Finding Peace in the Kitchen: How Cooking Helps with Anxiety and Depression

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Outside of running Kempton’s Kitchen, I’m also a certified life coach who specializes in anxiety management, substance misuse, and trauma. So, over the years, I’ve seen firsthand how small, intentional actions can make a big impact on our mental well-being. One of the most powerful tools I’ve discovered—for both myself and my clients—is cooking.

Yes, cooking.

While it might seem like just another task on the to-do list, cooking can actually become a grounding, healing practice—especially for those living with anxiety or depression. It’s one of the few daily activities that blends mindfulness, creativity, nourishment, and structure all in one place. And sometimes, that’s exactly what we need.

Let’s explore how spending time in the kitchen can become a form of self-care, and even a quiet type of therapy.

Cooking as Therapy: Why It Works

Mental health professionals are increasingly recognizing cooking as a form of behavioral activation—a therapeutic approach that encourages people to engage in meaningful and pleasurable activities to combat depression. Here’s how cooking specifically helps:

1. It Brings You Into the Moment (Mindfulness in Action)

Anxiety often roots us in the future. Depression can trap us in the past. But cooking—measuring, chopping, stirring, tasting—pulls us into the now. When you’re focusing on whisking a sauce or timing a roast, your brain has less space to spiral into intrusive thoughts.

One of the most helpful forms of mindfulness is sensory grounding. This practice involves tuning into each individual sense, to help ground you into the present moment. Cooking combines each of these senses; sight, smell, feel, hear, and taste, making it the ultimate tool in mindfulness. Even something as simple as boiling water can be a moment of calm when approached mindfully.

2. It Offers a Sense of Control and Accomplishment

When the world feels chaotic or out of control—when your thoughts are racing, your to-do list is overwhelming, or everything just feels too much—cooking gives you something steady to hold onto.

There’s comfort in the structure of a recipe. You start with raw ingredients. You follow a sequence of steps. You make decisions along the way: a little more salt, a different spice, five extra minutes in the oven. And when it’s done, you’ve created something with your own hands—something real, nourishing, and tangible.

That sense of forward motion, of bringing something to completion, can be deeply healing—especially on days when everything else feels stuck or uncertain.

Cooking also gives you a rare kind of instant feedback: you can see your progress, smell the change, and taste the results. It’s a gentle reminder that you’re capable of creating something good—even when your mind is telling you otherwise.

3. It Stimulates the Senses

One of the hardest things about depression is how it can dull your experience of the world. Colors feel muted. Food loses its flavor. Music becomes background noise. It’s like your senses have dimmed, leaving you disconnected from your surroundings—and even from yourself.

Cooking can gently start to turn that light back on.

The simple act of preparing a meal becomes a full-body experience. The sharp, earthy smell of fresh garlic hitting a hot pan. The soft give of kneading dough between your palms. The rhythmic sizzle of onions caramelizing in butter. The vibrant green of chopped herbs. The way a spoon scrapes against the bottom of a pot. Even the steam that rises and curls from a warm bowl on a cold day—it all brings you back to your senses.

And when you plate that dish—whether it’s rustic and messy or styled to perfection—you’ve not only created a meal, you’ve re-engaged with life. You’ve reminded your body and your brain what it feels like to feel again.

4. It Encourages Creativity

Cooking is more than just a task—it’s a form of creative expression. Whether you’re following a recipe or making it up as you go, the choices you make in the kitchen reflect your personality, preferences, and mood. Swapping spices, adjusting flavors, or inventing something from leftovers invites curiosity and imagination—things depression often silences.

When your world feels small or colorless, creativity in the kitchen can help reawaken joy and remind you that you’re capable of making something unique and meaningful. It doesn’t have to be perfect—it just has to be yours. Even small touches, like picking your favorite mug or plating your food with care, can be a quiet but powerful way to reconnect with yourself.

5. It Nourishes Your Body and Mind

We can’t separate mental health from physical health—what we eat matters. Homemade meals give your body the nutrients it needs to support mood, energy, and emotional balance. Things like leafy greens, healthy fats, and whole grains play a real role in how we feel.

And when you cook those meals yourself, it becomes more than just fuel—it’s an act of care. You’re not just feeding your body; you’re showing up for yourself in a small but meaningful way.

Cooking Can Be Connection, Too

Loneliness and isolation are two of the most silent but powerful contributors to anxiety and depression. When we feel disconnected from others, it becomes harder to feel grounded, supported, or seen. But cooking—even something simple—can be a meaningful way to reach out and reconnect.

Cooking for others, whether it’s a partner, a child, a neighbor, or a friend, is a deeply human act of care. It says, I made this for you. I thought of you. Even a shared meal in silence can communicate comfort, presence, and love in ways that words sometimes can’t. The table becomes a space for connection—one bite at a time.

And if you’re cooking alone, you’re not truly alone. Sharing a photo of your dish, texting a recipe to someone you love, or joining an online cooking group can create small, real moments of interaction. You might not be in the same room, but you’re still sharing something—your creativity, your effort, your experience.

These small moments of connection can break through the walls of isolation. They remind you that you are still part of a larger story, and that the things you create—even in your own kitchen—can reach beyond your four walls.

Start Simple—Even Boiling Pasta Counts

You don’t have to be a professional chef. This isn’t about perfection or gourmet Instagram-worthy meals. This is about showing up for yourself. Scrambled eggs. A grilled cheese sandwich. A one-pot soup.

Start where you are, with what you have. Let cooking be an act of kindness toward yourself.

Practical Tips for Using Cooking to Support Mental Health

Create a calm space: Light a candle, put on music, or open a window. Make your kitchen feel safe and welcoming.

Cook when you have energy, prep when you don’t: Even washing produce or pre-chopping vegetables is a win.

Embrace imperfection: Burnt toast? Oversalted soup? It’s okay. The act matters more than the outcome.

Make comfort meals: Revisit dishes from your childhood or meals that remind you of someone you love.

Celebrate the small victories: You made yourself a snack today? That counts. Truly.

Healing Doesn’t Have to Be Loud

Sometimes, healing doesn’t come in the form of major breakthroughs or big, dramatic moments. It doesn’t always look like a therapy session, a journal full of insights, or a perfect morning routine. Sometimes, healing is quiet. Gentle. Almost ordinary.

Sometimes, it looks like stirring a pot of soup while the steam fogs up the window. Or kneading dough until your shoulders relax and your breathing slows. Or sitting down at the end of a long day to savor something you made just for yourself—no fanfare, no pressure, just comfort.

Cooking won’t solve everything. But it can help. It can ground you. Soothe you. Remind you that you are capable of caring for yourself in small, meaningful ways. That you can create beauty. That you are worthy of nourishment—body, mind, and soul.

So the next time things feel a little too heavy, and you don’t know where to start—start small. Chop an onion. Boil water. Make tea. Bake something warm. Let the act of cooking become a kind of meditation, a ritual, a soft place to land.

You don’t have to fix everything today. But you can feed yourself. And sometimes, that’s enough.

Heal, one dish at a time.

Finding Peace in the Kitchen: How Cooking Helps with Anxiety and Depression