How cooking became a way to give back

Tia Binstead

My name is Tia, and I’ve always been a big foodie! Family has always been at the heart of that love – from sitting in the car while my mum delivered Meals on Wheels, to an eight-year tradition of baking my niece’s birthday cakes, and now sharing that passion with my almost two-year-old son.

As a proud Southampton lass, I feel lucky to call this city home – it’s where I grew up and where my journey began. My career didn’t start in catering, I initially studied law, psychology, sociology, and photography at Taunton’s College. However, it didn’t take long to realise that food was where my true passion lay. That realisation led me to City College Southampton to complete Catering Level 3, followed by a year at Bournemouth and Poole College studying for a foundation degree, before stepping into full-time work in the industry.

Since then, I’ve built experience across a wide range of roles – from working at local start-ups like The Dancing Man during their early opening months, to two-rosette restaurants, work experience at River Cottage Winchester, and opening the kitchen at Board in the City. I’ve worked both front of house and behind the scenes, gaining a broad understanding of hospitality and kitchen life.

In April 2020, during lockdown, I launched Easy Tz Meals CIC – a social enterprise providing home-cooked meals to the local community while checking in on the mental and social wellbeing of people experiencing isolation. We were nominated by FareShare to receive surplus food, and within 18 weeks, our incredible team of volunteers helped create almost 4,000 meals across Southampton and surrounding areas.

Seeing the impact of that work – and recognising the need for affordable, low-cost meal delivery that also tackled food waste – I made the leap to leave my “big girl” job and commit to the project full time. Nearly six years later, I’ve never looked back.

Cooking with surplus food means creativity is essential. With a constantly changing weekly menu, including vegan and low-carb options, I spend a lot of time reading cookbooks, drawing inspiration from MasterChef Australia, scrolling social media for dinner ideas…and trusting my own taste! Some favourites come from family, like our crème fraîche and tomato pasta with bacon and parsley, while our sweet treats are sometimes inspired by upcoming birthdays in the team (i.e. my mum’s favourite coffee and walnut cake!).

Community is at the core of everything we do. For four years, we’ve catered Christmas dinners for the isolated and elderly at James Street Church, as well as their local children’s community parties. We’ve worked with Southampton Rotary Magna and Board in the City to donate meals and food parcels to those on low incomes or experiencing temporary hardship.

I’ve also been fortunate to run cooking workshops for families, helping people learn how to make quick, healthy, and affordable meals…often surprising parents with just how capable their children can be in the kitchen. Soon, I’ll be working alongside Southampton Forward and local food hubs to host more community cooking classes using pantry ingredients, followed by shared lunches – our own Ready Steady Cook-style sessions!

We regularly work with organisations across the city, including Board in the City, Magna Rotary Southampton, The Big Difference, SHCG (providing work placements for young people needing additional support), local churches supporting homeless shelters, universities, Southampton Forward, and the NHS – providing everything from buffets and working lunches to canapés and event catering.

Our customers and volunteers are truly the heart of Easy Tz Meals. Whether it’s weekly meal orders, trust in us to meet dietary needs such as FODMAP, gluten-free, or dairy-free, or support through events catering that helps keep our meal prices low, we wouldn’t be here without them. Even those who simply recommend us, I genuinely love our community.

Looking ahead, we’re dreaming bigger, better, and hungrier. We’ve recently been donated reusable serving platters, opening the door to a more sustainable buffet offering for events – something we’re actively developing. We’re expanding our soup range for the colder, wetter months too, continuing to build partnerships, and staying committed to feeding our city with care.

If you’d like to support us, the best way is to place an order – our meals are open to everyone! You can also drop us a message us on social media if you want to get involved, whether you’re a washing wizard or a curious chopper keen to build confidence in the kitchen, we’re always happy to welcome more people to the table.

To find out more, please visit: https://sites.google.com/view/easytzmeals/home