How did you learn how to cook?
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DallasTxRep
Superstar
If you wanna eat healthy you must be willing and able to cook
You learn by doing, same as making your jumpshot wet or getting an exercise routine down pat. Get on some blogs, find some simple recipes, get in the habit of chopping onion and garlic for prep, cook rice and grains to get a feel for how long it takes and what level flame works best, cook a chicken breast in a pan, etc. All it takes is focus and repetition. Once you feel comfortable, move on to more complex recipes and develop a grasp of how to flavor your dishes. With blogs being how they are these days, you have endless resources to draw from. Within a month you'll find it fairly easy to chef up whatever you enjoy eating; eventually you'll prefer cooking your own food, it makes eating more enjoyable too, because you feel you've earned your meal.
I'm from a family of grill masters and southern women who loved cooking so I was always around expert cooks and thus had no excuse to not become good at it.
It's not that hard.
Download the Dolce Diet ebook or the yummly app if you just need to be pointed in the right direction for ideas.
It's not that hard.
Download the Dolce Diet ebook or the yummly app if you just need to be pointed in the right direction for ideas.
detroitwalt
Superstar
Got my own place and got tired of eating hamburger helper every night.
DallasTxRep
Superstar
Google recipes.... Practice makes perfect
op, with the advent of the internet cooking should be a piece of cake for pretty much everyone. Just go on youtube or even do a google search on how to cook various dishes you like and start making them. One thing I really had to learn how to do for pretty much ANY dish is to turn down the damn heat. I'm always in such a rush to get water boiling or getting things prepped I end up ruining dishes I make because I burn them or burn the outside and have to deal with an undercooked inside. When a recipie suggests 350degrees you're better off cooking a tad below that temp to account for any discrepancies. Some ovens/stoves are "hotter" than others and temperature gauges vary slightly depending on the age of the appliance.
another thing that made cooking fun for me was actually buying the right cooking ware/utensils for the job. There's nothing worst that "improvising" and screwing something up. Also, having a decent (and sharp) set of knives and using the right knife for the right job will save a lot of time and effort as well.
oh and I would go into spices but that can be a thread all on its own. But basically, if you're not sure what spices to use but you want to use something, you really can't go wrong with black pepper/garlic powder and coarse sea salt. Then, overtime you can experiment with other spices. For example dill is amazing on most seafood and rosemary is good for starches like potatoes and pastas
another thing that made cooking fun for me was actually buying the right cooking ware/utensils for the job. There's nothing worst that "improvising" and screwing something up. Also, having a decent (and sharp) set of knives and using the right knife for the right job will save a lot of time and effort as well.
oh and I would go into spices but that can be a thread all on its own. But basically, if you're not sure what spices to use but you want to use something, you really can't go wrong with black pepper/garlic powder and coarse sea salt. Then, overtime you can experiment with other spices. For example dill is amazing on most seafood and rosemary is good for starches like potatoes and pastas
Pool_Shark
Can’t move with me in this digital space
Cooking is not as hard as you think. You just have to do it. Get in there and try stuff out. The more you do it the better you'll get and you'll find yourself taking chances and slowly you find out what works and what doesn't. My best resource for cooking has been YouTube. I just type in "How to cook ____", watch a few videos and give it a shot. Most of the time it works.
I learned when my wife started working and I was home with my kids, obviously I wasn't going to feed them McDonalds every night so I had to learn. It was hard to cause kids are extremely picky.
Do something small and start there. Try to make brown rice, steamed vegetables, and a chicken breast. It's real simple and take it from there. Also try and find ways around cooking until you're comfortable making all your meals. Stuff like yogurt, fruit, oatmeal, tuna, turkey deli meat. I've seen online people buy those bags of steamed vegetables you just throw it in the microwave and they cost like a dollar.
I learned when my wife started working and I was home with my kids, obviously I wasn't going to feed them McDonalds every night so I had to learn. It was hard to cause kids are extremely picky.
Do something small and start there. Try to make brown rice, steamed vegetables, and a chicken breast. It's real simple and take it from there. Also try and find ways around cooking until you're comfortable making all your meals. Stuff like yogurt, fruit, oatmeal, tuna, turkey deli meat. I've seen online people buy those bags of steamed vegetables you just throw it in the microwave and they cost like a dollar.
Pool_Shark
Can’t move with me in this digital space
how do you manage you're diet with little cooking involved?Still haven't learned
calixprynce
...
Used to watch Food Network with moms and we'd do some of the meals in the kitchen