Cooking with ADHD
There are many challenges that ADHD causes a person. A lot of them seem to meet together in the kitchen. What seems like a simple task for neurotypicals becomes much harder for those with ADHD. Here are some struggles that happen in the kitchen for us ADHD
Following a Recipe
Reading comprehension does not come easily when you have ADHD. It is a challenge to read something, remember it, and apply it to what you are doing. I know I have to read and re-read recipes several times while I am cooking. Sometimes, I miss an important step, and the dish is either ruined or quite mediocre.
Also, there is the time I did not fully comprehend the consequences of making garlic prime rib after reading a recipe and ended up spending $144 at the grocery store on meat alone for a meal I was cooking for just myself. (For the full, even more hilarious story, click here.)
Time Management
When you are cooking, you have to be able to manage time. One ingredient needs to be cooked X minutes, and the side dish needs to be cooked for Y minutes. Somehow, they both have to be done at the same time. It is not an easy task to keep track of and manage all the moving pieces and have them done when they need to be done.
Remembering
The memory aspect of ADHD is particularly challenging when it comes to cooking. You have to remember what you are doing. If you want to sit and stare at the oven while your meal cooks, that is fine. However, most of us humans are going to do something else while the food is in the oven. This means we need to remember that there is something in the oven. Yes, we can set timers, but which timer is for which part of the meal? Also, will we hear the timer go off? Even if we do, are we going to be able to stop what we are doing and address the timer?
Furthermore, we need to remember that we have turned on a burner or the oven and turn it off when we are done. That is assuming we remembered to turn it on in the first place. There is no guarantee of that either. You often hear stories of ADHDers who have “cooked” eggs for a really long time because they did not realize the burner was not on.
So What Can Be Done About These Problems?
The use of timers is key. I like to use the one on my Apple Watch because it vibrates on my wrist and is hard to ignore. I also write down what time certain things started cooking if I already have a timer going on my watch. As I write these words, it is occurring to me that I should probably read the directions of a recipe completely before I start cooking, instead of reading as I go. Maybe it would even help to highlight the important stuff
However, it is important to note that there is no magic solution for the problems of cooking with ADHD. Your strategies will need to be as unique as you are. A coach can be a great help in finding the strategies that work best for you.