To ask how you learned to cook and

[ResponsibleMushroomForager]

Do you enjoy it or not?
If you have a DP do they cook?
If you have DC are you teaching them to cook?

Watching my mum who cooked everything from scratch.
School domestic science lessons
General interest in food, recipe books, food eaten when travelling.
I was vegetarian for about ten years so had to learn to make food that I wanted to eat, was healthy etc.
Definitely teaching dc to cook and they are making pancakes right now.

The internet is fantastic for finding out about food and cooking.

Yes
Yes
Yes

My Mum taught me how to cook mostly but my Dad as well on occasion. My Mum had a lot of cookery books and I’d teach myself from those. DD is 5 and cooks certain things with me. Her favourite thing to make is tarte tatin.

@ResponsibleMushroomForager , my late mum (who hated cooking) was fond of quoting an icon from her youth , Grace Kelly, who said "if you can read, you can cook". Dig out a recipe book; look online for tutorials. Give it a go. Be prepared to fail (cook's secret: we all cock it up now and then). Have fun.

I'm also hoping to learn! DP is better at cooking than me, but my DM was never a big cook so I never really learned a lot!

I learnt from cookery programmes and using delia and Nigel slyer books. It helps that I really like food and ask questions in restaurants and of friends how they cook certain things. I’m a good cook now who can follow a recipe but can Lso make stuff up that tastes good. I watch a lot of cookery shows and YouTube techniques I don’t know. BBC website is really useful.

My dh never cooked beyond chucking stuff in the oven before we met know he’s a good cook beacause I expect him to!

I helped my mom cook dinner from a young age very often so I guess that's how I learned. Left home and continued to cook. I do enjoy cooking and baking but not the constant day to day of cooking every bloody day. DP and I share the cooking. He's not as good/practiced as me but we were getting into the habit of me cooking nearly every meal since I'm at home with our son and I've now insisted he cooks at least 2 nights a week and on the weekend. He's getting better using cookbooks. I'm better at improvising and I think some people really need instructions!

Tbh, I can't even remember hiw I learned to cook. I guess from watching my mum and later my father? DH can cook and often cretes absolutely amazing dishes. He was never taught at home but living by yourself doesn't really give you a different option than "just learn".

Absolutely agree it is a life skill. Essential one!

I found Gordon Ramsey's videos really good and informative when learning to cook something. He helped me to make first Bechamel at 22. He is calm and explains well, unlike Jamie who just bounces off the walls nad I can't concentrate on actual cooking (chill, you are over 40, not 15 year old on speed).

I am slowly learning just through trying recipes. My family are all great cooks which led me to be quite lazy in the kitchen!

DP is an excellent cook and is always happy to make dinner thankfully (otherwise it would be spag bol every night!)

I really don’t understand this - cooking is not a difficult mystery my 10 year old can follow a simple recipe. Baffles me when adults claim they can’t cook. My fil just sits there like a giant toddler while his food is made for him because he “can’t” cook. Won’t cook more like.

OP, in the basic cooking class DH and I joined, there were people in their 20s, 30s, 40s and 50s. It was pretty basic stuff, starting with omelettes and soup and then lasagne, savoury pies, chocolate cake.

Nothing to study beforehand, just turn up at class and make the two or three recipes the teacher chose. Everyone enjoyed themselves; maybe we all felt a bit sheepish at first but soon forgot to feel embarrassed for ourselves. At the end of it all it wasn't the recipes themselves I remember; we learnt to be more confident in following recipes, choosing the right pan or utensil, and chopping different types of veg (what it means when the recipe says slice finely, dice, etc.)

We always had what I call proper meals at home when I was growing up, but I didn’t really lean to cook from my parents.

I mostly learned when I moved out, when I had the responsibility of my own kitchen and didn’t want to be someone that couldn’t cook for others (I was mid 20s).

I then asked my parents about how to cook different things but the main way I have learnt is simply through following recipes. Recipes are often similar so you get used to repeating steps/knowing the way to do it through trial and error. And even now when I cook I decide what I would improve or do differently next time. It is easy really once you start.

I suggest finding very easy recipes to start. Something where you don’t have to worry about lots of different things coming together at the same time. Spaghetti Bolognese is an easy one to start with.

