Curious about cooking abilities

tjah32
tjah32 Posts: 18 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I was just remembering a TED talk I saw about obesity in America, and it mentioned that part of the problem is the fact that so many people in the modern world don't really know how to cook. If I remember right, it referenced so many more women leaving home to go work in the past century, which meant the time and energy it took to put together a meal was more scare and ready made things, ie. frozen chicken fingers, tv dinners, kraft dinner, etc. became more of a staple. Fast forward to today, as each generation learned a little bit less about making a meal from scratch from the one before it, we now have children being raised by parents and even grandparents then never really learned to cook well.

So I'm curious MFP-ers, for how many of you does this ring a bell? Growing up, which was more the norm, ready made things or meals from scratch? How often do you really cook for yourself/your own family? How much has your weight loss journey affected your cooking habits? Or cooking habits affected your weight loss?

Replies

  • ramonaquimby
    ramonaquimby Posts: 55 Member
    I recognize that a bachelor's in no way qualifies me as an expert, but I conducted a year long project examining this. I looked at college-aged individuals and their diets. This is very much what I found as well, these long held traditions are not being passed down, and many young adults simply have no skills in the kitchen. It is so much easier to rely on frozen dinners and take out than to cook when one can barely handle a knife properly.

    I believe scratch cooking skills need to be emphasized in public education, because if one can learn to cook at an early age, they will carry those skills throughout their life. I took home economics in middle school and I basically learned how to pop open Pillsbury cinnamon rolls. Not exactly cooking. When I first moved out of the house, I had no idea how to cook. The best thing I did for myself was to invest in quality knives and learn how to use them. This skill significantly cuts down on cooking time...

    I cook most of the time, but when we were living with my boyfriend's parents we stopped cooking. Now that we are back in our place, I would say I cook dinner at least 5 nights a week.
  • LittleMissDover
    LittleMissDover Posts: 820 Member
    I'm, a very capable cook, it's one reason I gained weight, my cooking is awesome so I ate lots :laugh:
  • melsinct
    melsinct Posts: 3,512 Member
    I'm, a very capable cook, it's one reason I gained weight, my cooking is awesome so I ate lots :laugh:

    HA! Me too. Both my husband and I cook just about every night and we only go out to eat once every few weeks. Everybody is busy, so I don't buy that as an excuse to not cook (I hear that excuse in real life and on MFP all of the time). It is about priorities. It is OK if a person's priority list does not include cooking, but don't blame it on being "busy." Be honest with yourself. I am sure people find time in their day for browsing the internet or watching TV, so making a meal in 15-20 minutes is totally doable.
  • rockangel8907
    rockangel8907 Posts: 429 Member
    I grew up with a 70:30 ratio of processed to homemade food. I myself am a great cook and I make about 70 of my meals homemade. I go out to eat about once to twice a week, but still manage to budget those bigger meals in.
  • tjah32
    tjah32 Posts: 18 Member
    I'm, a very capable cook, it's one reason I gained weight, my cooking is awesome so I ate lots :laugh:

    Haha this is the most fabulous response :)
  • WBB55
    WBB55 Posts: 4,131 Member
    I taught myself to cook from tv shows and cookbooks, since my parents didn't (and still don't) know much about cooking or healthy eating. They can boil water and make passable chocolate chip cookies. That's about it.

    At the time I was learning, Racheal Ray's 30-minute meals was a big thing. And I really liked her take on it and how all of her meals really could be cooked from start to finish in 30 minutes (especially if you washed your vegies when you brought them home from the store). She said in her book something like this: when you factor in driving to a restaurant and then waiting to be seated, waiting to order, waiting for your food... you save time by cooking meals at home.
  • indymom72
    indymom72 Posts: 8
    My mom was a stay at home mom, and I am fortunate to be able to do the same. She and my Grama taught me how to cook, and I am lucky that I love it. :) I was brought up to make as much as you can from scratch because it makes more sense financially and it's better for you. I have been passing that along to my kiddos, so far they seem to like it.
  • tjah32
    tjah32 Posts: 18 Member
    I'm, a very capable cook, it's one reason I gained weight, my cooking is awesome so I ate lots :laugh:

