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i have to learn how to cook

incorporating Recipes and Cooking
foxy
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i have to learn how to cook

#1886

Postby foxy » November 7th, 2016, 8:12 pm

I think that I am looking for a Gordon Ramsey approach of say a 20 day rotating menu for a few simple low calorie meals and soup and roll jobs.

Ready meals are excluded. Fruit and veg welcome.

Snack is usually a gnome made cheese scone.

What actually do the rest of you do for eating ?

DiamondEcho
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Re: i have to learn how to cook

#1918

Postby DiamondEcho » November 7th, 2016, 9:01 pm

The very best thing i did, after thinking I knew a bit about cooking having spent aeons in the kitchen whilst my mother cooked and helping her, was to go to do recreational courses at a very good cook school myself. Just for fun, for self-improvement, knowledge, understanding.

This wasn't '12 posh people decant to a pallazzo or what ever in Tuscany'. It was a very serious and intensive recreational side of one of the US's professional cook schools. In this case the Institute of Culinary Education in new York City-https://www.ice.edu/
It was also techniques driven, ie not how to cook a/b+c recipes, but why x happens to y when you cook it that way, so then you can adopt that learning to anything, create your own recipes. [I've done other cooking courses since then, beware those that simply drill you in cooking two or three dishes, that is of almost zero long term value IME]

I was living there in NYC then which of course made it easier. But i raise it as some courses are short and will for ever shift the way you approach cooking. Just for example no longer simply following a recipe, but understanding why a recipe works, and hence being able to adapt and improvise on the hoof. Some of their courses are 1 and two days, and are reasonably priced vs quality, maybe worth considering for keen cooks looking at a shopping/etc trip over to NYC?

-My wife says that when we quite soon decide to retire early she wants to go to cook school and learn to cook quality Italian cuisine. She has visions of some lazy flash villa in Tuscany - nah, for me it would only be back to NYC for me, and the empowering techniques-based approach! :)

Dod1010
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Re: i have to learn how to cook

#1924

Postby Dod1010 » November 7th, 2016, 9:13 pm

I buy from Gousto or HelloFresh (if we are allowed to mention names) They provide the ingredients for 3/4 meals per week and recipes. Now that I am on my own (my wife died recently) they have been a lifesaver for me, along with recipes that my late wife insisted I made a note of. I am now in a position to provide for myself 7 days a week if necessary. What it needs is a decent recipe book and the confidence to follow the recipe!

Cooking basic stuff is not difficult after a week or two and is actually liberating. I never buy ready made meals and look askance at these people I see spending lots of money on rubbish in the likes of the Co-op and even more and not much better quality ready meals in M & S. What a waste of money and resources.

I can go into the butcher and now look carefully at cuts of meat I am being offered and deciding if that is what I really want. It is really empowering to be able to judge that sort of thing!

DiamondEcho
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Re: i have to learn how to cook

#1925

Postby DiamondEcho » November 7th, 2016, 9:16 pm

I posted the homepage of ICE/NYC. The recreational zone is much easier to navigate for non career cooks -> This was what I followed, and picked a few courses from... -> http://recreational.ice.edu/

foxy
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Re: i have to learn how to cook

#1954

Postby foxy » November 7th, 2016, 10:16 pm

Thank you. I found both of those ideas helpful and complementary.

I was sorry to hear of your loss. I would expect that a little help with the supplied boxes of groceries and recipes to be ideal and then with time a move over to a more interest driven logical cookery course stimulating.

My wife has been very ill and is struggling in the kitchen but does not want my help. Its a bit of a balancing act but I think I know how to proceed pretty much along the suggestions in the posts you have both made.

Thank you.

sg31
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Re: i have to learn how to cook

#1968

Postby sg31 » November 7th, 2016, 10:46 pm

foxy, I've no idea of your level of ability. If you are someone with little experience you could do much worse than buy

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Dairy-Book-Fam ... 0852233507

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Dairy-Book-Hom ... 2GRKMF26KW

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Jamies-Ministr ... 0718148622

I've got the 1st and 3rd of those. Good recipes that work, tried and tested stuff. Jamie Oliver is not my cup of tea but his recipes do work.
Once you have mastered a few recipes it will give the confidence to branch out.

My wife has been very ill and is struggling in the kitchen but does not want my help.

I'm very sorry to hear that, best wishes to you both. Maybe someone could buy you one of the books for Christmas then you can find a new interest in cooking and get your wife to show you the proper way to do it. That way she will be helping you rather than the other way round.

You will think of something. Anyway good luck.

DiamondEcho
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Re: i have to learn how to cook

#2258

Postby DiamondEcho » November 8th, 2016, 4:00 pm

Apologies Foxy, I hadn't quite registered that you have to learn to cook, rather than wish to for recreational purposes.

Maybe you can get a copy of this from your library and see if you find it useful before perhaps buying a copy?
https://www.amazon.com/Off-Shelf-Cookin ... 0066214483

It has recipes that incorporate short-cuts [similar to Delia's ingredient 'Cheats' as she calls them] using a pre-prepared product often canned or bottled and already in your larder, then dresses it up with 1, 2 or 3 very simple fresh or fresh-frozen ingredients. This takes out a vast amount of buying ...101 different ingredients + ages prepping them.

I'll give you an example. I would likely never again cook a bolognaise sauce from scratch, simply because I cannot source a similar peak-quality fresh plum tomato that is used by the major brands. Instead I always have in the cupboard a couple of jars of basic tomato pasta sauce. My preference within the typical supermarket offering for both pasta and sauces is the Barilla brand. Might cost a fraction more than super-market own-brand but IMO/E is head and shoulders waaay better.

