Calling all men who can cook!

TluvK

How did you learn? Did your mom cook a lot?

My hubby can't cook - I asked him to buy me a mango at the grocery store and he came home with frozen cranberry/mango concentrate.

I'm not too bothered by it because I really enjoy cooking, but I'd really like my son to know how to cook and to like cooking.

Just curious how you got into liking it. And, for those men who don't cook and are reading this, why don't you cook?

Acg67

lots of trial and error to figure out what flavors/tastes work well together. once you figure out the basics it's not all that hard to create your own dishes

use recipes to get ideas and how to cook and then you can freelance from there.

easy things like how to properly cook an omlette, fried eggs, make the mother sauces, grill etc are good places to start.

TluvK

I'm thinking I'll just start teaching my son some things. My hubby's a lost cause. Acg67 - are you single? I'm thinking my husband can't cook because he doesn't NEED to cook.

neva4saken

When I was a child my father worked at night, and he never wanted my mom going to the grocery store by herself so he always sent my brother and I with her when she was doing the heavy shopping. In doing so I learned how to pick food and base it on the weight of the product and the cost and maximize what i am actually buying. Once we were home my mother cooking for 7 would need help in the kitchen and i would always get drafted no matter how much i kicked and screamed... lol well one day my mother who never let me help i was just the mule said to me it's time for you to start learning how to cook, in case you ever marry a sorry woman that does not know how you will not starve and in case you marry a woman that does she will not have to cook for you all the time you can cook for her. So that was around the age of 7 from there i read magazines, and cook books, and began to develop my palate and then i learned how to properly marinate food with the proper seasonings to bring out the flavor and keep in the juiciness. I am a master on the grill, my favorite is grilled, or roasted chicken with a mango chutney .. but i can pretty much cook anything my wife loves it she loved the alice spring chicken at outback so i mastered it and make it better for her at home than in the restaurant even the guy at the restaurant told me mine was better .. (although it is outback) but if i sample it i can duplicate it and actually make it better.. of course two of my fav shows is masterchef and hell's kitchen my wife calls me a chef i just say i am a cook who understand food

Acg67

I'm thinking I'll just start teaching my son some things. My hubby's a lost cause. Acg67 - are you single? I'm thinking my husband can't cook because he doesn't NEED to cook.

i am single and i could just order out every night but i like food a lot, so it's natural to learn how to cook.

a good thing to start with is breakfast, everything is relatively easy and being able to cook a killer breakfast is useful for when unexpected company sleeps over

chrisdavey

trial and error.

I generally go by the rule, if I like one food and another, why not put them together and see how that turns out

TluvK

When I was a child my father worked at night, and he never wanted my mom going to the grocery store by herself so he always sent my brother and I with her when she was doing the heavy shopping. In doing so I learned how to pick food and base it on the weight of the product and the cost and maximize what i am actually buying. Once we were home my mother cooking for 7 would need help in the kitchen and i would always get drafted no matter how much i kicked and screamed... lol well one day my mother who never let me help i was just the mule said to me it's time for you to start learning how to cook, in case you ever marry a sorry woman that does not know how you will not starve and in case you marry a woman that does she will not have to cook for you all the time you can cook for her. So that was around the age of 7 from there i read magazines, and cook books, and began to develop my palate and then i learned how to properly marinate food with the proper seasonings to bring out the flavor and keep in the juiciness. I am a master on the grill, my favorite is grilled, or roasted chicken with a mango chutney .. but i can pretty much cook anything my wife loves it she loved the alice spring chicken at outback so i mastered it and make it better for her at home than in the restaurant even the guy at the restaurant told me mine was better .. (although it is outback) but if i sample it i can duplicate it and actually make it better.. of course two of my fav shows is masterchef and hell's kitchen my wife calls me a chef i just say i am a cook who understand food

I really love this. Thanks for sharing your story. I'm jealous of your wife! My mom is a chef, so I grew up with lots of good food and would really like my son to pick up on it. Getting him involved in the process, like your mom did, sounds like the perfect way to do it. Thanks.

