I’m an awful cook. If it can’t be chucked into an air fryer on 180 degrees and ready within 15 minutes, I’m not interested. I am capable of boiling some pasta and, on a good day, there’s a 40 per cent chance I’ll produce rice that isn’t sludgy. But any more than that is an ask.
I don’t take full responsibility for this. Growing up, I ate foods that were mostly ultra-processed (UPFs) and my mum hated cooking. Once every few weeks we may have had a casserole but really the only comforting homemade meals I remember eating are when visited my nan’s house, who – forget frozen nuggets or pizza – would always serve something home made and delicious; usually cottage pie or stew. Always with plenty of green vegetables.
But generally, growing up in the early 2000s, I ate a diet of processed foods, and snacked – a lot – on chocolate, or ice cream. And that was the way I liked it.
Now I’m 22 I find myself eating similar meals every day. That includes bacon and eggs, two servings of whey protein powder, a pasta dish for lunch and mince or chicken for dinner. Junk food, usually in the form of a burger or pizza, is a weekly event. Having grown up in the era of UPFs, energy drinks and protein bars, they’re all very much still a staple. But lately I’ve been wondering if my home-cooking grandparents had the right idea all along.
In the past decade bowel cancer rates in people under 50 have risen in England more dramatically than much of the rest of the world. Experts have claimed that shifting diets are a leading cause, with high levels of red meat and processed meat and low fibre partly to blame. Record levels of obesity and Type 2 diabetes, especially in under-40s, now could also be down to the nation’s eating habits.
Dieticians have concluded that the diets of older generations in the UK were typically healthier than those in the 2020s. And when I look at my great nan, who at the age of 87 walks everywhere, never complains about any aches or pains, and cooks homemade meals every night, I wonder how much her diet has played a part in ageing well.
Helena Barham, a nutritional therapist and founder of Nourish&Be, says “without a doubt” a diet with lower-processed foods, like boomers ate, is healthier. “There is so much in food today that wouldn’t be recognised as food 100 years ago – emulsifiers, additives, preservatives. The beauty of home cooked meals is that we can see what goes into our food.”
The modern diet is creating bad habits and health issues, she says. “We are typically eating a lot more and more often giving our bodies less chance to process the energy we are giving it. This is catastrophic for metabolic health.
“It is predicted that by 2035 nearly 10 per cent of our population will have diabetes. Our genes have not changed in the past 100 years that much. These are environmental issues, and a huge part of this, I believe, is down to the unrecognisable changes in our diets and eating habits.”
So, with that in mind, instead of continuing with my UPF-laden diet, I decided to try a boomer’s diet for a week to see how I felt.
Deciding what to include was the first challenge. I decide to base my weekly meals on the recommendations of my nan and her children, all born between the 1930s to 1960s. Their diets – bangers and mash, cottage pie, porridge and of course plenty of tea – seem to consist of less processed food, and more simple home cooked dishes.
They still ate red meat but it was more likely in the form of beef mince than greasy sausages and fatty bacon. Every meal in my plan for the week included a side of green vegetables, including broccoli, green beans or a fresh salad.
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The first part was easy. My morning cappuccino filled with two pumps of syrup and a teaspoon of sweetener was replaced with a traditional milky brew. That’s on my very short list of things I can make well. The taste was exceptional; it really is a cup of warmth. An adequate replacement for coffee, however, it was not and I found myself looking over at my coffee machine longingly.
The biggest hurdle came next though: the actual food.
When I moved out of home at 18 the most adventurous dish I learned to make was spaghetti bolognese – using a jar of shop-bought sauce. I don’t even own the utensils to make some dishes: I don’t have a can opener and have one small saucepan. I do pride myself on having good knives (nan-approved) and a chopping board, although I haven’t sliced an onion since my school food tech lessons.
Ready meals have long been my best friend, and if they failed I’d toast some bread. Now I was facing a week of following recipes (with a lot of steps) just for dinner.
Instead of going online, I decided to ask my nan for her cottage pie recipe, a request which was met with a snort of derision (she was shocked I was actually cooking). Her definition of a recipe involves “a pinch” of this and “however much you think it needs” of that. A similar request for her curry recipe also just saw her reel off ingredients, lots of which I didn’t have.
Undeterred, I stood over my kitchen counter, chopping garlic and onions for what felt like hours, and wishing I’d bought a gadget to do it for me. I eventually managed to successfully put together the correct ingredients to make the cottage pie and congratulated myself on the fact that it turned out surprisingly well. Which is good, since it took up my whole evening.
Exhausted I sat down and tucked in… to dry mince and mash. I’d forgotten the gravy! I ploughed on and it was both nostalgic and comforting, albeit a little dry.
Breakfast the next day was a bowl of porridge; something I’d usually spruce up with syrups, protein powder, chocolate and fruit. Without those things it was pretty bland. In fact working my way through a beige bowl with only a few raspberries for sweetness was a bit of a low moment.
Lunch that day was a simple sarnie, inspired by the older people in my life who eat nothing but sandwiches in the middle of the day.
On day two I tried a homemade chicken curry. I chucked it all into my (tiny) saucepan and whisked up one portion. It was delicious; not as spicy as I remember from childhood (although I realised that “a pinch” of an ingredient is code for “a handful” in my nan’s kitchen). Who knew that adding ingredients like onion and garlic, that I always dismissed as unnecessary, could be such a game changer to the overall product?
Over the days that followed I made homemade burgers and two more servings of curry, which also felt less challenging than day one. One thing I learned quickly was that I needed to put an hour or two aside in the evening if I’m going to cook fresh meals from scratch. No longer can I eat within 15 minutes.
I came to a number of conclusions over the course of my week. Firstly, coffee is better than tea. Even better than that is a cold can of Pepsi. Secondly, the smell of food cooking from scratch really is comforting and homely – much better than listening to an air fryer whir for 12 minutes before delivering what can only be described as dry chicken (until recently my staple supper, served with a side of cucumber to avoid cooking vegetables).
With the extra fruit and vegetables, I felt healthier although whether or not that was just a response to seeing green on my plate everyday I don’t know.
Bloating was a problem though. The meals I cooked have more salt and carbohydrates than I’m used to and my stomach was unsure about what was happening. I also gained weight – and found myself wondering how much I’d put on if this was my daily diet.
Dietician Nichola Ludlam-Raine, author of How Not to Eat Ultra-Processed, says the diet I’m following is by no means perfect. “It often included higher amounts of saturated fats (the preferred fat for heart health is unsaturated) due to eating more meat, or larger portions.” It could explain my stomach upset.
I was also concerned about my protein intake. I usually have around 150 grams a day – 60 of that coming from powders and bars, the rest from meat and eggs. My breakfast porridge, sandwich lunches and carb-dense dinners probably contained half of that amount with much more emphasis on carbs than my usual dishes.
On the upside though I didn’t have the urge to get my Friday night takeaway. The chef at my local pizza shop may have wondered if I’d gone on holiday but I was content with my traditional English breakfast (with chicken sausages to avoid red processed meat) at 7pm that night.
So did my experiment make me want to change my ways for good? Not quite. Instead, I think I’m going to find a Gen Z boomer balance; fewer protein bars more home-cooked food, so that I feel full and content and I don’t get that look of disappointment from my grandparents when they ask what I had for dinner.
But the porridge is going in the bin. And the Pepsi is making a comeback.
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