Any Cooks In The House?

What do you like to make, how long you been making it, do you enjoy doing it or is it something you do to help around the house?

I live alone most of the time, so I learned to cook out of necessity (because I'll kill myself if I ever have to eat another TV dinner/cup ramen in my life). I've mastered just about any egg dish and I'm the first person you would want behind a BBQ, but my specialty has always been waffles and pancakes.

Of course, my mom disagrees with the way I cook because I tend to put a *pinch* of rum in the waffle batter (though I can tell she loves it).

I eventually learned to like cooking because it makes me feel a little more useful and because it's the only thing I can do to express myself creatively (because I suck at drawing and I'm beginning to realize that I'm a really mediocre musician), so I guess you can say it fills a hole in my life.

How about you? What's your culinary story?

 

does making things such as Mac & cheese, Steak-umms, maybe tacos now and then, hot dogs, and a few other things count?

 

I make lovely pasta if I do say so myself xD

And ehhm...well in Home Ec,we are supposed to learn how to cook,but when your teacher is a failure like mine...
Yeah,doesnt happen.
So I watch cooking programs,and my grandmothers to learn how to cook food.

So far the most difficult meal I have made is a roast dinner for 5 people <3

 

_MOVED
to Hobbies & Activities.

I don't cook much. I eat pasta pretty much every night (healthy right) and so that's what I make. xD If I'm in the proper mood I'll bake up some cupcakes, but it doesn't usually go beyond that.
... I swear I'm not three thousand pounds

I can make some awesome chicken cutlets though~

 

I am pretty much limited to spaghetti and other pasta dishes, dirty rice and chicken.

I did, however make these squishy granola bars one time and I have to admit, they were absolutely great ;___;
i ate the whole thin too

 

I cook all of the time. I love it so much. My favorite foods are breakfast foods like waffles. I also love Japanese food because I feel accomplished when I master it. Like the first time I made curry and chicken katsu I was like, "I love myself today."

I've finished a year and a half of Culinary Arts classes. And love randomly making crap. I love scientific experimentation, aesthetically pleasing things, and I eating, sooo...​

 

i dont cook very often but i do make a grreat spaghetti sauce, if i do say so myself (the secret is in the cinnamon). i adore pasta! i havent quite gotten my alfredo sauce to thicken up yet, but im getting there. i can also make grilled cheese sandwiches.

i also bake cookies, muffins, and cake.

if i wanted to, i could probably cook a lot more, but i havent really had the need to yet. i can follow pretty much any recipe book, as long as the instructions are clear.

 

I've been cooking almost all my life, ever since I was five and my mom taught me how to make a sandwich. I don't do a lot of hard recipes, I mainly stick to easy things like spaghetti and hamburgers, but sometimes I'll do a really good meal like pot roast and mashed potatoes with a side of veggies or a taco dinner with rice and beans. And I like to make cakes sometimes. ;D
I don't cook a whole lot, but when I do, it's a lot of work, 'cause there's seven people in my family and we all love leftovers. lol, I once spent three hours making a taco dinner AND a chocolate carmel heath bar fudge cake, and then when it came time to serve dinner, I realized we had no tortillas. Any other "Oops" stories out there?

 

Ah, cooking. I adore it so.
I began making garlic bread whenever we had guests, because I was apparently somewhat talented. My father- a chef as well- taught me a variety of easy recipes, and I began commonly making my family breakfasts. As I grew older, I began making more challenging dishes, and have delved into the world of frozen yogurt. I've become somewhat known for Italian meals, and not just pasta and the like.

I'm quite passionate about it, and I hope to continue my culinary lifestyle. I've contemplated actually going into the field, but I'm currently pursuing a career in something else. I enjoy making potato dishes and exotic meals, although I'll make anything I have the recipe for. I do enjoy just taking things from the fridge and seeing what I can throw together.

Not all my meals are... healthy, per se, although they can be delicious- I've been told. I also enjoy fancy plating, bordering on pretentious.

Anywho, that's my culinary story. I do love it.

 

i love to cook. been on an indian food kick as of late. Pretty sure i could eat butter chicken every day for the rest of my life....

 

Alright, I'm making dinner for my family next week and want to try something new. What should I make?

 

I am the best cook shhh even though I don't enjoy eating food I lovelovelove cooking.
I can cook practically anything you want, but it usually takes me a try or two to get perfect. My specialties are baking and breakfast dishes. I found a great Tiramisu recipe the other night though that I want to try.

