9 Practical Steps To Reduce Your Dependence On Food Delivery Apps

Have you seen the funny reel that tells you how to become rich in Bengaluru? The video shows a couple deleting all the food delivery apps from their phones to save money. While ditching online food ordering apps may not make you rich, they will help you save money. But in the long term, it will also help you

Reducing the ordering out will save you a lot of money for sure, but it will also save your health.

As of 2024, Swiggy and Zomato combined handle around 5 million orders daily, showcasing a massive reliance on these services.

The Cost Of Convenience

Getting your food delivered to you in less than an hour is a big convenience. But it also comes at a cost — – to your health, pocket and to the environment.

Ingredients are key to eating healthy, something we don’t have control on when we order from a restaurant. Hygiene is often suspect in cloud kitchens (if you follow Commissioner of Food Safety, Telangana on X, you’ll get a look into all that goes on even in big-name F&B brands). Food cooked in a cloud or restaurant kitchen has at least double the calories in comparison to healthy home-cooked food.

Another big problem with ordering out is the paraphernalia of packaging that comes with it like single-use plastic, paper napkins, ketchup and seasoning sachets that add to the waste that ends up in landfills.

Ordering food online is mostly for convenience. We often reach for these apps when we’ve had a long day, or our cook hasn’t turned up and there’s just no time or energy to prepare a meal.

How can we then stop ordering food online? Here are some Tips:

Tips To Reduce Dependency

Identify Reasons: The first step is to understand why you order from these apps – is it convenience, lack of cooking skills, time constraints or late-night cravings? Identifying the reason can help you come up with the correct solution.

Meal Planning: Plan your meals in advance to avoid last-minute stress at meal time. Knowing what to cook or eat and having the ingredients prepped and ready is half the job done, and cuts down impulsive ordering.

Utilise Your Fridge: Don’t let health influencers on social media scare you from using the fridge or freezer. Prepare extra portions of meals when you cook dishes like rajma pav bhaji, chhole, brown rice, soups, stews or even dal. These reheat well and reheating home-cooked meals are infinitely better than an ordered-in meal.

Stock Up: Keep a well-stocked pantry and fridge so the lack of ingredients does not stop you from cooking. Use easy recipes that you enjoy eating, so they can be made on repeat and you don’t have to stock too many ingredients. Two kinds of grains, beans, and dals are all you need to prepare main meals, along with vegetables and protein of some kind. Stock up on some nuts, seasonal fruit and chocolate if you are someone who orders in to satisfy late-night cravings or a post-meal dessert.

Learn Cooking Skills: There are millions of YouTube videos to suit every level of skill and cuisine, which you can watch, get the recipe and start cooking. Cookbooks and food blogs are other resources to learn cooking.

Variety Isn’t Always Good: Once you have mastered a few healthy dishes and combinations, accept eating them on repeat, with slight changes in spices, herbs or vegetables. Variety is overrated and overwhelming. Having too many options derails you from your healthy eating goals.

Do It Gradually: You can delete the apps and go cold turkey if you have the stomach for it, and have a functioning kitchen with basic cooking skills or you could be more realistic and start by cutting back on a few orders in a week and gradually cooking more and more at home.

Set Up The Environment: Make your kitchen a fun space to be. Keep it clean, well equipped and inviting, so cooking becomes enjoyable. Good knives, cooking pans and gadgets like choppers and blenders make cooking easier.

Get The Family Involved: Cooking can be a family bonding exercise. It also teaches children basic life skills and that homemade food is always a healthier option. It makes children comfortable eating traditional cuisines and a variety of vegetables and ingredients, which builds good habits for their adulthood.

Reducing your dependence on food delivery apps is a journey that requires planning, effort, and a willingness to learn.

By implementing these strategies, you’ll improve your health, save money and gain a greater appreciation for the art of cooking. Additionally, you'll contribute to environmental conservation by reducing plastic waste.

Embrace this journey with small, consistent steps, and celebrate your progress. Every home-cooked meal is a step towards a healthier, more sustainable lifestyle.