# I've never cooked before. Where do I start?



## Thunder (Aug 14, 2012)

I'm 23 years old and grew up in a house where nobody cooked. My family ate almost all of our meals from the drive-through. I'm not trying to eat "healthy" or lose weight, I'd just like to be able to prepare a tasty meal (the 'flavor' of grease is testing my sanity).

I am a bit intimidated by the preparation and need for equipment. I have an electric conduction cook-top (glass surface) which I know is against what most cooks prefer (natural gas). I have minimal cutlery and am not sure if I need to buy particular knives (I have seen chef knives selling for ~$100). Are there cheap knives useful for learning and what dishes would be a good starting place?


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## Hoot (Aug 14, 2012)

Howdy!
Welcome to D.C.
We all had to start somewhere. No need to be intimidated at all. Take a look around D.C. and see if you can find a recipe you would like to try. If you have questions, there will certainly be someone here to help answer them. While good knives are certainly a plus, they are not an absolute necessity. and any heat source will do. Those glass tops you speak of certainly have their own requirements. I, personally, prefer wood to cook over, but I can find my way around any sort of heat source.
Again, welcome !!


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## Dawgluver (Aug 14, 2012)

Welcome to DC!  Hoot's advice is spot-on.  Your stove is just fine.

To start out, simple is good, not too many complicated ingredients, and read your recipes carefully.  Many times, the recipes on the back of the box or can are a good place to start.  Eggs are a great staple to play around with, they're so versatile.  Salads are great too.  Soups and stews are very forgiving: a can or box of stock, some vegetables, some meat, and a starch like noodles, Ramen, barley, rice, or potatoes, and you're good to go!

Have a look around, and feel free to ask any questions!


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## Josie1945 (Aug 14, 2012)

Hi Thunder,
Welcome to Dc.

Josie


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## TATTRAT (Aug 14, 2012)

Just remember: It's lunch and dinner, not life and death. It takes quite a mishap for a meal to be 100% uneatable, so even if you flop here and there, you still won't go hungry, you will just have to suffer through the mistake. Could be worse!

Welcome to DC!


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## Harry Cobean (Aug 14, 2012)

firstly hello & welcome from manchester uk thunder.
i cooked this last night
http://www.discusscooking.com/forums/f15/harrys-waterbath-chicken-81150.html#post1175855
i'm a self taught cook with a few good quality pans,a few good knives & a 20 years old electric hob with 4 solid iron plates & a single oven/grill combo below it.
my advice is to buy a few good pans/knives rather than loads of cheap stuff that won't last,won't do the job & will put you off cooking.start off with the basics...roast a chicken,griddle a steak,boil an egg.....you'll soon progress & be cookin' your socks off before you know it.
good luck matey


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## Andy M. (Aug 14, 2012)

Expensive gear will not make you a better cook.  electric, gas, glass cook top.  None of it matters.  Various folks here cook just fine on all these choices.  

Start off slowly and learn some techniques and cook some simple dishes.  Worry about the gear later.


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## Chief Longwind Of The North (Aug 14, 2012)

My advise is a little different.  Eat out.  That is, eat at sit down restaurants that serve real food, not fast food.  Select meals with veggies, meats, and a desert.  Find out how good real food can taste.  Then, you are prepared to start cooking.

After that, the advise given in previous posts is very good.  My youngest daughter started with soups.  Her soups consisted of a small amount of some kind of meat, chopped and stir-fried, to which she would add various cans of veggies.  She learned how to put flavors together that were complimentary, and then started adding other veggies such as diced potatoes, carrots, celery, etc.  I had her learn to recognize the herbs and spices in my pantry, and then learn to pick them out of foods that I prepared for meals.  She became adept at recognizing flavors in foods, and then had some idea of how to make similar dishes of her own, using her own flavorings.

My other children became wonderful cooks after they moved out of the  house, experimenting with flavors, textures, and techniques.  Each of  them have slightly different preferences as to their favorite flavor  profiles.  But each of them are very creative, and well versed in  technique.  They can all cook for me anytime.

As you cook things, your knowledge will build.  And when you don't know the proper technique for preparing what you want, we are here to help.  We've all been there, and have all had success and failure in our culinary adventures.  The good new is, unlike people like me, who always had to reinvent the wheel,  You don't have to suffer those same mistakes, because you can use us as a resource.