So, my regular base sauce is Barilla Basilico [basil] sauce. You might enjoy that on it's own, plain as it is, but it's very simple to add to it. Some sliced or shredded left-over chicken, or a handful of shelled prawns, or mushrooms, hey even simple minced beef :)? The possibilities are endless. Add a jar of say Basilico as above and while it warms do the pasta. Likely a far better pasta sauce than you'll ever get from any jar, and a nutritious meal prepped and ready in say 20-max30 minutes.

The book^ suggests a basic core larder of bottled/canned products to keep, from which to derive the '101' simple quick fresh recipes that it contains.

UncleEbenezer
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Re: i have to learn how to cook

#2541

Postby UncleEbenezer » November 8th, 2016, 11:06 pm

Probably not relevant, but food for thought. The story of how I learned to cook.

My brother and I, as teenagers, were living with our aunt while doing a summer job. Our aunt laid down some ground rules: there were three of us, all working. So we could jolly well all chip in to the chores, and the household costs.

So cooking became one week on, two weeks off. Two teenage lads, with an aunt and her kitchen. I don't recollect her having had to ride to the rescue of either of us, though it seems likely to have happened. Well, of course, the two of us found ourselves in competition - with the aid of cookbooks - to cook the most interesting and delicious meals.

In at the deep end, and we've both been confident in the kitchen ever since!

Dod1010
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Re: i have to learn how to cook

#2552

Postby Dod1010 » November 8th, 2016, 11:17 pm

Uncle Ebenezer

That aunt of your did you the biggest favour she could have even if at the time you did not think so. It is a vital life skill and yet one I came to very late. It is wonderful as I said to be able to go into a butcher and know what you are buying, and to judge it good or not so good.

UncleEbenezer
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Re: i have to learn how to cook

#2657

Postby UncleEbenezer » November 9th, 2016, 8:57 am

Dod1010 wrote:Uncle Ebenezer

That aunt of your did you the biggest favour she could have even if at the time you did not think so. It is a vital life skill and yet one I came to very late. It is wonderful as I said to be able to go into a butcher and know what you are buying, and to judge it good or not so good.

I know. And have known, for many years. Indeed, we enjoyed it at the time.

I recently had occasion to reminisce with her about it. She remembers something I don't: she was also imposing budgetary discipline on us. I think the reason I don't remember any such thing is that the budgetary discipline came naturally to us, as our family had never had money to waste (and our earnings from casual summer work was untold wealth).

BeaglesEnd
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Re: i have to learn how to cook

#2815

Postby BeaglesEnd » November 9th, 2016, 2:06 pm

The best introduction I found was from of Nigel Slater's unpretentious approach to cooking. The below being the first of his books that I used:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Real-Food-Nigel-Slater/dp/1841151440/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8

It's more:
Sprinkle a bit of this, taste, add more if you want, then cook at about 180c and when it's this colour, or looks like that, it is ready. Tuck in.

instead of:
17 grams of some expensive, only once used, spice and cook at 195c for 23.5 minutes , serve on a porcelain side plate warmed to 38.5 c


And it covers simple stuff like roast potatoes, roast chicken, soups, and even cooking a sausage. All of them are quite robust foods, and might not always tick the 'healthy' box, but it gave me real confidence from almost a standing start. And I've still not had a better Roast Chicken than mine!!! (apart from my Mum's)

BEnd

Gfplux
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Re: i have to learn how to cook

#15282

Postby Gfplux » December 15th, 2016, 11:36 am

As a man I have my signature dish that in our home is called the "The Gfplux Special" it was/is just a variation on chilli con carni with the rice cooked and mixed in. Just google Chilli Con Carni up its VERY simple even for a man. After a lifetime I have added "The Gfplux FISH special" which is just a simple white fish fillets in an oven use dish with packet mashed potatoes spread on the top.
So in my opinion it's about finding something simple that everyone will like and cook it OFTEN! After a while it becomes second nature and then SUDDENLY you say " what else can I cook" That original dish forms the foundation AND most importantly a confidence builder.
After many many years of having only two dishes under my belt I have for no reason but that I feel like have added "Spaghetti with prawns" "Cauliflower Cheese" and "Shepherds pie ( with beef mince)" to my repertoire!
The Shephers Pie made me make the jump to REAL mashed potatoes!!!!
Good Luck. Let us know how you get on.

James
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Re: i have to learn how to cook

#15324

Postby James » December 15th, 2016, 1:08 pm

Gfplux wrote: Just google Chilli Con Carni up its VERY simple even for a man.



Will be even simpler if you google Chilli Con Carne :)

Gfplux
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Re: i have to learn how to cook

#15330

Postby Gfplux » December 15th, 2016, 1:23 pm

James wrote:
Gfplux wrote: Just google Chilli Con Carni up its VERY simple even for a man.



Will be even simpler if you google Chilli Con Carne :)



Thank you James, that was very helpful.
What would I do without people like you.
However Google auto completes so just put in Chilli con, and hey presto you have it.

Rhyd6
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Re: i have to learn how to cook

#15429

Postby Rhyd6 » December 15th, 2016, 5:29 pm

Don't forget when cooking vegetables to double up on quantities then the next day or so you can have that vastly underated gourmets delight bubble and squeak.
I've taught all my grandchildren to cook and my grandaughter who is almost three made her first mince pies today OK the pastry was a bit hit and miss and slightly greyish but she really did enjoy herself.

R6


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