Ugh! Why is cooking so hard for me???

[aristocatz]

Thank you guys for the tips.....& also for letting me know that lasagna is not an easy dish for beginners! I was envisioning it was just going to be layering & throwing a bunch of stuff in a pan. It actually ended up to be pretty tasty, but it looked like an absolute mess.

I think I am going to try to prep stuff ahead of time (I loved the idea someone had about browning meat all at once and then portioning it to use for several recipes)

 

[lizabu]

I saw I think it was Rachel Ray do something cool when making lasagna. Just fill a pot with hot water and soak the regular noodles for a few minutes until soft. That way you don't even have to boil the noodles. While the noodles are soaking I fry the beef and chop the vegetables. I usually sauté some onions and green pepper with the ground beef. You will know the ground beef is fully cooked when you break it up and there's no trace of pink anywhere. I will drain out any fat and set aside. I add 2 cans of pasta sauce to the meat and mix up. Then you just do your layers. Less is better. Just put enough sauce to lightly cover the noodles and then put a little grated cheese. I used to think more cheese was better but I realized its better not to put too much. It gets too gooey and doesn't hold it's shape. After baking your lasagna let it sit 5 or 10 minutes so you can cut it and it keeps its shape. A lasagna takes about 45 minutes to bake.

 

[jennyjinx3]

I love allrecipes website. There is everything you'd think of, and if one recipe looks too complicated, there are always a few other versions to pick from. I keep looking a them until I find one that is going to work for me. Keep at it, you will begin to enjoy it! Congrats on trying to make homemade meals for your family, that is a very good thing.

 

[Buckalew11]

I was never interested in cooking until I started watching Food Network. This was years ago (Sara Molten, Emeril, etc.)
It really helped me to *see* what everything was supposed to look like or how it was to come together.

I've learned a lot of helpful, useful tips from Melissa D'Arabian. Lots of cost cutting things also.

I agree about prepping ahead and reading through. I enjoy making things from the Pioneer Woman cookbooks on occasion because she does step by step photos. Some people are annoyed by them but I am not one of them. I find it very helpful. I'm definitely a visual learner.

I saw a few of the America's Test Kitchen shows and really enjoyed them. If you can watch those, try them. You will definitely learn a lot! I'm going to check my library for them as someone suggested.

Good luck. Cooking can be a lot of fun. I have to be in the mood to cook and relaxed. If it is late and I'm tired/hungry, things usually don't go well.

 

[cbcrockett]

I definitely ditto the crockpot! I've got a 20 month old that I stay at home with and we cook/eat at home for pretty much every meal of the week except out once for dinner on Friday or Saturday. I LOVE the crockpot. You can pick a flavor profile that you guys already like a lot (Asian, Italian, Mexican, etc) and find a recipe based on that. Most have just a few ingredients to throw in. Usually at dinner time, all I need to do is cook some rice, boil some noodles or heat up a veggie.

You'll get the hang of it too! The more times you do it, the more confident you'll be. And, you have a good hubby! Good hubby's ALWAYS smile and eat dinner, no matter what it looks like! (I've got one too, haha!)

Sent from my iPad using DISBoards

 

[The Mystery Machine]

I've never been much of a cook. I can do basics-scrambled eggs, baked egg dishes, stir fry's.... My DH doesn't mind & he does some cooking as well.

I had my daughter in the Fall (first baby) & I decided I wanted to start gathering a repertoire of meals I know how to cook so I can make a variety of meals for her & maybe teach her some family recipes as well. She is only 7 months old, so I still have some time before she is eating regular meals, but it's been a goal of mine.

Tonight I tried to make lasagna for my DH. I found the easiest recipe I could find, yet it took me so long to prepare it, I had no idea if the meat was browned enough, made a big mess, & was so frustrated!! It's now in the oven but it looks kind of disasterous I know my loving DH will eat it, no matter how it tastes.

I just don't get it-people I work with cook every night & it's no big deal. It's such a stress for me! I'm motivated to learn, but I just have the hardest time!!

Any advice?

Practice and yes, cooking is time consuming and messy. It is part of cooking. As a beginner or an expert, expect to spend some time in there.

You sort of "clean as you go" when you cook, that helps with some of the mess. Have a clean kitchen kitchen to start with and an empty dishwasher or sink to quickly clean bowls, utensils, etc. while you are in preparation-cook mode.

One of the ways to alleviate some of the "mess" and ENJOY cooking is to get proper cookware, bakeware, storage, and some stuff that makes prepping easier, like good knives, choppers, mixers, etc...