The most important aspects to successful cooking are, IMO, the willingness to try new things, be it foods that are unknown to you, or cooking techniques.  After that, you need to love what you are doing, that is, treat cooking as a hobby, a good time where you learn to created new, or favorite dishes, and then get to enjoy the fruits (or vegetables) of your work.  And then, take pride in what you are doing, with the knowledge that whether you are preparing something for yourself, or for friends, of family, you are giving your best.

With your desire to learn, and a willingness to ask questions, you will learn quickly, and be rewarded with healthy, and great tasting meals.

Welcome to DC.

Seeeeeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North


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## Sir_Loin_of_Beef (Aug 14, 2012)

Start by learning to boil water without burning it.


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## Margi Cintrano (Aug 14, 2012)

Welcome to D.C. 

Bienvenidos ... 

I would suggest an exemplary Culinary Course, perhaps at a kitchenware shop in your nieghborhood or at an Institute. I could advise that you check out the Library and borrow some Technique Basic Culinary Skill Books ...

Then, go out to eat, and take fotos and notes ... This shall open up a whole new world ... Aromas, pairing, visuals, sauces, flavors, and be a reviewer ... positives and negatives -- write them down ...

Spend some time investing your energies in learning ... And find some good  Mentors and Coaches ...

Best of luck,
Margi.


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## Steve Kroll (Aug 14, 2012)

Get yourself a beginners cookbook and just start practicing. Short of burning your apartment down, there isn't much damage you can do if you just learn a few basics. And if it's inedible, toss it and eat out.

Learning by observation is helpful, at least for me. It might be helpful to take a few cooking classes through community ed. Cooking supply stores sometimes offer classes, too. You could also watch cooking shows. 

Book suggestions:
Amazon.com: The "I Don't Know How to Cook" Book: 300 Great Recipes You Can't Mess Up! (9781598697032): Mary-Lane Kamberg: Books

Amazon.com: Cooking Basics For Dummies (9780470913888): Bryan Miller, Marie Rama, Eve Adamson: Books

Amazon.com: Betty Crocker Cooking Basics: Recipes and Tips to Cook with Confidence (Betty Crocker Books) (9780470111352): Betty Crocker Editors: Books

Amazon.com: How to Boil Water (9780696226861): Food Network Kitchens: Books


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## jabbur (Aug 14, 2012)

I learned the basics from Mom and Grandmas.  However, I also learned a lot from the cooking class we had to take in junior high school.  Start with something simple like spaghetti.  Boiling water, add noodles, boil for 10 mins and drain.  Spaghetti sauce can be simple by opening a jar of Prego or Ragu and heating it.  Or you can start with fresh tomatoes and cook them down to a sauce.  Steve's suggestion of beginner books is wonderful.  They usually will have you make a recipe and walk you through all the steps explaining what each step involves and why you do that.  Once you get some the basic techniques down, you'll be ready to branch out to other recipes and cookbooks with no problems.  

One other tip, don't invite friends or family to eat your stuff until you are satisfied with the results and replicate them fairly consistently.  That way you save all the mistakes for yourself and everyone will be amazed at your cooking skills!


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## CWS4322 (Aug 14, 2012)

Welcome to DC! Leanring to cook is an adventure, enjoy it!


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## no mayonnaise (Aug 14, 2012)

You will need some basic equipment.  Here's a rundown of some basics that I'd try to stock my kitchen with if I were starting from scratch.

Pans:  Cast iron skillet, check eBay for a "Griswold" and buy one used.  A 10" anodized nonstick saute and a 10" regular saute pan, a 3 quart sauce pan w/ lid, a cookie sheet, a rice cooker, and a 5 quart ceramic coated dutch oven.

A chef's knife, yeah you're going to have to spend around $100 for a good one, though they can get a lot more pricey! This is one area where investing more money will (usually) have the most benefit.  A cheap knife will dull, make food prep obnoxious, and be very unsafe to use.  A dull knife needs pressure to cut and slips, causing accidents.  I feel like a good knife that will hold an edge--and knowing how to use it--is a major difference between enjoying cooking and "having to cook" since it's so integral for practically all of your food prep.  I'd recommend an 8" classic chef knife for general utility.  Also get a knife steel and use it religiously on your nice knife... or else!

A pepper grinder is a must!  Pre-ground pepper has no place in cooking IMO.  Try and find one with a ceramic grinding mechanism for the best grind, Amazon has a bamboo one for like ~$15 and it's great.  I'd also recommend a salt boat--a fancy term for a small bowl that holds salt for easy access.

