How people are changing the way they cook, dine, and drink as they prepare for a stay-at-home summer

I have found myself constantly experimenting with my cooking skills and techniques, allowing for me to create fun and exciting "foodie" content on platforms like TikTok and Instagram. Snake River Farms meat delivery service has been a go-to lately. They are a family run business that delivers high-quality meat directly to your door. Personally, I am a fan of their ribeye filet!

I've been experimenting with a few different ways to cook the ribeye and have ultimately discovered that cooking in a cast iron (I like Lodge's Cast Iron Pan) is the way to go. A cast iron gets piping hot and allows your steak to cook and baste with tons of flavor! I love using fresh rosemary, garlic, and loads of Kerrygold Natural Butter. It always comes out delicious. —Nick Guillen, cofounder of TRUFF

When I cook at home, I tend to lean towards Asian foods. I've made a couple of trips to HMart on the Upper West Side of New York City to stock up on things like yuzu koshu, Kewpie mayo, Japanese curry, noodles, frozen dumplings, and my favorite ramen (Nongshim Shin Black Ramen), which is difficult to find here.

The most recent meal I've cooked with some of these ingredients is a turkey burger that has a heaping spoonful of yuzu koshu, microplaned garlic, and ginger. Put it on a potato bun with thinly sliced cucumber, cilantro, mint, and kewpie mayo...and it's pretty magical. —Molly Nickerson, executive chef at Marea

My fishing efforts have been only mildly successful, but I've managed to put together a handful of dinners of crab, shrimp, and whiting (a white-fleshed and delectable if bony inshore species). Nicoise-esque salads, holding the seared tuna for a melange of canned sardines, herring, and anchovies have been a several-times-a-week staple. And when the sea scallops go on sale locally, I'm making a sort of crudo with red chilies, lemon, soy sauce, and a bit of cilantro — whatever's lying around, really. —Owen Burke, senior reporter

Lots of people I know have been taking this time at home to try out new recipes and take on ambitious cooking projects. While that's hugely admirable, and typically how I like to eat, it's the opposite of what I've felt up for lately.

Instead, I've picked standby recipes that I know by heart (and whose ingredients I know will be at the store), and have become okay with — in fact, comforted and grounded by — eating the same kinds of meals on a fairly regular cadence. I'm talking dal, arugula pesto pasta, kale Caesars with a fried egg on top, herby rice noodle salads; the kind of big-flavor stuff that's harder to get sick of.

This way of eating has an added bonus on the shopping front, too. Our biweekly grocery store trips used to take upwards of an hour and a half (a lot of the time spent panicking and frantically maneuvering around people at the store); now that we know generally what's available, and exactly what we're going to buy, we're out of there in 45 minutes or less. —Brinda Ayer, managing editor, Food52

Returning from vacation to this new world order, I was eager to get back into the kitchen. I missed my own kitchen, my own grill, and the familiar flavors of my own cuisine. I wanted my nightly Manhattan with rye and a Luxardo cherry.

I also had designs on more extravagant endeavors: endless banquets, with courses upon courses, all-day-long backyard luncheons built purely of smoked meats, if only for my partner and myself. I figured that with all this time on our hands and nowhere to really go out and play in this fine city of New York, we could still delight in life's finer pleasures, in sheer, unadulterated decadence.

But then I started to feel a little guilty with so many people facing unemployment and abject poverty. I also just got lazy.

I'm trying to catch fish, barter, and get what I can on sale at the local fishmonger — as a former commercial fisherman, I like to support them. I am also not exactly wealthy, so I'm eating a lot of canned fish, and getting darned creative with it, if I may say so myself. —Owen Burke, senior reporter

Pre-pandemic, I always said if I had more time to cook, I'd take on bigger cooking and baking projects on the regular. I'd fancied myself something of an at-home chef.