    HA! Me too. Both my husband and I cook just about every night and we only go out to eat once every few weeks. Everybody is busy, so I don't buy that as an excuse to not cook (I hear that excuse in real life and on MFP all of the time). It is about priorities. It is OK if a person's priority list does not include cooking, but don't blame it on being "busy." Be honest with yourself. I am sure people find time in their day for browsing the internet or watching TV, so making a meal in 15-20 minutes is totally doable.

    Oh I know, I can't stand that excuse. I can understand it more if you just don't know how (I realize it can be daunting to start out, especially if you don't have the benefit of parents putting you to work in the kitchen when you're younger) but the time thing really isn't valid.
  • origwvgirl
    origwvgirl Posts: 90 Member
    I admit to being one of those people who learned limited cooking skills. I did learn to cook from scratch when I was younger but the things my mom cooked were southern comfort foods (biscuits, gravy, etc.) so I steer away from making most of it. I've been slowly working on it for years but it's tough coming up with ideas plus I'm somewhat of a picky eater. I have a large selection of cookbooks but need to work my way through them like Julie and Julia. :) I'm trying to add new foods to my repertoire as I go.

    I've been thinking about this a lot lately because my son is 17 and really should be learning to cook (beyond the few things he learned at school).
  • katyconser
    katyconser Posts: 92 Member
    i grew up on microwaveable corn dogs and marie callendars meals... NOT the best habits to learn! i was always active, so it didn't really hit me until my early 20s when i wasn't playing sports anymore. i've always loved to cook and have gotten pretty good in the kitchen. i work from home, so i can take breaks as needed to start things, plus without a commute i'm home and have already shopped by the time most are leaving work. recently i've gotten better at making it a game about how much nutrition i can pack into a lower calorie meal. i've been experimenting with veggies i never knew existed, grains like quinoa, bulgur wheat, barley, etc. and making it all delicious! my roommate and i have "foodventures" so we will cook for a few hours instead of watching tv or something else... we've made cooking our bonding/catching up/hanging out time... the eating part is just the icing!! :flowerforyou:
  • tjah32
    tjah32 Posts: 18 Member
    I recognize that a bachelor's in no way qualifies me as an expert, but I conducted a year long project examining this. I looked at college-aged individuals and their diets. This is very much what I found as well, these long held traditions are not being passed down, and many young adults simply have no skills in the kitchen. It is so much easier to rely on frozen dinners and take out than to cook when one can barely handle a knife properly.

    I believe scratch cooking skills need to be emphasized in public education, because if one can learn to cook at an early age, they will carry those skills throughout their life. I took home economics in middle school and I basically learned how to pop open Pillsbury cinnamon rolls. Not exactly cooking. When I first moved out of the house, I had no idea how to cook. The best thing I did for myself was to invest in quality knives and learn how to use them. This skill significantly cuts down on cooking time...

    I cook most of the time, but when we were living with my boyfriend's parents we stopped cooking. Now that we are back in our place, I would say I cook dinner at least 5 nights a week.

    That's sad that even in home ec they didn't teach you the most fundamental of cooking skills! I definitely agree that proper cooking should be mandatory in schools. It'd be nice if everyone's families took care of that, but with childhood obesity, juvenile diabies, heart attacks at the age of 15 and the fact that the current generation has a shorter life expectancy then the one before it, that just can't be relied on!

    (Wow I didn't really think I was that passionate about this)
  • palmerar
    palmerar Posts: 489 Member
    I am a child of the Food Network, I think I actually learned a lot about food that way. My mom made dinner every night growing up but used pre packaged stuff when possible. I think as the foodie movement continues this trend will decrease a little. I definitely enjoy cooking and do it a lot more than my mom does now...she hates it. I love food and kind of taught myself.
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
    My mother didn't work when I was growing up, but she wasn't much of a cook. She was one h*ll of a baker though. The only reason I think any of us kids ate dinner was to get desert. Lunch was usually canned soup and lunch meat sandwiches on white bread.