Random tools:  Cutting board, don't go too small!  Get the largest you can wash in your sink, and smaller one for quick prep. Silicone spatula, regular spatula, tongs, probe thermometer, 2 cup measuring cup, measuring spoons, A few different whisks, prep bowls, pasta strainer, wooden spoons, pasta fork, some earthenware

There's probably a lot more I'm missing, that's just what I could come up with off the top of my head.  You also need to work up pantry staples like various spices and herbs.   I'd say do that over time and get the spices as you need them.  Most lose their zest after like 6 months anyway so buying a full pantry's worth is wasteful.


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## Steve Kroll (Aug 14, 2012)

I would argue that a beginning cook doesn't need a $100 chef's knife or a cast iron pan. Before buying the knives I have now, I went close to 45 years using a Chicago Cutlery chef's knife that did the job and held up well. And I still have all my fingers. You can buy one for less than $20. For that price, you don't have to worry about dinging it up.

And while a cast iron pan is a nice tool to have, it also takes some knowledge to understand how to properly use and care for it. I would suggest an inexpensive non-stick saute pan for now. It will be easier to scrape away all those beginner burnt meals.


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## Dawgluver (Aug 14, 2012)

Heh. When I was in college, I started out with a couple of old steak knives, the crappiest, most beat up aluminum pans you could imagine, and a beat-up, elderly cooktop.  Oh, and a toaster.  And it all worked!

A whole lot of good advice here!


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## Kylie1969 (Aug 14, 2012)

Welcome to DC Thunder


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## CraigC (Aug 14, 2012)

Welcome to DC! Regarding knives, depending on where you live, some bait and tackle shops sell reground Forshner/ Victoronics fillet knives for under $10.00. I originally bought them for cleaning my spearfishing catch, but found they work great in the kitchen as well.


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## GLC (Aug 14, 2012)

You had a couple of specific questions. About knives. Don't go out and spend $100 on a knife. That's crazy at your level. It's crazy at any level, if you can't say just why it's worth $100. There's a lot of buying expensive toys among serious cooks, and it's not necessary, even if most of us do it. You can do very well with very modest brands, like Chef Style and OXO. But do buy a sharpener and learn to hone a blade. You'll discover something of why some knives are expensive, but holding an edge for an extra long time isn't your real big concern right now. You need the practice. An 8-inch chef's knife will do you. Keep it sharp, all the time. Sharpen it before you know it needs it. The wisdom that dull knives are dangerous and frustrating was dead right. 

Yes, there's a notion that "serious" cooks like gas. But that's not entirely accurate. Gas has some good points, like fine and instant control of heat. But among home ranges, electrics will usually boil water faster than gas, because of the way residential gas ranges are designed. Commercial ranges are entirely different. A commercial gas range is vastly more powerful than the home version. Your home doesn't even have the gas supply lines to run one. 

Just get to know your own range. Test the accuracy of the oven with a reliable thermometer. Discover which low settings on the different burners will "simmer," keep a pot of water in a state of just barely generating tiny bubbles. The labels LOW, MED. and HIGH on the knobs mean little and certainly don't mean what they mean on the range used by the person who wrote the recipe. 

You can pick up a whole kitchen full of tools and cookware from yard sales and flea markets, and you'll learn what you like and don't like about each. There are several kinds of cookware. What I can tell you for sure is that it is ALL "non-stick" when it's used properly. If you're sticking food to any pan, something's wrong with your method. 

There are many paths to learning to cook well and in many styles. General cookbooks like the classic Joy of Cooking are still good. And yes, watching cooking shows is a great way to learn things the cookbooks won't normally tell you. Like how to deglaze a pan. And there's a ton of stuff on YouTube. 

Like most people who learned in some particular way, I can't tell you how to learn. I began cooking when I could reach the top of the range, and I take a pretty scientific approach to new techniques now. All I can say is begin simply. Don't try to go nuts with spices. Good, basic food has plenty of flavor for you to bring out. Chicken parts tossed in olive oil with salt and popped into a 400F oven on a baking pan for a bit over an hour tastes great. And then, after you see how good simply is, you can move to rubbing butter with garlic, rosemary and lemon under the skin first. That sort of thing. Learn how to cook a steak and a pork chop properly, and you're ahead of most people. (Hint: They're very different.)