Acg67

trial and error.

I generally go by the rule, if I like one food and another, why not put them together and see how that turns out

i've been messing around trying to combine the 2 greatest condiments known to man, nutella and siracha, but so far the results have been less than stellar :P

TluvK

trial and error.

I generally go by the rule, if I like one food and another, why not put them together and see how that turns out

i've been messing around trying to combine the 2 greatest condiments known to man, nutella and siracha, but so far the results have been less than stellar :P

EWWW - I can't see how that would EVER be good. Although, I did have some spicy chocolate the other day - it was awesome, so....

bregalad5

Here I thought this would be a thread made by someone like me... being able to cook has become a requirement for me in a guy because I'm pretty much fail in that area but I like to eat well :laugh:

Lift_hard_eat_big

Mom and older sister and brother taught me how to cook. I can bbq, bake a decent cake, and cook some pretty mean stir fry and fajitas

albinogorilla

I worked for a group home where i had to plan and prepare 3 meals a day for 30 people, staff and residents. I did that for a year, and afterward, I have done all the cooking in my house. Wife doesn't cook. But I went in cold and had to work it out............cooking for 4 is a breeze...........

Carl01

I go by the KISS (Keep It Simple Stupid) theory,if it takes longer to read the ingredients then it does to eat it then it is too complicated.

In short I know what things I like and just work with that.
I like ham,I like cheese,I like potatoes...hmm,bet a combination of those will be good.
It isn`t hard.

TDGee

A man HAS to be able to grill the basic stuff. Any man that can't should probably be put to sleep after having his man card confiscated.

chrisdavey

trial and error.

I generally go by the rule, if I like one food and another, why not put them together and see how that turns out

i've been messing around trying to combine the 2 greatest condiments known to man, nutella and siracha, but so far the results have been less than stellar :P

Haven't heard of siracha. WIll check it out next time I'm at Asian grocers.

california_peach

My husband actually does the vast majority of our shopping. The only thing that has ever been an issue for him has been leeks, but then it turned out the store had the the leeks and fennel mislabeled. I am not sure if he went with his mom as a kid or what. He does it now because I hate the grocery store. He takes at least one of our sons with him, so they will know what a mango looks like for sure. I do most of the cooking, although he can follow a recipe with no issue. My kids help in the kitchen as is age appropriate. They'll be fine. They also know to tell me I'm beautiful when I'm pissed at them.

JustEllieK

I always said i am going to find a guy who can cook so i dont have too.....

scarletleavy

trial and error.

I generally go by the rule, if I like one food and another, why not put them together and see how that turns out

i've been messing around trying to combine the 2 greatest condiments known to man, nutella and siracha, but so far the results have been less than stellar :P

How about peanut butter and sriracha? I use those two together all the time!

But regarding the original question, I'm not a man, but I have kind of a strange family situation regarding cooking. I grew up with stay at home mom, but my dad was the only who mostly did the cooking. He's an engineer by profession, but when he was younger he went to culinary school "for fun" and learned to cook, so he's an amazing chef. When I was younger we always had the best time cooking together. Sadly, my brother was never interested in learning, he'd prefer to have my mother make things for him and bring them to him on a platter.

Elizabeth_C34

Men who can cook are super sexy, just sayin'.

_Ben

Cooking for me is a combination of ehow.com and making stuff up. Something to note, I cook, I dont bake. I can cook you up a mean stirfry, some delicious burgers, and an amazing breakfast, but you will never see me make a cake or cookies. Cooking is aggressive and inventive, where cooking is more pretty and aesthetic. Im very much so a person who makes something, looks at it and goes, that looks good enough. Not a perfectionist, so I do not bake.

TluvK

Mom and older sister and brother taught me how to cook. I can bbq, bake a decent cake, and cook some pretty mean stir fry and fajitas

i absolutely love that you can bake a cake!!