Calling all men who can cook!

TluvK
TluvK Posts: 733 Member
edited October 2024 in Chit-Chat
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?

Replies

  • Acg67
    Acg67 Posts: 12,142 Member
    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
    TluvK Posts: 733 Member
    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
    neva4saken Posts: 300 Member
    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
    Acg67 Posts: 12,142 Member
    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
    chrisdavey Posts: 9,834 Member
    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 :smile:
  • TluvK
    TluvK Posts: 733 Member
    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
    Acg67 Posts: 12,142 Member
    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 :smile:

    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
    TluvK Posts: 733 Member
    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 :smile:

    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
    bregalad5 Posts: 3,965 Member
    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
    Lift_hard_eat_big Posts: 2,278 Member
    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
    albinogorilla Posts: 1,056 Member
    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
    Carl01 Posts: 9,307 Member
    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. :smile:
  • TDGee
    TDGee Posts: 2,209 Member
    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
    chrisdavey Posts: 9,834 Member
    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 :smile:

    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
    california_peach Posts: 1,809 Member
    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
    JustEllieK Posts: 423 Member
    I always said i am going to find a guy who can cook so i dont have too.....
  • scarletleavy
    scarletleavy Posts: 841 Member
    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 :smile:

    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
    Elizabeth_C34 Posts: 6,376 Member
    Men who can cook are super sexy, just sayin'.
  • _Ben
    _Ben Posts: 1,608 Member
    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
    TluvK Posts: 733 Member
    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!!
  • hamncheese67
    hamncheese67 Posts: 1,715 Member
    When I got my first apartment, my parents bought me a set of pots and pans, a kitchen knife, and a cookbook of easy meals. After that, it was trial and error, but mostly sticking to stir fry type dishes. When I was married, I mostly worked from home so I was responsible for most meals. I pick up ideas of what to do from watching Food Network or the Cooking Channel.
  • tonilizzy88
    tonilizzy88 Posts: 920 Member
    I always said i am going to find a guy who can cook so i dont have too.....

    i found myself a chef :p
  • jeffrodgers1
    jeffrodgers1 Posts: 991 Member
    Mom taught me to cook... guess I asked too many times what's for dinner? :ohwell: My brothers and I each cooked one meal a week for the family to give Mom a few nights off a week.

    Eventually I learned to like to cook and started working in restaurants when I was 15. Worked thru a few, learned some of the chef's secrets at each and now can cook pretty much anything ranging from Italian, Chinese, Indian to plain old steaks, ribs and chicken.

    I've won awards for my Chili in cookoff's and am told my BBQ sauce is to die for (what diet pepsi in BBQ sauce? ... you're kidding right :tongue: ).

    BTW -> the kitchen is far from the female's domain... my exwife really did start a fire in the kitchen while boiling water! She could make the finest and freshest ingredients taste horrible without trying. :embarassed:
  • chocolate and peppers make a good mole sauce
  • darklord48
    darklord48 Posts: 114 Member
    If he likes science/chemistry, you can get him interested by having him watch Good Eats. It's like Mr. Wizard (or Bill Nye for you younger people) for food.

    Alternatively just hold out on him unless he makes at least one attempt a week. By attempt, I mean a full meal, not grilling some meat, throwing a bun on it and calling burgers a meal.

    Personally both my parents liked to cook, so I spent a lot of time in the kitchen growing up. We were always trying new recipes. Eventually I just started making up stuff to see if it would work. Good Eats helped me further understand the why behind cooking, which has allowed me to come up with more combinations that work than I originally had done.
  • TheRoadDog
    TheRoadDog Posts: 11,788 Member
    I was the oldest of 5 kids. We were poor. When my Mom had to start working later hours, I was 12. Started survival cooking for my brothers and sisters. Joined the Marines and ended up in Okinawa, where I got to travel to the Phillipines, Thailand, Japan and a few other places. Learned there was more to cooking than Ground Beef, canned Salmon and Potatoes.

    Came back in 1975 and have been cooking (experimenting) ever since.

    Always been the primary cook. Love cooking. Have been enterring contests since 1987. Won for Chili, BBQ, Raspberry Jalapeno Sauce (3 X) and Jack Daniel's Chocolate Pecan Pie (2 X).

    Retiring in about 5 years and moving to Vegas to go to culinary school.
  • jaxdiablo
    jaxdiablo Posts: 580
    Poor kid from a single parent household where mom went out or worked or whatever she did at night from me being about the age of 8 forward. I started cooking the basics (hot dogs and mac and cheese) and expanded. I realized that women like a guy who could cook so I got better at it. I also did some specialty catering in Chicago for a while all desserts. Mostly cheesecakes. Yes I can bake, quite well actually. Either from a box or from scratch. And I can cook damn near anything you put in front of me. If I have a recipe or just a list of ingredients. And yes, I am single. lol
  • jlzrdking
    jlzrdking Posts: 501 Member
    I learned a lot from watching my Mom cook when I was little and then I began pestering her to let me cook something. When I got a little older and was still livng at home Mom would then ask me to cook dinner.

    Now I experiment a lot and see how it turns or I look for recipes online an try them when I want something new.

    This coming weekend is a good example of how I learn to cook new things, my GF and I are having a Halloween party at my house and I told everyone I would prepart pulled pork BBQ.

    They don't know this but i've never made pulled pork BBQ :happy:

    If anyone has any suggestions on this please let me know.
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