How do I learn to cook?

Well, for me the process of learning how to cook started with very simple things like pancakes and quesadillas so I could get a feel for the basic processes of producing food. Then, I started sampling various ingredients and sub-recipes (like homemade noodles, cumin, pickled watermelon rind, etc.) in order to acquire a "library" of tastes to put together in varying ways. Now it's just instinctual ("Know what would go well with apples? Ginger root. Lemme sauté that for you").

It seems you're still at the first step. My advice: cook things longer at a lower temperature if you're burning them, and nibble everything that won't make you sick. At worst, you won't like it; at best, you gain a favorite dish for life.

EDIT: Oh, yeah, one other thing. Always have a backup plan for dinner, because if your soufflé volcanically erupts, you don't want to be eating it anyway because there's nothing else in the house and your phone is dead.

edited 7th Aug '12 3:54:35 PM by Muramasan13

Start out with basic recipes that don't leave too much room for screwing up, and then move towards more complicated dishes once you're comfortable with that. Personally, I experiment every now and then with things that seem like tasty ideas at first glance. Might not always work out, but it's a good way to develop a sense of what you can/can't do with the dishes you make.

Believe it or not, I started by learning how to cook macaroni & cheese. Now, I'm not a cook by any stretch of the imagination, but cooking macaroni and cheese beats the hell out of TV Dinners and learning to follow those simple instructions taught me some useful basic principles of cooking. Like "greasing the pan prevents the food from sticking to it" and "butter mixed with pasta makes it more tasty" and "milk and butter are the basis of many pasta sauces". Things like that . From there I graduated to buying pre-cut chunks of meet at the supermarket and cooking them, applying the principles I learned from cooking the basics. I still need to learn how to make my own curries but I'm getting there.

Admittedly, I don't particularly like to prepare anything more exotic than a steak but that's usually enough for me. I just apply the principles laterally to fish, chicken, and other more healthy meats.

edited 8th Aug '12 5:41:46 AM by HouraiRabbit

Cooking is applied chemistry and neurology! :D

Your brain starts deciding whether you enjoy the flavor of something before it comes anywhere near your mouth. Presentation, consistency, and aroma can heavily influence your brain's interpretation of the information it gets from the tongue. Use this to your advantage.

Start out with an idea of how you want something to taste and then work to guide your creation to that end result. Sense of smell can help heavily in this regard, as things often smell how they taste. Use this to help decide whether or not a spice should be added.

In soups and other such dishes, you can keep them from being bland by using a variety of colors. Vegetables, garnishes, etc are going to be the easiest way to take your stew from monochrome to flavorful.

Salt is used for three reasons in cooking: 1. Consistency. 2. Chemical reaction to get another ingredient to react in a certain way. 3. Flavor.

If you are considering salt for flavor, wait until the dish is finished cooking. The way salt acts is as a catalyst for other flavorful chemicals often found in foods to get them to release. However, those chemicals can break down fairly quickly in cooking. To get the biggest burst of flavor from salt, it pays to use it just after you've taken your dish from its heat source and just before serving.

Another note about salt: There IS a difference between table salt and sea salt, namely the consistency. If a recipe calls for sea salt and you substitute table salt, you're putting in more than called for.

My last thing to say about salt is to not salt it to your preferred amount. Many people make a habit of salting everything they eat despite amount already used. (And if you're using canned ingredients, sodium is already in your meal. )

When cooking chicken, just wait. The very chemical in chicken that makes it stick to the pan is also the very one that will get it to unstick a minute or so later.

And lastly, use the jedi mind-trick of contrast. When eating something that provides a sharp contrast, the mind tends to play up the difference. For instance, you can make a dish taste sweeter by serving it with something sour, instead of adding more sugar.