I can thank my late mother for teaching me how to cook and bake. As a child, I helped her in the kitchen and followed her cooking. It was always something simple, and sometimes we tried new recipes. That’s something I’ve continued with. The only thing I don’t like about cooking is the dirty dishes and the cleaning up afterwards. I don’t like making something that takes a long time to do. Sometimes I don’t bother to cook, so I buy something prepared from the store. During covid, I ordered in, and still do sometimes. Nothing beats a home-cooked meal, though. I don’t cook because I like it. I do it because a person has to eat. You can’t always eat store-bought.

I like making easy food, like different soups and sauces. Sometimes I use fresh vegetables, but recently they’ve been frozen. It’s easier that way and faster. It’s the washing and pealing that isn’t pleasant. It makes my hands dry with all that water. Different casseroles with potatoes are also easy to do in the oven. The principle is the same. It’s only the filling that is different. If I could choose, I like eating more than making it. But no one else is doing it, so I have to do it myself. Sometimes I eat vegan food, but I prefer buying it from the store. The only thing I made myself was vegetable soup. Once I made soup with a ground meat substitute, but it wasn’t as good as real meat. I could never become a vegan. It isn’t my thing, but I can eat it occasionally.

My favourite food is pizza and Chinese food. But I also like pasta bolognese. I make it without tomato paste, so it’s more like spaghetti and minced meat sauce. It’s fast and easy to do. If I go to a restaurant, it’s usually leaf steak or Wiener schnitzel. I don’t go to fast-food joints that often, but I’ve been to one last time I was in Helsinki. The only one I go to is McDonald’s. I’ve been to Burger King, but I only ordered chicken nuggets. I don’t like mayonnaise, so I’m cautious about where to eat hamburgers. McDonald’s is the only place I like, and it’s also a place I can afford to go to. All this food talk got my mouth watering, so I better go and eat that last chicken steak left.