Open up Instagram and you’re flooded with a sea of your friends’ food pictures. And whether what’s on show is poached eggs and salmon on rye (again) or a burger bigger than the average human head, these snapshots serve little purpose other than to make you very, very hungry. And maybe annoyed (largely at the fact that you’re spending valuable leisure time staring at avocados). Then there are the professional food ‘grammers who regram every dish under the sun, but don’t really teach you anything – other than the fact that your culinary skills are seriously lacking. But there are, sandwiched between the unadulterated food porn and your mate’s lame attempt at food styling, some feeds that might be able to help you cook, like, properly. We’ve whittled it down to six of the best – so if you’re looking to up your kitchen game, here’s who to follow.
@pinchofyum
Best for: Video tutorials If you fancy rustling up some unconventional eats but don’t have five hours to spare, Lindsay Ostrom is your woman. Her feed is filled with handy, 30- to 45-second video tutorials which show you how to make a shedload of delicious-looking dishes without recourse to the recipe book. Think bánh mì bowls, sweet potato pizza (better than it sounds) and salted chocolate snack bars. Don’t thank us, just feed us one of these. https://www.instagram.com/p/BI3vO__gAyW/
@fitmencook
Best for: #Eats4Gains They say abs are built in the kitchen. Which is all the more reason to turn the blue button green for Texas-based fitness fan Kevin Alexander, whose easy-to-follow video tutorials have earned him over 1m followers. The focus is on nutritious, high-protein meals that are simple to make and demonstrated in clips soundtracked by all your favourite hip-hop and R&B jams. Some are even microwaveable, but these ain’t no ready meals. Expect colourful salads and plenty of meat cooked in ways to delight the more carnivorous among you. https://www.instagram.com/p/BKEHT82BUFp/
@gkstories
Best for: Meatless meals The Green Kitchen co-author David Frenkiel brings us a colour-filled instafeed bursting with ideas for healthy salads, smoothies and veggie-based dishes that will have you salivating, vegetarian or not. His posts give an excellent insight into ingredients that shouldn’t work together, but do (peanut butter and beetroot and berry jam smoothie, anyone?), and you can see the full recipes on his blog. https://www.instagram.com/p/BJ1Uq4oB-Ax/
@donalskehan
Best for: One pot wonders From ‘beer can chicken’ to harissa baked eggs, Irish celebrity cook Donal Skehan is – bar the odd gratuitous selfie – one of the best foodie ‘grammers out there. It’s the ‘one pot wonders’ on his website which really stand out though. His recipes show you how to make the likes of chorizo lasagne and chocolate macadamia nut cake by using just a single pan – so you’ll never have to worry about washing up (or, er, loading the dishwasher) ever again. https://www.instagram.com/p/BItp4G8AyIa/
@spoonforkbacon
Best for: Learning how to cook in general… Featuring the likes of breakfast pizzas, marinated pork belly and bacon burgers, the LA-based bloggers behind @spoonforkbacon (authors of The Perfect Egg cookbook) have a thing for pork and spare rib recipes. It’s not all about pig though – the duo’s feed is packed full of pasta, seafood, salads and plenty of pancakes to satisfy the sweet-toothed amongst you, too. Find the recipes at spoonforkbacon.com. https://www.instagram.com/p/BGrdA8pLp58/
@cocktail_aficionado
Best for: Mixologists in the making This one’s in the name, really. If you want to make like Tom Cruise in Cocktail, look no further than this boozy account, where bottles of vermouth, gin, brandy and all manner of spirits fill the feed. Each post contains a recipe with the exact measurements you need, so all it takes is one quick glance and off you go to work your magic. https://www.instagram.com/p/BJwKhvNh24h/
