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Andy Allen knows a thing or two about maintaining a cool head while getting the job done. From his first appearance as a MasterChef contestant to his role as a new father who’s determined to keep his cooking fresh, Allen has demonstrated how a little preparation and the right LG cooking appliances can make all the difference.
For the now MasterChef judge and Three Blue Ducks restaurateur, modern cooking isn’t about white-knuckle stress or overcomplicated culinary acrobatics. For one thing, such an approach would clash with his authentically calm, friendly demeanour. Instead, he advocates for cutting back the clutter, both on the benchtop and in your mind.
With people feeling mounting pressure day-to-day – a recent LG study found more than half (53 per cent) report a higher mental load than last year – it can be an uphill battle to muster the stamina for an inspired home-cooked meal. When Allen sits down with Man of Many, he’s quick to point out that reclaiming the joy of cooking comes down to pairing the right mindset with a few simple tricks, and that intelligent technology can help you free up your mind.
Remember, It’s Only Food
For many of us, the subtle sense of foreboding that cooking embodies has less to do with our knife-wielding abilities (or lack thereof) and more to do with the pressure we place on ourselves to perform. For Allen, discarding this way of thinking was an early lesson in his MasterChef journey, and one he learned while face-to-face with the formidable Marco Pierre White.
“Marco strolls in, twirling a chef’s knife on his finger, and I was like, ‘Whoa, this is a big moment,’” Allen laughs. “In the first round, I put so much pressure on my shoulders to succeed and plate something impressive. Mate, it was the worst I’ve ever cooked in that kitchen.”
When he then landed in a high-stakes elimination cook-off soon after, Allen made a conscious decision to shift his mindset: “I shook it off and was like, ‘Just bloody enjoy it. Have fun.’ I had a bit of banter with Marco, leaned into it, and made it through. We’re only serving a plate of food, after all. It’s not brain surgery. If you can remove that pressure and just get back to enjoying the process, everything changes.”
Whether you’re cooking for dinner guests or whipping up a quick Tuesday night meal for the family, letting go of perfectionism is key to reducing kitchen anxiety. Once you do, even toasted cheese will feel like less of a hassle.
Prep is Half the Battle
A commercial kitchen’s precise execution isn’t achieved through a flurry of frantic multitasking, and the same can apply in the home. According to Allen, domestic kitchens can adopt the discipline that sees their commercial counterparts prioritise quiet prep before the first docket prints.
First, allow yourself a low-stress preparation window. Allen suggests setting aside an hour (or however long you need) on a Sunday afternoon and tackling simple tasks like chopping aromatics or roasting vegetables. If someone or something interrupts you, it doesn’t matter – the aforementioned LG study found that most people (59 per cent) say their minds are interrupted at least once every two hours, and their minds are interrupted an average of 27 times during waking hours. By giving yourself time, these interruptions matter less.
Second, give your pantry some love by turning it into a flavour-first affair. According to Allen, this simply means having a variety of products he describes as “flavour bombs” on hand. These range from tinned fish to chilli oil, but they can elevate a dish with minimal effort: “All that stuff can really just give you instant flavour, which is key.”
Third, stock an abundant fridge to stave off decision fatigue. Having fresh produce visible and ready to go removes the guesswork of what to cook. As Allen explains, “Home cooks underestimate how much stress comes from not being organised, rather than from the cooking itself. When you only have 45 minutes to feed a family, not starting from scratch is the best start there is. Having produce ready to go and a few jobs done ahead of time means you’re in a much better spot.”
Smarter Tools Equal Smarter Cooking
Good habits help to build a solid core, but when it comes to the heavy lifting, the right equipment is invaluable. Allen points to key innovations in LG’s oven range that help him to reduce stress and simultaneously echo his Three Blue Ducks setups.
Guessing a protein’s readiness by using the old finger test or through crude timing charts is playing with fire. For Allen, it inevitably leads to overcooked steaks and unnecessary second-guessing. Instead, the built-in temperature probes of LG’s Full Steam Oven make it easy.
“I’ve never been into that whole thumb-and-finger test for steak doneness. It’s never worked for me,” he chuckles. “Having an integrated temperature probe linked to your oven takes away the guesswork entirely. When you’ve invested in a quality cut of meat, knowing you’ll nail the exact internal temperature is such a relief.”
Next, steaming is an essential technique that Allen uses regularly for delicate proteins, dumplings, and greens, but traditional setups often demand a jumble of pots, bamboo baskets, and stove space: “You get out your pots and your steamer basket and all sorts. Suddenly, you’re looking at the washing up and thinking, ‘What have I done?!’ Having the steamer function on LG’s Full Steam Oven takes away all the clutter that would normally be on your stovetop.”
Finally, a huge part of the mental barrier to ambitious cooking comes from knowing you’ll be stuck scrubbing oven walls afterwards. Thankfully, LG’s steam-cleaning function, EasyClean, uses steam and a patented hydrophilic enamel to help you clean your oven in 10 min and keep it looking like new.
“When I cook at home, it’s usually at 250°C,” Allen jokes. “Things are charring, and fat is spitting. I treat the oven like I’m in a restaurant – make a mess and clean it up afterwards. Having a steam clean function in a domestic oven gives me so much comfort. It reduces a dreaded chore to the push of a button.”
According to Shannon Tweedie, LG’s Home Solutions Marketing Category Manager, innovative technologies like these are central to LG’s mission to help relieve people’s mental load: “At LG, every product we build starts with one question: how can we make daily life a little lighter, a little easier, and give people a little less to think about? Because when your home, your appliances, and your devices are working seamlessly for you, you get something more valuable than convenience: you get peace of mind. That’s the whole idea behind ‘Life’s Good.’ It’s our promise that good design means less mental load, so you can spend your energy on the things that actually matter.”
Simplicity & Curiosity
When asked where aspiring home cooks should focus their energy, Allen’s advice is as grounded as the man himself: Master the basics and let high-quality ingredients shine. Specifically, learning some French fundamentals will go a long way towards helping you close the gap between home cooking and restaurant fare.
“The real basics of French cookery are so important, and they cross over into so many different cuisines,” he explains. “Simplicity is key. Cook your ingredients properly, and make sure you season your food. The biggest difference between a home meal and one that comes from a commercial kitchen is deliberate seasoning: salt, freshly cracked pepper, and a little squeeze of lemon.”
In the wake of this strong, easy-to-follow advice, Allen signs off by encouraging curiosity. He says every meal offers the chance to discover something, whether you’re exploring a new technique or trying a handy prep shortcut: “Take every meal as a learning opportunity. I live and die by that, mate.”
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