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## Rocklobster (Aug 14, 2012)

Pick your favorite foods and figure out how to make them. Read recipes and techniques, ask tons of questions, watch Youtube, look at photos, laugh, cry, throw things, burn yourself, cut yourself, throw stuff in the garbage or flush it down the toilet. Buy stuff you think you might like, throw some of it out and let the rest of it sit in your fridge and grow mold. Melt utensils on your stovetop.  Dirty  way too many dishes, fall asleep and do them the next day.  Repeat.


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## CWS4322 (Aug 14, 2012)

Since your mom doesn't cook, maybe she has stuff she'd like to get rid of, including some knives. I add kitchen stuff at yard sales, thrift shops, and auctions. I have a fairly well-equipped kitchen (if you count what I store in the basement). 

Have a plan when you go grocery shopping. One of the problems one has when living alone is buying more than one is going to eat, especially fresh fruits and vegetables.


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## niquejim (Aug 14, 2012)

GLC said:


> You had a couple of specific questions. About knives. Don't go out and spend $100 on a knife. That's crazy at your level. It's crazy at any level, if you can't say just why it's worth $100. There's a lot of buying expensive toys among serious cooks, and it's not necessary, even if most of us do it. You can do very well with very modest brands, like Chef Style and OXO. But do buy a sharpener and learn to hone a blade. You'll discover something of why some knives are expensive, but holding an edge for an extra long time isn't your real big concern right now. You need the practice. An 8-inch chef's knife will do you. Keep it sharp, all the time. Sharpen it before you know it needs it. The wisdom that dull knives are dangerous and frustrating was dead right.
> 
> Yes, there's a notion that "serious" cooks like gas. But that's not entirely accurate. Gas has some good points, like fine and instant control of heat. But among home ranges, electrics will usually boil water faster than gas, because of the way residential gas ranges are designed. Commercial ranges are entirely different. A commercial gas range is vastly more powerful than the home version. Your home doesn't even have the gas supply lines to run one.
> 
> ...


 


Rocklobster said:


> Pick your favorite foods and figure out how to make them. Read recipes and techniques, ask tons of questions, watch Youtube, look at photos, laugh, cry, throw things, burn yourself, cut yourself, throw stuff in the garbage or flush it down the toilet. Buy stuff you think you might like, throw some of it out and let the rest of it sit in your fridge and grow mold. Melt utensils on your stovetop. Dirty way too many dishes, fall asleep and do them the next day. Repeat.


 
Blend these two together and you could(seriously) be on your way to be an Iron Chef...


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## CharlieD (Aug 14, 2012)

"where do I start" - I say start in the kitchen . This is what I would suggest. Pick ingredients, something you like. Whatever it might be. Plan something simple, very simple. The first thing I ever cooked was chicken soup. I love chicken so I decided to start with that. OK, what came out of is another story. To say the list I ruined it. But I learned what I did wrong and my next soup was much better. do not get discourage if you ruin something. Next time it will be better, I guarantee.


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## CWS4322 (Aug 14, 2012)

CharlieD said:


> "where do I start" - I say start in the kitchen .


I was wondering when s/one would state the obvious.  Share with us what you like to eat, and s/one will probably lead you through the steps to make it.


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## TATTRAT (Aug 14, 2012)

Dawgluver said:


> Heh. When I was in college, I started out with a couple of old steak knives, the crappiest, most beat up aluminum pans you could imagine, and a beat-up, elderly cooktop.  Oh, and a toaster.  And it all worked!



lol, exactly! It's pretty amazing looking back, what we could make due with, and would laugh at now, but much the same story here. . .sans college. Been on my own since 15, thankfully working in a restaurant fed me, but the "cookware" at the house we shared, was deplorable. I certainly learned how to get creative with a sandwich machine, a couple warped pans of unknown metal/coating, and knives that would struggle to cut butter. . .and I still have all my fingers!

I often think that a great idea for an Iron Chef competition would be not only a mystery ingredient, but, mystery kit. Let them battle it out with a "Dorm Style" arsenal.  After all, true craftsmen aren't supposed to blame their tools. I think it would be great to watch.


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## Dawgluver (Aug 14, 2012)

TATTRAT said:
			
		

> I often think that a great idea for an Iron Chef competition would be not only a mystery ingredient, but, mystery kit. Let them battle it out with a "Dorm Style" arsenal.  After all, true craftsmen aren't supposed to blame their tools. I think it would be great to watch.



I'd watch that!  Great idea, Tatt!


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## chopper (Aug 14, 2012)

Hi and welcome. Lots of wonderful advice already. The only thing I would add is to start with something you really like to eat. That way the motivation to do well is there. Share your food with a friend. Try making what they like too. Have fun with it and don't let it ever become a chore.


