put eating at the bottom of my priority list even though i shouldn’t. When i take the time to cook, I not only get to fuel both my body and mind, but i also get to make myself proud because I am actively making the choice to do something good for myself. Not to mention I am incredibly proud of how far i have come in my cooking journey; no longer am I catching food on fire and making chicken so sour that it literally disintegrates!

I know cooking and self-care seem like two concepts that don’t really belong in the same grouping but if we look below the surface level, we see just how intertwined the two actually are. Cooking can be fun—as I have learned—and it gives you so many opportunities. I’m looking forward to the next meal I decide to cook, and for the dance parties, kitchen karaoke, wonderful smells filling the air, the excitement from my friends, and the joy i know it will bring me. Here’s to self-care and cooking!