Spoiler

Ingredients:
4 eggs, separated – the freshest you can find
1/3 cup caster sugar
3, 8 oz tubs marscapone cheese
40-60 lady fingers (Italian Savoiardi)
2 tsp dark cocoa powder
For the dipping liquid:
NOTE: Considering I like my tiramisu dry (not squishy and soggy), this makes a ton extra – feel free to cut it by half or more.
2 cups water
3 Tbsp instant espresso
3 tablespoon rum

First, mix up the instant espresso with warm water and rum, preferably in a small bowl.
The espresso will jump start your heart. The rum will warm it.

Next, divide the egg whites and yolks into 2 separate bowls (the larger being for the yolks). Whip up the egg whites with half the sugar, until it looks like a soft cloud.

Then – without washing the beaters – mix the rest of the sugar with softened marscapone and egg yolks. Softening the marscapone on the counter makes it whip up smoother, so you don’t get lumps. Lumps in tiramisu are about the only way you can mess it up. It’ll still taste good, though.

Next, fold the whipped egg whites into the marscapone mixture.

Once it’s light and fluffy, get your trifle bowl out and begin layering the tiramisu. You’re aiming to make a layered dessert as beautiful as the Colosseum. I believe in you. Your heart is good. Let’s do this thing.

First put a layer of the whipped marscapone mixture into the bottom of your trifle bowl.
Then add a layer of lady fingers… each lady finger gets dipped into the coffee mixture before going onto the tiramisu.
Now, here’s the thing. You don’t want soggy tiramisu. If your tiramisu squishes and oozes coffee when you cut it, you dipped the cookies too much, for too long.
I recommend kissing each side of the cookie to the surface of the coffee – that way the lady fingers soak up just enough coffee flavor, without making the tiramisu soggy. So, go ahead, let your cookies kiss the coffee.

Now, here’s another important lesson for you. If you layer the cookies like I do below, they’ll taste good but they won’t show up on the outside of the glass.

To make the outside look good, you’ll need to break the lady fingers in half, dip the cut end into the coffee mixture and press it against the glass, making a seal, so the custard doesn’t leak over it.
Keep alternating between a cookie layer and a marscapone layer, until the trifle bowl is filled. Finish with the marscapone mixture and a dusting of unsweetened cocoa powder. Refrigerate overnight to let the flavors develop.

You’ll end up with the prettiest tiramisu trifle. (Especially after you dust the top heavily with unsweetened cocoa powder).

 

Ooh, that sounds delicious! I'm definitally going to have to try that. If not next week, then sometime!
Any ideas for the main dish?

 

I'd try maybe doing grilled chicken with rice, along with maybe some greens? Or if you're looking for a more refined taste, I can see if my stepmom will send me her lasagna recipe. It's pretty great.

 

Cool, thanx for the tips.

 

I like to cook but I'm not too passionate about it as I once thought I was. Haha, I blame spending college in culinary classes that I don't find myself any good anymore.

Though, there are certain dishes I enjoy making and others that I am dying to make. Like a meatloaf or beef wellington. More complicated things really. Meat-wise heh.

But out of most things, the reason I want to try these sort of recipes is because I much more enjoy to bake over cooking. In the culinary world, we consider it this way: Cooking is an art and Baking is a science. I guess I'm much better with science since I much prefer the careful slow place and measurements. I find I don't have the passion or talent to just 'wing it' like others do.

All in all, I say I am an okay cook and I would be willing to make many things, given that I had the motivation to do so. :P But baking is a for sure thing.

 

I've cooked for myself for most of my life, I love doing it because I can eat what I want, when I want and how much I want without being nagged at. I took Home Economics GSCE course and came out with an A which I was very proud of, I do bake as well but it's not my forte I'm much better at meals and savoury dishes. In Home Ec I learned a lot about the disaster that is convenience foods and so from then on I couldn't eat them as all I would taste or think about it SALT! OH MY GOD THE SALT!!!!! So I steer clear of them. My specialities are probably carbonara, egg fried rice, Sweet and Sour and this really simple dish which is basically just extra hot nandos sauce, noodles and pork- I just love it. I also cook a lot of french toast for myself and soup but those are both quite easy xD I have recently mastered the art of a roux sauce without making it lumpy which I was quite proud of.

When I go off to university I couldn't cope with being catered for, I have no problem with the food but I need to make my own things- it's my independence in this world. My parents still cook for me at weekends but nothing more. I am a fussy eater and so am always looking for new recipes to add to my repotoire to add more diversity.