I recommend getting on Pinterest. I am newish to Pinterest but some recipes can link to blogs with step by step instructions. I have to say plenty of recipes to search for there.

http://www.canyoustayfordinner.com/2010/11/04/petite-lasagnas/

Then you have recipes that use only 5 ingredients like this.

http://www.cookinglight.com/food/qu...nt-chicken-recipes-00400000053257/page10.html

Good Luck learning! The library will carry books & magazines to check out like Eating Well, Cooking Light, etc.

 

[runsandjumps]

I have learned to cook by trial and error. I only just learned how to make perfect over medium eggs- yet I can make fresh whole wheat baguettes no problem.

YouTube is your friend!

 

[The Mystery Machine]

Thank you guys for the tips.....& also for letting me know that lasagna is not an easy dish for beginners! I was envisioning it was just going to be layering & throwing a bunch of stuff in a pan. It actually ended up to be pretty tasty, but it looked like an absolute mess.

I think I am going to try to prep stuff ahead of time (I loved the idea someone had about browning meat all at once and then portioning it to use for several recipes)

Yep, lasagna is not so easy for someone who is just starting out. Good for you for trying it out.

And you know what happens in several yrs? You will find a recipe that you "tweak" and make it your own.

 

[runsandjumps]

YouTube is your friend. I have learned how to make a perfect baguette and mill feuille. Yet I still seem to botch some chicken and rice recipes. Trial and error- lots of error LOL.

Eta: double post again. Sorry my phone is wonky!!

 

[CaliBear]

Lots of good tips here and yes, lasagna is a lot of work so don't feel down.

My suggestions:

- Start with a segment of the meal to focus on until you master it, such as just cooking the soup, making a salad dressing OR making a nice vegetable dish. I've cooked my whole life, but when I decided I wanted to start making homemade soup two years ago, I made soup after soup after soup for awhile until I got the gist and now I can improvise a recipe. Once you get one component down you can move on to another until you're making a full meal. And honestly, once you see how easy and delicious homemade soup and salad dressing is, you'll never want to use canned or bottled again, better for your health and pocketbook too!

- The advice to watch Food Network or other cooking shows is good. I also think using recipes that have photos that go with the steps is going to be helpful for you. Pioneer Woman has photos of the steps that go with her recipes and I think that's a good starting place. Many of the bloggers on her sister site, Tasty Kitchen, do the same. I love All Recipes, but they don't have step-by-step photos.

-The mis en place advise is also so true. I have to chop all my vegetables and gather all my ingredients before I begin or it's too chaotic.

Good luck to you! You can do it!

 

[NaLisa]

I love allrecipes website. There is everything you'd think of, and if one recipe looks too complicated, there are always a few other versions to pick from. I keep looking a them until I find one that is going to work for me. Keep at it, you will begin to enjoy it! Congrats on trying to make homemade meals for your family, that is a very good thing.

Another vote for allrecipes.com. You type in the dish (e.g. lasagna) and there may be 20 different versions. You can sort based on reviews, ingredients, etc. I always choose a recipe that has a lot of ratings and get a 4 or higher overall rating. You can look at the comments to see adjustments made by others (e.g. shortcuts, substitutions).

I was never a very good cook until I found that website. Then once I made some meals deemed "awesome" by friends and family, my confidence increased and I "felt" like a better cook. Now that I've gained more experience, I can rely on my own knowledge more. But in the beginning, I would follow the recipe to a T.

I print out the recipes I like, make notes at the bottom, and have made my own cookbook in a three-ring binder. It also includes recipes from magazines and other websites. I never use any other cookbook now.

 

[BGK]

I highly recommend these cookbooks from America's Test Kitchen:

This plus ten. Chris Kimble and those folks are fantastic. I've never gotten bad advice or tips from them.

Also too, practice. Don't add to your stress. Cook when you don't have to, but have time to. Julia Child never demanded perfection, so why beat yourself up?

 

[Aliceacc]

Order a subscription to Simple and Delicious. https://w1.buysub.com/pubs/RM/QCK/S...0745115016948&vid=2&cds_response_key=IN0AG01S

They're all real recipes, made by real people with ingredients you probably already have in your house.