    When I had kids I cooked most of our meals. I was a single mom from the time they were very small so we didn't have money for prepackaged meals and eating out. Plus, I love to cook and I'm good at it.

    Now, my daughters are grown and gone. My husband and I eat out about once a week and order pizza 2-3 times a month. Other than that, meals are home prepared. We are both good cooks, but he's lazy and I love to cook so I do most of it.
  • tjah32
    tjah32 Posts: 18 Member
    My mom was a stay at home mom, and I am fortunate to be able to do the same. She and my Grama taught me how to cook, and I am lucky that I love it. :) I was brought up to make as much as you can from scratch because it makes more sense financially and it's better for you. I have been passing that along to my kiddos, so far they seem to like it.

    Good for you! I count myself so lucky my parents taught me how to cook well. At the time I didn't even realize I was being taught it was just, Theresa, come help with dinner, here, chop garlic, mix these ingredients, etc, etc.

    Had this sudden moment of clarity about it in University when I was putting together some pasta for lunch and my roommate just stared me and asked, "how did you do that? How did you know those would taste good together?" I didn't even know how to answer, to me what I was making was such a common base of ingredients, it almost seemed simple and unoriginal
  • ThickMcRunFast
    ThickMcRunFast Posts: 22,511 Member
    I have the whole career thing down (postdoctoral researcher, so 12 hour days and working weekends are not uncommon). I cook everything from scratch, if only because it costs so much less. I got into the habit in grad school when money was super tight, and learned how a few fresh herbs or spices can make an ordinary meal awesome. I love reading cook books, it relaxes me. One of my favorite things to do is curl up at the end of the day with this months Cooking Light. Plus I have a huge garden, so I always have fresh vegetables. In the time it would take to microwave some cardboard meal, I can sautee a bunch of veggies in olive oil and garlic. I do tend to buy my proteins already broken down...frozen tilapia loins/shrimp and whatnot. Nicer meals always get fresh cuts of meat (for others) or fish (for me) though. My mom did teach me how to roast the *kitten* out of a chicken though :)
  • Jaulen
    Jaulen Posts: 468 Member
    I'm, a very capable cook, it's one reason I gained weight, my cooking is awesome so I ate lots :laugh:


    Ditto here.

    It wasn't that we weren't eating healthy....or making healthy food choices for meals....it was the portion sizes, the alchohol calories on top of food calories, and no real activity.

    I love cooking. We make probably 90% of what we eat at home from scratch. (My husband and I both work full time)

    When I bake I have my 5 yr old help.....mainly to help him learn some math skills....(adding, subtracting, fractions)


    My mom was a horrible cook, maybe three things she can do consistently well. Gorwing up I ate a lot of kraft mac and cheese, hot dogs, spam, spaghettios, and the like. Sundays were always hungry man tv dinners.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    I grew up with home cooking for the most part. Eating out was a rare event (still is) and usually marked by a special occasion. My parents always preferred cooking a meal from fresh ingredients (and yes, some processed canned ingredients) to pre-packaged institutionalized frozen and/or ready to eat meals. For me, that stuff has never really been an issue. Even when I was a bachelor, I cooked for myself and always froze left overs, etc. I always found it much cheaper to prepare foods with whole, fresh ingredients than pre-packaged food.

    I still cook to this day, in fact, I prepare about 95% of the meals in our home. I would say I'm at a pretty advanced level having learned to cook as a teenager and really expanding my horizons in my 20s. Unfortunately, good home cooking didn't keep me from becoming very over weight; my biggest issue has always been portion control...I can eat and eat and eat...and just keep eating; my fuel gauge is falty
  • Pinkgingham_19
    Pinkgingham_19 Posts: 28 Member
    My mom is an excellent cook. When I was young, our family was on a very tight budget, and my mom made delicious meals out of pretty much nothing. Unfortunately our whole family was overweight, mostly due to portion sizes.

