What's the secret to becoming a good cook?!
What's the secret to becoming a good cook?
I would love to learn how to become a good cook from scratch- esp. carribbean/ african-american dishes . I bought overwhelmingly dozens of cookbooks. Any tips, secrets, suggestions to improving culinary skills and becoming a pro? I love to eat!!
Answers:
Practice! Trial and error. Cook what you like, add extra ingredients that you think will taste good, don't always feel like you have to stick to a recipe. Try new things and don't be afraid to experiment with new tastes and ingredients. Mainly, have fun
A love of food and eating is a good start :) Practice and not being afraid to experiment and try new things.
The best secret to becoming a good cook is to be willing to try different things. Experiment.
I was once told not to be stingy with any ingredient.
And the love of food is a big plus.
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Practice practice practice.And don't be afraid to alter recipes.cook for lots of people and ask for honest inputs.Keep trying and keep feeding, eveyone needs to eat.
Go to allrecipes.com and Kraftfoods.com among other web sites for great video demonstrations. You have to learn the basics first. Yahoo also has a good Food site.
Exactly what I was going to say, I love to eat. I learned to cook because I wanted good food. Learn to pick apart what you're eating in restaurants and notice how they put it together.
The secret to being a good cook is not being afraid of improvising and "doing it your way". Sure, you may have a few failures, but you'll have many more successes. With each success, you'll become a better cook.
What I do, is try many new recipes. The first time I make that recipe, I follow the recipe exactly. That way I know how it should taste. The second time I make it...I make it my own. I add, delete or substitute.
Remember, although adding ingredients is like the science of chemistry....it's really more of an art. Have fun!
Try starting with things you like, eggs, french toast, pancakes...then experiment with adding things to go with them. If you cook some keep trying new things, read recipes and figure out what things go together and work from there. Watch the seasonings as you can go overboard so start slow and add small amounts first. Talk to friends that cook and ask them to let you watch.
I know this will sound so silly. Have a love affair with food. Go to the store and buy tons of fresh food and spices(from the recipes of choice). Just cook all day trying new things. Do this until you have set a great menu of things you love to eat and prepare for family and friends. If you don't like it that's ok just go to the next. Goods cook don't happen over night it is by trial and error. I love to cook I love to eat most of all I love to see the faces made and hear the mmmmmmm's when I'm done cooking and people eating my meal that I have prepared for them. That is most satisfying thing for me is when someone tells me that was so good could they have some more or the recipe. Oh and if you have cable or SAT watch the food channel several tips for cooking if not go to www.foodnetwork.com Paula Deen is the BOMB
Being fearless is the key.
If you could swing the cost, I'd recommend you go to a good
accredited culinary school. There is a great one in Phoenix,
and one in Portland, Oregon, and probably alot of them
scattered all over in your bigger US cities. Some people
try to learn on their own, from using recipes, but the best
way is learning from someone who is a great cook in your
family. Like a grandmother who cooks well to get you started
on learning the basics, first of all. It helps that you enjoy the
taste of good food. To be a pro, you don't just have to know
how to follow a recipe, you have to know by looking at the
ingredients which recipes will taste great and which are only
"so so". And I have to tell you, most recipes, tend to fall into
the latter. I have found from cooking most of my life, and
enjoying good food, many times I found my own cooking
was far better to the taste buds then restaurant cooking. And
I think it's because I wanted things to taste really special to
ME, and not anyone else. I have been my own worst critic
when it came to so many things in life. But the best teacher
I could have had, was my late grandmother on my moms' side. Her cooking was to die for. And my mom never inherited her talent. She just didn't go the whole nine yards.
Well if you don't have anyone that's a good cook to learn
from for free, and you don't have the $$ to go to a culinary
school (from which you may need a credential from, in order to qualify for a chef's position at a quality restaurant), you
will need to learn at home first, before you can apply to cook
at a local restaurant where you will need to prove yourself also.
You first will need to go to a restaurant supply store where
you will find the basic supplys for mixing, stirring, and cutting.
I have found that prices vary on the basics even there. You
don't need fancy handles but you do need quality stainless
steel blades on knives and long handled forks used to hold
things still while you cut. It's hard to tell you just what all you
will need to get started. So this is just off the top of my head.
Three different sized mixing bowls from small to large in
stainless steel. Three whisks from small to large. A good
mixer, blender, or food processor, fresh vegitable chopper with a sharp blade. Several good stainless knives, with
small to large blades needed for various uses. Several
sized bowls for different uses, including some small ones
the size of pudding dishes to hold herbs and other small
portioned things. And two large measuring cups. Well this is just a dent to get started.
But it should, along with mixing spoons, and measuring
spoons for measuring amounts to learn with first. Later
you can approximate when you learn from looking often
enough at a handful of salt or other dry or liquid ingredient.
If you have cable, use the Food Network channel to learn
from some of the better cooks. Tape some of their programs
to learn from and re watch to make some things you find
appealing. My husband is cooking now and loving it, since
he retired. And he specialises in breakfasts that are heavenly.
You have to start off small and then make more involved
dishes as you find your way.
Since you love to eat, you probably won't be satisfied til
whatever you make tastes delicious. And that is what helps
to make a great chef. Or just a plain good cook period.
Remember the Food Network tho, they can teach you alot
of helpful things and you can soon find which chef you want
to follow more. Since each specializes to some extent in
the way they prepare their foods.
practice-- and loving it.
Yes I agree with the majority of answers here... trial and error.
Here's a tip thats super easy though:
When you're making something and you want to add a seasoning or ingredient, but you're not quite sure.. smell the ingredient with what you're cooking, if it smells good add a bit. Has worked perfectly for me for several years!
Have fun & happy cooking!!!
Learn what seasonings go together. Start with a really basic book and follow the directions. After you are good with the basics, move on to more challenging recipes and start playing with the seasoning and ingredients.
And when you are cooking, don't let yourself be distracted from what you are doing. Most folk I know who can't cook, just don't take the time to pay attention, you can't just wander off in the middle of it, even if something is taking time to get done.