12 tips for women in Ramadan

Every day of fasting in Ramadan all Muslim women face the challenge of what to cook for their household members to break the fast.

From an outside perspective, it may seem that cooking in Ramadan and the usual cooking on other days is one and the same. Well, there is one significant issue we prepare food while we fast. And it is not an easy task to do this on an almost empty stomach.

That is why it is so important to plan ahead, as it not only makes the hassle of preparing food for iftar (breaking the fast) and suhoor (the pre dawn meal) easier but also allows you to spend more time with your family during this holy month.

However, it is not easy for women to maintain high spirituality and perform worship completely while doing constant housework, caring for children and preparing a variety of meals for the whole family. In this article, we will try to give our sisters some useful tips on how to organize their work in the kitchen during Ramadan and reduce the time spent in cooking.

1. Put things in order in the kitchen and in the entire house. While we are fasting, it may be difficult for us to do our day to day housework. Let us try to clean up in the morning, when we are not hungry. Clean your kitchen and especially your refrigerator: get rid of unnecessary items and stale food to make room for a fresh food supply for a whole month.

2. Prepare ingredients for dishes for several days or for the whole week beforehand, so that later it will be easier and faster for you to cook. For example, you can stock up on plenty of peeled onions, garlic and tomato sauce and pack them in bags and put them in the refrigerator. You may also save a lot of time if you butcher and marinade meat and chicken before freezing them. Furthermore prepare homemade drinks, such as dried apricot compote, fruit drinks, and leave them in the refrigerator.

3. Make a shopping list. Write down what you need for a month and buy everything in one or two trips to the store. When we are hungry, we spend more than necessary, fearing that we will be short of food supplies. Remember this and try to be rational and not waste money on unnecessary goods.

4. Buy in bulk. The main consideration in this case is not to overdo it and only buy fruits and vegetables which needed. Remember how often last Ramadan you had to throw away spoiled apples or cucumbers that you simply could not eat. Stock up only on the most commonly used foods such as meat, rice, pasta, flour, oil and spices.

5. Think about the dishes you want to cook in advance. Write them down in your notes and cook these dishes every day from the ingredients you have stored beforehand. If you work and cannot cook every day, then prepare certain meals and put them in the freezer. This will save you time and, in turn, allow you to perform your worship more completely. Do not overload yourself with recipes for the meals you have to prepare every day for iftar. Just make sure that the food is nutritious and contains all the elements you need.

6. Buy or prepare lavash (pitta bread). It is a godsend for suhoor and iftar: a few pieces of meat, vegetables, a favorite sauce and you have a delicious shawarma or tacos! This simple ingredient may save you from unnecessary fuss and will always please your family.

7. Use leftovers. Never throw food in the trash; try to eat the remains of food or give it to those in need.

8. Prepare a simple meal such as soup and various side dishes with vegetables. Serve fruit before meals instead of a sophisticated dessert. This will be much more beneficial for your body and reduce the time spent in the kitchen as well. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) usually broke his fast with dates, water and then with light meal that did not contain a lot of ingredients.

9. Eat good, quality food. Avoid eating heavy food and food high in fats and sugar as much as possible. Otherwise such a diet will make you more sleepy and lazy and worsen your health. Be sure to eat vegetables with every meal. It will provide your body with fibre and keep it working properly.

10. Balance your time. Avoid unnecessary walks and give up watching TV, at least during Ramadan, and reduce time using the Internet. Make it clear to your family and friends that Ramadan is a special month for you and you would rather spend more time in prayer and related activities than walking. Make roughly the same plan for your children. Let everyone learn something and do something worthwhile in this month. And at the end of the month, you may encourage children with gifts and prizes so as to make them wait with even greater love for the arrival of the holy Ramadan next year.

11. Prepare for guests beforehand. Inviting guests to iftar is a good and godly deed but it can be a burden if you do not plan ahead. Prepare simple meals that do not take a lot of time and effort. Moreover, you may prepare some or most of the meals the day before the arrival of guests. If possible, ask someone to help you prepare and to wash the dishes and, if you have children, make them help you as well.

12. Set your priorities. Make your daily plan, starting with the main tasks and followed by the less important ones. Each time we celebrate blessed Ramadan, we must understand that we are given another chance to become better and kinder; we simply must use all the graces of this month and ennoble our character. Include major responsibilities as well as additional activities in this list. Such a plan will help you properly allocate time to carry out all the things you wanted.

AMINA EVPATOVA As-Salam newspaper writer