What makes a 'good' cook?

Maxxitt

A "good" cook can make a good tasting meal out of whatever basic ingredients are on hand

DX2JX2

mortuseon_ wrote: »

sgt1372 wrote: »

mortuseon_ wrote: »

Do you think that regularly reading and trying different recipes helps to add to the skillsets of a 'good' cook?

Of course.

The more often you cook and the greater the variety in your cooking, the better and more experienced a cook you will become.

The same applies to any other skill, trade or profession.

Well, sometimes I wonder if perfecting existing techniques is better than expanding, variety-wise. But I would get bored that way! Haha. Thread was v interesting, anyway. thanks

To be honest, there are certain techniques that are worth getting very comfortable with regardless of what type of cuisine/recipe you want to cook. Things like roasting larger portions of meats, stir frying/sauteeing, and good knife skills are universal across cuisines.

mortuseon_

DX2JX2 wrote: »

mortuseon_ wrote: »

sgt1372 wrote: »

mortuseon_ wrote: »

Do you think that regularly reading and trying different recipes helps to add to the skillsets of a 'good' cook?

Of course.

The more often you cook and the greater the variety in your cooking, the better and more experienced a cook you will become.

The same applies to any other skill, trade or profession.

Well, sometimes I wonder if perfecting existing techniques is better than expanding, variety-wise. But I would get bored that way! Haha. Thread was v interesting, anyway. thanks

To be honest, there are certain techniques that are worth getting very comfortable with regardless of what type of cuisine/recipe you want to cook. Things like roasting larger portions of meats, stir frying/sauteeing, and good knife skills are universal across cuisines.

This is a great point! I fit some of the more general definitions here but there are things I am definitely NOT confident doing, like roasting large portions of meat. It's great to hear specifics on the skillsets required!

Alidecker

I became good friends with my personal trainer and I used to cook dinner for him once a week in exchange for training sessions. He said I was a good cook (except for one fail that he will never let me forget). He moved away and will occasionally call for advice on how to cook a meal. My family also says I am a good cook, so I will take it.

I prefer to bake though. It is more exact, but I get creative and look at recipes and then end up putting two together as far as a cake and a filling or something. Problem is, I can't always remember what I did...you may never get the same thing twice. However it is requested that I bring dessert whenever it is a pot luck.

Nadspee

Everyone's probably a good cook to someone, really depends on who you're feeding! I'm a pretty adventurous cook and my fiance always loves my cooking, but when my parents visit and I cook for them they complain about everything because it's not what they're used to. So to them I'm a bad cook, but to me they just have bad taste!

CSARdiver

MikePfirrman wrote: »

CSARdiver wrote: »

Cooking is applied chemistry. While anyone (almost anyone) can simply follow directions and produce an end product, skill and experience are going to show the difference between a new aspiring cook and an award winning Chef.

Ever just dump in ingredients and go off recipe? Try it sometime in a small batch and taste the result - there's a reason to the order of ingredients and the reaction to compounds interacting with one another produces wild differences.

I think back to learning to bake bread with my Grandma and while I was working off the same recipe card it is difficult to put into words "desired consistency", but decades of experience and knowing how her oven performs, her pans heat up, the muscle memory of what well kneaded dough feels like.... These things you have to learn through doing.

"Perfection is not attainable, but if we chase perfection we can catch excellence." - Vince Lombardi

I think of chemistry as baking. I'm a very, very good home cook. Baker?? Not so much! Too exacting for me. My wife is a terrible cook but excellent baker if given a recipe! She'll do things like use a knife to level off flour!! Me, no thank you! Hate that exacting stuff.

I think you'll find a lot of good home cooks that don't have the patience for baking and a lot of bakers that aren't necessarily great cooks.

I would agree with this. Baking takes precision. I'm a decent baker and a good cook when it comes to wild game, grilling, and omelettes. My wife is an amazing baker and has a phenomenal attention to detail when it comes to baking.

I tried for years to duplicate my Grandma's pie crust and just gave up for now. It's all in how you mix the dough and I tend to overmix.