Well, now that I am spending a lot more time at home and dining out at restaurants isn't an option, I'm actually finding that my desire to tackle new and laborious recipes is waning. I'm really tired of cooking all the time … it's not as fun for me right now. That's why my Instant Pot is currently my go-to kitchen appliance for quick and easy weeknight meals, like The Kitchn's chicken burrito bowls. As a bonus, since all the cooking happens in just the one pot, cleanup is easier, too. —Ellen Hoffman, executive editor

In my family, we have always enjoyed eating out or making homemade meals equally. Yet now that eating out has become more difficult, we have resorted to becoming more creative with our at-home meals. Every week we try recipes famous to a certain place just to spice things up a bit. One of my favorites was this Puerto Rican Arroz con Pollo recipe and we made it in the Instant Pot, which made it that much easier! —Ariel Tilayoff, story production fellow

I've also started using our Instant Pot for one-pot meals, including simple dishes I'd normally make on the stove like chickpea pasta. Instead of cooking the pasta, veggies, and meat separately, I can just dump in a box of Banza pasta, our favorite Rao's sauce, chicken, and veggies right into the pot, and call it a night. —Jada Wong, senior editor

I normally bought canned beans, tomatoes, and corn for making my weekly pot of chili but because of panic buying, I've had to stop buying generic and get the fancy option for tomatoes and beans. I'm also buying my fresh groceries (bell peppers, onions, zucchini, etc.), chopping them up, and freezing them for later use since they tend to spoil too quickly if I buy for two weeks' worth at a time. —Jacky Tu, San Diego, CA

I'm only using delivery to buy groceries — we haven't gone grocery shopping in person since early March. We mostly use Costco, but we also use CSA farmers fresh, which supports local farmers. CSA sends a mix of vegetables and we don't know what we'll get, so that's been cool to get creative with recipes. —Puja Subramaniam, Cupertino, CA

To avoid going out unnecessarily, we buy a ton of produce during each trip so we've had to adjust how we store things to avoid wasting money and food. We use these Rubbermaid storage containers for things like berries and spinach, and we cut and freeze meat and veggies so they'll stay fresh longer. If we forget to store fruit in the containers and they've gotten too ripe, they go into the freezer for smoothies later in the week. —Jada Wong, senior editor

It's been a weird balance of having to ration food so that I can make fewer grocery trips, but also having to cook at home more. It's not like we have the luxury to check out a recipe and then go shopping for what we need immediately, but then that also means cooking bland meals. I definitely try to order from a local restaurant least once a week because my cravings have been going crazy since I can't have what I want.

We do Trader Joe's and Berkeley Bowl runs for the entire house so all of us don't have to go grocery shopping and expose ourselves too often but it's stressful shopping for other people and very time-intensive. —Reann Pacheco, Berkeley, CA

I've been going to the store for vegetables, but recently just found a service called Raw Generation that delivers 25-pound boxes of fresh fruits and vegetables for something like $3 a pound with no plastic and no excess packaging. I'm going to stick with that for now, and here's where I'll shop for the meat and seafood, respectively, when the fishing slows and my freezer stocks run dry. —Owen Burke, senior reporter

Conscious consumption has been on the rise for years, but the moment the pandemic hit, every American suddenly became a conscious consumer when it comes to food. Everyone is now thinking about food safety, about the supply chains that get their food to them (or sometimes don't), and about which brands and retailers they can trust during a crisis. We don't think that's going to change in the "new normal." —Nick Green, cofounder and CEO of Thrive Market

Pre-stay-at-home orders, checking out new restaurants was one of my favorite activities. Now, my family and I have been cooking pretty much all of our meals at home. Having more free time has inspired me to try recipes I usually wouldn't attempt, like homemade bagels. I just got this e-book filled with recipes from NYC restaurants (100% of the proceeds go to a restaurant relief fund) and I'm excited to whip up some of the dishes soon. —Remi Rosmarin, reporter

My NYC-based family and I have always been fans of food delivery, but we've been especially encouraged to order from our favorite local restaurants since the novel coronavirus has progressed. Many food delivery services are contributing to local organizations and essential workers, so we've been ordering from a few of the participating services. Plus, it's a small way to help us feel more connected to the community that we've been missing. —Emily Hein, story producer

