How to Start a Food Blog with Zero Tech Skills (6 Easy Steps)

You’ve got the cooking skills.
You’ve got a camera full of drool‑worthy food you’ve cooked.
And if you’ve thought, “I should be sharing this recipe,” or “My food deserve more than just Insta likes,” then it might be time to start your own food blog.

If the idea of setting up a blog feels intimidating, breathe!
You don’t need tech skills, coding, or to be a “blogger” already.
You just need your passion for food — and a few simple steps.

Starting a food blog is a lot like moving into a brand‑new home. At first, it’s empty and unfamiliar. But once you start decorating, arranging, and adding your personal touches… it becomes yours. Let’s walk through the 6 steps that take you from “I want to start a blog” to “My blog is live!”

📣 Please note: Some links in this post are affiliate links. If you make a purchase through them, I may earn a small commission — at no extra cost to you. Think of it as a tiny thank‑you for sharing my favorite culinary finds. Your support truly means a lot.

using a phone to capture a photo of a plated food to to start a food blog

Step 1: Choose Your Niche + Name Your Blog

Before you decorate anything, you need to know what kind of “menu” you’re offering. Your niche is simply the type of food you want to be known for.

What do I love cooking most?
What do people always ask me to make?
What recipes do I enjoy sharing?

Once you know your niche, brainstorm a domain name — your blog’s address.
Keep it short, catchy, and easy to remember.

If your dream domain is taken:

Try a different extension (.net, .me)
Add a word (theexample.com)
Use a dash (example‑kitchen.com)

Step 2: Pick Your Hosting (Your Blog’s Home Base)

Free platforms like Blogger or Wix are like renting a tiny apartment with strict rules — you can’t decorate much, you can’t expand, and you don’t truly own it.

If you want to grow, earn, and customize your blog, you need your own land — a self‑hosted platform.

I personally use Bluehost. It’s beginner‑friendly, affordable, and gives you full control.
You get:

Free domain for an year
One‑click WordPress install
Free SSL and 24/7 support
Affordable starter plans available, however Berrychik readers can get a lower deal, if purchase it through my affiliate link: BERRYCHIK

how to use wordpress to start a food blog

Step 3: Install WordPress (Your Kitchen Online)

Once you sign up with Bluehost, installing WordPress is literally one click.

Inside your Bluehost dashboard:

Go to Website → Install WordPress
Select your domain
Click Next
Wait a few seconds
Log into your WordPress dashboard

Your WordPress dashboard is your main control panel — the place where you prep, plate, and serve your content. You’ll use:

Posts — where you write your recipes
Media — upload food photos
Pages — About, Contact, Recipe Index
Appearance — design your blog
Plugins — add extra features
Settings — set your basics (Set your permalinks to Post name (yourdomain.com/recipe-name) for clean, SEO-friendly URLs.

Step 4: Customize Your Blog with a Theme + Plugins

This is the fun part — making your blog feel like home. Your theme controls your blog’s looks — layout, colors, fonts, and overall style.

Install a Theme + Customize

Go to Appearance → Themes → Add New
Search for “food blog,” “recipe,” “minimal,” or “clean”
Look through the search results to choose one you like.
Preview → Install → Activate

Inside Appearance → Customize, you can:

Add your logo
Set your colors + fonts
Build your menu
Choose your homepage layout
Add widgets like search bars or recent posts

Install Plugins + Activate

Plugins are like the appliances in your kitchen — they help your blog do more. Start with the most essentials and keep it simple so your blog stays fast:

Plugins → Add New → Search

Recipe card plugin
SEO plugin (RankMath or Yoast)
Caching plugin for speed
Image optimizer

a women looking at a laptop showing simple steps to start a food blog.

Step 5: Set Up Your Essential Pages

These are the main rooms in your home. Every food blog needs a few core pages:

Home — your welcome area
About — your story
Recipe Index — your menu
Contact — your inbox
Privacy Policy — your legal corner. required if you use email or affiliate links
Subscribe — grow your email list

Create Essential Pages

Go to Pages → Add New
Add your title (About, Contact, etc.)
Add your text + images
Preview
Hit ‘Publish’

Add Pages to Your Menu

Appearance → Menus

Go to Appearance → Menus
Select your pages
Add to menu
Hit ‘Save’

Step 6: Publish Your First Blog Post

Choose a recipe you love.
Cook it, photograph it, and jot down your story.

Inside WordPress:

left-side of the WP dashboard. go to Posts → Add New
Add your title and intro below
Add your recipe card plugin (see step 4 above → Install plugin section)
Edit recipe card to add ingredients + instructions
Insert your photos + tips + variations
Set your category + featured image from the right-side panel
Preview and hit publish when done

A planning scene that represents organizing ideas and preparing to start a food blog.

Go Live: Launch Your Food Blog

Your first post is published — but not yet live to public just yet.

Bluehost automatically activates a “Coming Soon” page when you install WordPress.
Turn it off when you’re ready to launch.

From WordPress: Go to Bluehost → Coming Soon → Toggle Off

From Bluehost: Go to Websites → Settings → Coming Soon → Toggle Off

Also make sure search engines can index your site: Go to Settings → Reading → Uncheck “Discourage search engines from indexing this site.”

Now visit your site like a reader:

Are the links working?
Is it easy to navigate?
Do images load fast?
Is it mobile‑friendly?

Tweak anything that feels off — then celebrate. Your food blog is officially out in the world!

When I was building my own food blog, I struggled to keep my real kitchen running too. Between testing recipes, writing posts, and learning WordPress, I felt like I was juggling two kitchens at once.

That’s exactly why I created a DIY Meal Planner — to help you stay organized while you build your blog without burning out.

It’s simple, printable, and perfect for new food bloggers who want to keep both kitchens alive.

👉 Grab your DIY Meal Planner, it’s FREE!
👉 Start your blog with Bluehost here (affiliate link)