    I taught myself how to cook. I'm always reading food blogs, collecting recipes (which I use as inspiration mostly) and all the food I make is from scratch. It's really important to me to try new things, especially when I'm trying to lose weight,

    When I was a barista, one of the most frustrating things was customers asking for low fat versions of croissants or cookies. I attribute this to lack of cooking knowledge. Many people are unaware that low fat pastry, low fat cookies etc don't really work.
  • Jaulen
    Jaulen Posts: 468 Member

    When I was a barista, one of the most frustrating things was customers asking for low fat versions of croissants or cookies. I attribute this to lack of cooking knowledge. Many people are unaware that low fat pastry, low fat cookies etc don't really work.



    I used to love croissants, until I made them by hand once.....the amount of butter in them was.....shocking. I haven't been able to eat them since.
  • Gramps251
    Gramps251 Posts: 738 Member
    I cook at least 90% of the meals for myself and family.

    I'm convinced that most people who make the claim that eating healthy is so much more expensive than eating "junk" just never learned the basic skills of cooking.
  • alaskaang
    alaskaang Posts: 493 Member
    I remember my daughter coming home from a health class in junior high or highschool one day and the teacher had asked for a show of hands from those whose parents cooked from scratch rather than out of box. She said only she and one other person in the house raised their hands.

    I think some of it is knowledge, and some of it is just preference. Personally, I love to cook! Growing up my mom would cook whatever meat we were having from scratch, but our sides were frequently boxed rice or stove top, and frozen veggies in the boxes that you just pop in the microwave for 5 minutes. I don't think I ever had steamed veggies until I married. I've learned a lot from trial and error and Food Network is my favorite channel.

    And I've had my daughter in the kitchen helping since she was old enough to hold a spoon, and had her making her own lunches for school early on. I'm sure she's not the norm though. My ex about had a heart attack the first time she made breakfast on her own including using a knife and the stove at age 8.
  • caughey1
    caughey1 Posts: 18
    I cook every night from scratch and during the day I go through the internet to choose recipes for the food I have on hand.So every night I try a different low fat meal.
  • carriempls
    carriempls Posts: 326 Member
    I learned to cook and bake as a child but by my teen years my family was purchasing fast food or other dinners for take out much more often than actually cooking. It was more about conveniece than lack of ability.

    I fell into the bad habits my parents did and while I still cooked and baked from time to time I often went for convenience of eating out and packaged food as well.

    Changing my eating habits several years ago helped me renew my love of cooking. And I'm a great cook now. If I have kids I will pass that on for sure.
  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,252 Member
    I'm a chef and I also instruct cooking seminars/classes.

    My parents were both awful cooks, not in the sense that we were fed fast food or processed food, because that didn't exist in our house, they just screwed everything up. I spent my time at my grandparents farm in the summers until my teens and it was there that I learned to cook from my grandmother. My Aunt also influence me, she was a Executive Chef for a resort.

    Anyway, fast forward to cooking classes. It continues to surprise me that so many people have no idea how to remotely cook, but of course that's why their coming to class, nevertheless it's still an indication that a decline over the last few generation and I don't see that changing too much going forward considering the ingenuity in the processed food industry to follow trends and make changes that continue to address consumers needs. The gap is widening as a result, and along with that is lowered expectations and palate sophistication that leads to picky eaters with poor relationships with food. imo
  • j75j75
    j75j75 Posts: 854 Member
    I've been cooking since I was 8 years old. Both of my parents are excellent cooks.
  • Trilby16
    Trilby16 Posts: 707 Member
    Hahaha! I am too good a cook. I love my own cooking. These days that helps me to make delicious heathy meals for myself, but I am certainly not overweight bc I lack cooking skills, tho' I can see how that would happen.

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