If I don't feel like cooking on my days off, I like to support my local restaurants. I live above Fred's Restaurant in the Upper West Side, so I will order takeout from them occasionally. They are known for having a variety of mac-n-cheese flavor combos, and a very good burger. I also love Hi-Life Bar and Grill across the street. They offer cocktails to-go, and sometimes I'll meet a friend (at a safe distance, of course!) outside the bar for a martini. —Molly Nickerson, executive chef at Marea

With the support we'd had from so many New York City restaurateurs, I used to spend several nights out of the week dining out and giving the support right back. I've begun cooking a lot more since stay-at-home orders took hold, but specifically make it a point to reserve weekend meals for takeout or delivery. It's important to still support local establishments during this really difficult time. —Sandro Roco, founder of Sanzo

Through this pandemic, I've gained a lot of perspective. Lately, I've been buying my groceries from local restaurants or purveyors who offer delivery, rather than grocery store chains. Through Instagram, I have been able to find a variety of vendors who deliver a range of fresh produce and ingredients straight to your door. One of my more recent discoveries is Miguel Gonzalez (@davocadoguy). He delivers Michelin-grade avocados and limes around the greater New York City area.

On top of that, I've also been able to order coffee beans from some of my favorite local cafes, but I do have to say, the cherry on top, no pun intended, has been getting ice cream delivered from some of my favorite New York City ice cream shops. While missing out on the ambiance that makes these places so special, the at-home experience has given me the opportunity to relish the good times and look forward to what's to come. —Alexa Bleustein, e-commerce analyst

As a chef, it's been a big transition from in-house diners to delivery — you can't just take the normal menu and pop it into containers. We really had to plan out a menu that travels well, provides good value, and that guests would order again. Meals have become a sort of "event" in the current times, so we've expanded to offering DIY kits and packages for guests to make at home. It doubles as a meal and an activity, especially with kids! —Bill Dorrler, corporate executive chef for Morini & Nicoletta Brands

Like all restaurant owners across the world the closing of our beloved establishments is heartbreaking. We are all families in these temples where we love and feed folks. I was shocked and felt my 30 years of hard work was gone, but a dear friend said, "Art you built it and you can build them again!"

I've been working hard to keep the brand alive by my Chef Art Smith's Healthy Comfort Cooking Classes (on Instagram Live). Many guests of mine watch and support my efforts to keep my chin up. —Art Smith, chef

Many of our favorite spots in Austin are rallying to support their teams and offering takeout, meal kit options, or virtual cooking classes. One of our favorites, Comedor, has partnered with Assembly Kitchen to do incredible recipe kits — way beyond a box of ingredients, these are thoughtfully crafted boxes and instructional videos with their team, like a full experience.

Another partner of ours, Intero, is doing live cooking classes: one-on-one virtual cooking with one of their chefs, including Chef Ian Thurwachter himself, all online. Suerte has launched Suerte Taqueria, a fast-casual offshoot of their restaurant that allows for pick-up of tacos and quesadillas, including their famous 'Suadero' taco. It's a true testament to this industry how quickly these teams have mobilized and offered our communities ways to support and enjoy incredible meals from home. —Jake Kalick and Chip Malt, cofounders of Made In

We use our freezer more than ever and buy four at a time: stockpiling soup broths, freezing bread and oat milk, etc. I'm also coming up with creative ways to get my 4-year-old to eat a wider variety of food ... which includes bribery. —Leland Drummond, Costa Mesa, CA

My family of six has one night a week where each person is responsible for dinner, including setup and cleanup. You can order it if you want, but it's to reduce the stress of one person always in charge of massive dinners. I've already learned to cook a bunch of new things from this rotation. —Spencer Lambert, Ramsey, NJ

At home, I'm still cooking quite a bit, just with a bit more planning and organization than usual. I often make projects for my kids to keep them occupied by involving them in pasta dough, pizza-making, and baking cookies, to name a few. Now that the weather is nicer, I'm also grilling everything I can get my hands on, even breakfast! Minimal cleanup and some much-needed outdoor time. Lastly, I'm rediscovering my love of after-dinner drinks...especially ports! —Bill Dorrler, corporate executive chef for Morini & Nicoletta Brands

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