I don't cook (and am not a foodie either!) However, I do manage a food blog (its technical aspects, SEO, and monetization) that belongs to my sister who is a big-time foodie. Apart from that, I also get a handful of emails from my readers who love cooking and who wants to get into food blogging. That is, they want to start a food blog and make money. Well, it's simple but not easy. You know why? Because anyone can start a food blog and all it takes is around $100 per year and few hours a day (to actually publish recipes). But that doesn't guarantee a single penny. Oh yeah, there are a ton of how to start a food blog and make money kind of tutorials on the web but the reality is that you're hardly going to make any money (at least for the first few months or even years) unless you already know what you need to know about food blogging and digital marketing. If you have already started a WordPress blog in the past then you have some edge, and if you are also willing to spend some money on marketing and promotion then you are even better placed to start a food blog than another beginner. Just beware that as a newbie food blogger no one is aware of your blog, no one might read and use your recipes. It will be just another food blog. Well, it's a start. A beginning. And yes, in time, you can make all the difference.

Don't Miss: 27 Things Before Starting A WordPress Blog

First things first.

So, What’s A Blog, Anyhow?

A blog is basically an online diary where our blog content (also known as blog posts or simply posts) are sorted chronologically – usually in a reverse chronological order. The act of updating a blog (with fresh content) is known as “blogging”. So how’s a blog different from a website? All blogs are websites but not all websites are blogs. Simple as that.

"Blog" is an abbreviated version of "weblog" that features diary-type commentary and links to articles on other Web sites, usually presented as a list of entries in reverse chronological order. — WordPress

It’s super easy to create a free blog as there are tons of blogging platforms out there like Blogger, WordPress, Tumblr, Medium.com, Squarespace (Premium), etc.

You can start a blog for FREE on any of those platforms so that you’ll get a blog like your-name.blogspot.com OR your-name.wordpress.com OR your-name.tumblr.com. In other words, you can’t get your-name.com for free from any of those platforms (unless you pay for it). Starting a blog on any of those platforms is simple and easy as it's just like updating status on your Facebook or Twitter – so it takes less than 10 minutes to actually create a free blog.

But I wouldn’t recommend any of the above platforms as in that case you technically don’t own the blog. Don’t believe me? Check out How Google Shuts Down Popular Blogger John Hempton After Publishing Controversial Post.

WordPress is web's favorite blogging platform. It’s a software that lets you create, manage and publish your content seamlessly. That’s why over 20% of the web or almost 50% of all blogs are powered by WordPress. WordPress has two flavors, namely: WordPress.com (the free hosted version — like example.wordpress.com) and WordPress.org (self-hosted version — like my blog).

WordPress.com is the hosted version of WordPress.org itself and is owned by Automattic (the company who created WordPress). Since it’s managed by Automattic, you don’t have to worry about upgrades, installation, security or maintenance.

WordPress.org is an open-source blogging software. So, anyone can download the WordPress software from WordPress.org and install on their website for FREE. And then you own it and you manage it. It’s limited only by your imagination (and tech chops) as there are thousands of themes, plugins, and widgets available to transform your WordPress site into almost anything that you can imagine.

Don't Miss: WordPress.com vs. WordPress.org: The Ultimate Comparison With Pros & Cons

When you sign up for a free WordPress.com account your blog address will look like your-username.wordpress.com and if you choose the self-hosted version of WordPress (that is, WordPress.org) then you can start your blog with a branded address like your-name.com.

So my aim is to help you set up a food blog on the world's most awesome blogging platform – WordPress.org.

And I'm going to assume that:

• You want to start a self-hosted WordPress blog (that is, your own .com blog).
• You do not want to start a free blog on Blogger.com or WordPress.com. Confused? Check out Blogger vs. WordPress and WordPress.com vs. WordPress.org.
• You're willing to read a lot. I mean, A LOTT.
• You understand that blogging is simple but not easy and it's NOT for everyone.
• You've realized that you can’t ‘start’ a blog in 10 minutes.
• You've researched competitors and have already figured out how to stand out.

You CAN'T start a WordPress blog in 10 minutes. And you can’t start a blog in 10 hours either. You know why? Because it takes countless hours to customize WordPress and make things look the way you want (unless you are a WordPress geek). And hey, I didn’t even count the actual time required to actually create content. That’s the real purpose of a blog, right? I have noticed several times that whenever I start a WordPress blog, I end up doing the same things over and over and over. So below are the steps that I personally follow when I start a new WordPress site. And no, it’s NOT another start a WordPress blog in 5 minutes kind of guide or video. Yes, I (and probably you) have seen a gazillion "How To Start A WordPress Blog In 5 Minutes" videos and tutorials. But the reality is that it doesn't work that way. Why? Because they’re all basically about how to buy a domain name (that is, a .com), web hosting plan (that is, your own server space where you can upload files), and install blogging software (that is, WordPress). Yes, that's all you can do in 5 minutes or even 10 minutes and it's far away from a perfect blog as there are a lot of other things that you must know and do.

Don't Miss: 27 Things Before Starting A WordPress Blog