 

[shortbun]

Learn the basics first. Learn how to crack and separate an egg. Learn how to chop, dice, mince. Learn how to clean a garlic clove, zest a lemon, juice a lime. Bake a chicken-just a basic, baked chicken. Make mashed potatoes. Learn how to make a good salad and salad dressing from scratch. The Silver Palette has a great cookbook called, The New Basics. Learn to bake a cake, make a biscuit, fry an egg. Learn to make a basic grilled cheese sandwich.
1. prepare all ingredients prior to cooking
2. go slow
3. perfect one thing at a time; that's the way Julia Child's did it and she had some big failures.
4. Lasagna was a bad choice, as other have said. Now though, that you've tried it once, make improvements and try it again. You can change your sauce, add things like veggies, mushrooms, sausage. You can change the type of noodles that you use. You can prepare everything in advance. You can change the pan you used to cook it. Sky's the limit. Someday, you will be known for your lasagna!!!

 

[clh2]

I agree with everyone else that has stated that Lasagna is a PITA to make. It is putsy, putsy, putsy.

I have never made lasagna - since I discovered that baked ziti is just about the same - but is all mixed up - and dumped into the pan (as opposed to painstakingly layered). Plus - this calls for a pre-made spaghetti sauce, which also takes out a lot of stress.

The recipe we use is:
AllRecipes Baked Ziti

And - per one of the reviews - we do reduce the Ricotta cheese to 15 oz.
Also - you may want to look through the reviews - i.e some suggest adding either browned Italian sausage, or browned ground beef. We usually don't.

I also agree that don't try to learn the skill of cooking when you are hungry and trying to put a meal on the table in a hurry.

 

[powellrj]

When I got married I really didn't know how to cook, but once I had kids, I would watch PBS cooking shows when they were napping and I learned to cook that way!

I would join pintest and collect recipes from there. I know one I saw all over it was for chicken. It was so easy I never pinned it, but I needed a recipe for a new mom really quick and remember this one and threw it together and the mom raved to my DD and said it was the best meal they had all week. I tried it and for the 3 minutes of work wasn't bad! You need to get a bunch of recipes like that so people will think you are a great cook and before you know it, you will be!

 

[Aliceacc]

I am nobody's idea of a chef, but here's a recipe you can use to impress your husband. It's scary-simple but delicious:

Cheesy chicken.

Take some chicken breasts. Cut off any visible fat.

In a bowl, beat an egg and add some milk-- maybe 1/4 cup?? Dip the cutlets into that first, then into a mixture (about 50-50) of breadcrumbs and flour. Take those cutlets and saute them. ("saute" just means fry in a pan: heat up a little oil, add a little butter, and put the cutlets in.) Saute until browned, then flip and saute the other side.

When your cutlets are done, place them on a baking sheet. Pour a little Balsamic Vinegar into the pan and coat both sides of the cutlets.

Sprinkle some mozzerella cheese onto the cutlets. Then place them into a 350 degree oven and bake until the cutlets are fully cooked and the cheese melted (figure about 10-12 minutes for thin cutlets, closer to 20 if they're thick.)

It's delicious, and the measurements are all kind of fluid. You can serve it with baked potatoes, french fries or some of the Lipton noodles that come from the packet.

 

[dakcp2001]

I love to cook, but often fall into a rut where I make the same things too much. I love allrecipes.com. It is really important to read all the reviews and take notes. Choose something with a lot of reviews, and read them. Usually people tweek the recipe and if all the same people have the same suggestions, take them! I arrange the reviews by "most helpful". Lasagna is a hard one. Start with something simple! It takes a lot of trial and error but that is the only way to learn. I try to make a new recipe at least once a month. It then goes in the keep or yuck pile.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

I have learned to cook by trial and error. I only just learned how to make perfect over medium eggs- yet I can make fresh whole wheat baguettes no problem.

YouTube is your friend!

I have to say I found the perfect poached eggs from using Pinterest recently. It even includes video. I am in love with Pinterest and recipes.

http://www.seriouseats.com/2013/03/how-to-poach-eggs-easy-way-poached-breakfast-video.html

Oh and here is another site with many ways to cook eggs, including over medium.

http://www.thedailymeal.com/10-perfect-ways-cook-egg-slideshow

 

[Zandy595]

First of all, it takes time and a lot of practice to become a good cook. At least it did for me.

The most important advice I can give you - is start with easy recipes with not a lot of ingredients. Lasagna is time consuming and messy even for veteran cooks. I don't make it very often because of that.

Watch Food Network shows and America's Test Kitchen/Cooks Country. I have learned a LOT from them.

I love http://www.food.com/ . I have been wanting to try cooking kale for a long time, but have been a little scared. I don't want to waste money and time on experimenting with it, so I looked up the most popular recipe for kale and read all the reviews. If 100 people have given a recipe 5 stars you know it can't be too bad.