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## GLC (Aug 14, 2012)

And I should have added - Just to keep it fun, every now and then, set out to cook something elaborate. At your level, tackling Julia Child's Boeuf Bourguignon recipe would be an example. Or something unlikely sounding, like one of my first excursions, shrimp with apples in mustard sauce. Make it something that takes a while and makes loads of dirty bowls and pans. A lot of these monster recipes are things you'll like, even if you make mistakes. It kind of shows you what you can do, even without vast experience.


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## CWS4322 (Aug 14, 2012)

I've been cooking for so long, I don't really remember learning how to cook. My mother hated to cook. Until I was 17, my parents owned a restaurant. We had "two cooks," Anne and Caroline. My mother brought our meals home from the restaurant. After they sold the restaurant, I cooked our evening meals and had to do that after I got home from ski, swim, or track practice. Before that, my grandmother taught me how to make different things. 

I do know that one of my faults is that I will bring veggies home from the farm and bring more than I can eat or process before I have to go back out to the farm and gather more. 

You could start with spaghetti, or pork chops, or baked chicken. Endless possibilities. You may want to stick with one region so that you don't have to stock up on a bunch of different spices or herbs.


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## Greg Who Cooks (Aug 14, 2012)

Busy topic...

Get "Joy of Cooking" or the Cooking for Dummies book Steve recommended. No you don't have to read the whole thing. Get them at your public library and peruse them.

Google things on the Internet and get ideas from cooking forums.

You can get a great beginner knife set from Bed, Bath and Beyond for $100 or less. Use one of their 20% off coupons. Register online if you don't have any coupons, they'll send you one via email. (I got what I'd call an expert set from BB&B, about $160--with coupon applied--and another $80 or so to finish it out. I would be hard put to name any knife an expert chef would need that I don't already have. Henckels brand.)

Experiment. Try things. Learning to cook is incremental. Consider yourself lucky if you can eat everything you ever cook. I've been lucky. A few fails but nothing ever that I couldn't eat. Sometimes was a lesson to not do that again.


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## buckytom (Aug 15, 2012)

tatt, that is a great idea to mess eith the tools of a chef rather than the ingredients!

cws, +1.

welcome thunder.

once you have a pot or pan, some utensils, and can use a decent heat source, pick something out that you'd like to cook and we'll walk you through it. 

maybe even in real time.


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## Bolas De Fraile (Aug 15, 2012)

Bore Da thunder, what is your favorite food?


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## danbuter (Aug 15, 2012)

Go to a restaurant supply store and shop for stuff like knives. Don't spend more than $30 on a knife, or you're getting ripped off. I recommend Victorinox. You'll find a lot of pans and utensils really cheap, as well.

Get a basics cookbook (How to Cook Everything: The Basics by Mark Bittman is my current fave). Just pick out stuff that looks good and make it. It's not very hard, once you've made a few dishes.


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## Cheryl J (Aug 15, 2012)

Hi Thunder, and welcome.  Lots of good advice here.  

One more tip, if you've never used your stove before, once you get a frying pan or two, try it out with something easy like bacon and eggs.  You'll get a feel for your stovetop that way, and how much or little to adjust the heat settings before you try something more involved and costly.  Good luck, and have fun!


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## reamy (Aug 16, 2012)

i would also like to suggest trying some of simple dishes you like . example: if you like pasta most brands have recipes on the boxes soups ans salads alike,also you can ask the local butcher,baker, how and what you may need for a dish , but your best source of help will be your taste buds (taste what you eat not eat what you taste) for cookware you may want to try the dollar store and the resale shops you can find lots of things cheep that won`t break your heart if they get messed up ,example 10 inch faberware skillet $3.00 gold trim china plates $0.67 ea, dollar tree  betty crocker utensils $1,00 some metal some plastic.p.s aluminum ,slainless steel, and ceramic,pots and pans work best on electric cooktops
halogen and cal-rod surfaces, if your cooktop in induction surface ceramic wont work, also cast iron dosen`t cook well on halogen, does o.k on cal-rod surfaces , hope this helps


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## reamy (Aug 16, 2012)

if your cooktop turns red when it`s on then it`s halogen surface if it does not turn red when it on then it`s induction surface aluminum and ceramic cookware won`t work on induction surfaces , the cookware must be magnetic to work on induction surface copper bottom cookware is iffy at best (some will some won`t)


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