I learned a lot by watching and helping my mum. Then I learnt a lot more when I moved out and bought some recipe books. My DH doesn't cook. My DD is almost 3 and loves standing on a stool and 'helping' me so I hope she learns from me. DS is only a baby but I hope in time he'll help too.

I took a basic cookery course as a night class and now I really enjoy cooking.

Yes, my DH can cook.

Dh was making us a lamb curry and fil asked how he learned to do “all this”. Err buy book buy ingredients follow recipe? He seems to think women have an innate natural ability to cook. Annoys me as you can tell!

I love cooking/baking, learnt mostly front my mum (cakes from my nan). DH is ok, he’s got better since we lived together (so it’s never too late to learn!). He’s the kind of guy who needs a recipe to follow, where as I just wing it.
Get yourself a simple cookbook, with dishes you think you would enjoy and start there, nothing too complicated while your getting started as it can be overwhelming and frustrating when it goes wrong!
In regards to DC, mine is only 2 but we already cook with him. He does his own toast, including buttering it and he helps with cake baking, and the stuffing and Yorkshire puddings for the roast dinner (anything which involves a mixer!). Obviously everything is highly supervised!!! I think it’s really important he can cook when he’s older. I’m looking forward to the day he can cook for me!

@bellinisurge - 😃 Grace Kelly was right! Actually, my question was a bit daft: there's no shortage of step by step cookery books and tutorials.

I struggle with timings/co-ordination. I love watching confident, relaxed home cooks in action - it's like a fascinating David Attenborough documentary!

I didn't learn to cook properly until my mid-20s. As a child I was the 'fussy eater', in hindsight I think I was fussy because my mum (dad never cooked) is a pretty awful cook - all meat is cremated, veg boiled to mush and no seasoning.

I learned from TV shows and my holy grail of the BBC website.

DP is a good cook too.

I forgot about Home Economics lessons, although didn't really learn much from them.

If you want to learn maybe do a course if that's your sort of thing. Otherwise I recommend a couple of recipe books and a bit of practice/ trial and error. Start simple and build up. I had a couple of Delia Smith books when I first left home and she explained basics well.

DH is a good cook. I agree it's a life skill - any tips on starting from scratch? I'm not a multi-tasker.

OP I taught myself. At the time I used Delia Smiths basic cook book, but today you could use BBC recipe site. It’s amazing, and tells you if a recipe is easy/difficult.
I’d start by making simple things which you like to eat, get all the ingredients out in the work top and just slowly follow the recipe. Just build up slowly, you’ll get there.

Find a recipe you really like.Give yourself plenty of time.
If you don't multi task prep all your ingredients before you start,put them in bowls like they do on the telly for cooking demos.
Then off you go.Curries are a good place to start and a good way to get your stocks of spices in just go easy on the chilli.
Personally I find day to day cooking a chore but I churn out at least one nutritious meal a day to ensure my dd is well fed.Also she is a piscatarian and I find cooking varied meal trying and miss the ease of meat and lots of simply cooked veg.

When i left home for uni i could 'make' pasta and pesto, toss veg through cous cous, stick a chicken grill in the oven etc. We ate a lot of preprepared food and ready meals at home as my parents worked very long hours out the house.

When i moved into halls i saw my flatmates knocking together delucious spaghetti bolognese and chilli and i was so impressed. They taught me those and by the time i graduated i had built up a repetoire of basics : fish pie, stir fry etc.

I adore cooking now and think i had a hidden flair for it - I'm rubbish at technical stuff but am quite instinctive and confident with adjustments and substitutions.

Nowadays i can whack a stew in the slow cooker in ten minutes but when i started out the slicing and dicing used to kill me. My tip would be to get one of those cheap kenwood mini choppers to start and when you are confident you'll get good use out of it graduate to a magimix. It makes prepping huge meals so easy.

I was never allowed to cook at home. My parents have this thought that I’d burn the kitchen down. I have no idea why.

I taught myself from trial and error and using old recipe books. I can cook all sorts of things from scratch now. I also make things up and guess a lot of measurements. I want my children to be able to cook. They’re not at the age where they’re very interested but one day.

At school in the 70’s....I could make a Macaroni cheese with a roux sauce at 12 years old, plus a mince and onion pie with shortcrust pastry.

Delia Smith,

Regards to teaching, i did teach ds, and also dd, and dd 3 but need to make time for more teaching