Can You/Do you cook?

watna

I've had two room mates in the last two years, both are girls and I never saw either of them cook. We've basically had the kitchen equipment to ourselves. Everything they both ate came out of a packet/ready meal or was bread.

I found this so bizarre. I look to cook and even if I didn't I couldn't eat ready made meals and packets of soup every day. I'd also be conscious enough of what is in my food. and health

I thought it would interesting to see how many boardsies are regular chefs. Most of my friends still live at home and get meals cooked by their mammy's, so my take on the situation may be biased, but it seems to me a lot of people don't/can't cook!

What do you think?

mike65

Can cook/have to cook!

Eating out of the ready meal/fast food freezer is darned expensive if you want to eat well. Even then the best products still lack something over fresh produce.

Mike.

Latchy

Cook every day ,although family members also muck in a few times a week and cook meals to which helps no end .

Alun

I do the vast majority of the cooking in our house, but my wife does do a bit now and then. I pretty much make everything from scratch, about as far as processed food goes is Patak's curry pastes!

Faith

Can cook/ do cook.

I learned to cook years ago, and since I moved out of home at 18, I've been cooking for myself ever since.

I'll be honest, I look down on people who can't/don't cook. It's a real simple pleasure in life. My flatmate won't cook and examples of things I've seen her eat for dinner are: A fish-finger sandwich; pasta and pesto (tasty but only when there's nothing else there!); a bowl of plain broccoli.

The one time she ever bought fresh meat, she left it in the fridge for over a week until it was rancid and I threw it out.

Mint Sauce

mixture of both really, hardly ever do ready meals, apart from for work,ie, soething that can be chucked into a microwave, at home, would use jars or tubs of sauces if making pasta or rice, not sure if this is considered ready meals or conveince food, as i would still buy and prepare the pasta/rice, meat and vegitables seperatly, sometimes make the sauce from scatch, any of this left over would bring to work the next day,

do find it dificult sometimes as am only really cooking for my self, if i'm doing some sort of meat that doesn't includ pasta or rice, ie if doing with a couple of potatos or a few oven chips i do like to take the time to maranate or season, rather than chucking in the pan straight from the packaging

Alun

Faith wrote: »

A fish-finger sandwich;

Despite being a bit of a foodie, I have to fess up to a fondness for a fish-finger sandwich with loads of ketchup

watna

Faith wrote: »

Can cook/ do cook.

I learned to cook years ago, and since I moved out of home at 18, I've been cooking for myself ever since.

I'll be honest, I look down on people who can't/don't cook. It's a real simple pleasure in life. My flatmate won't cook and examples of things I've seen her eat for dinner are: A fish-finger sandwich; pasta and pesto (tasty but only when there's nothing else there!); a bowl of plain broccoli.

The one time she ever bought fresh meat, she left it in the fridge for over a week until it was rancid and I threw it out.

That sounds very familiar!

I feel the same about peopl who can't/don't cook, that's why I was interested. I don't think there's any excuse for not cooking most nights with fresh ingredients, even on a budget! My OH can cook well enough for himself if he had to as well, i just do most cooking because I enjoy it. I think he was fairly surprised by our room mates too! It annoys me because my nice cooking smells in the kitchen get overpowered by that horrible ready made meal smell!

Latchy

My son is a mean cook specialy with pasta curry and chicken dishs .Just give him all the stuff and he's away .Only problem is i get left with 4 or 5 pans to wash up , but worth it for the lovley meals . He discovered his passion for cooking at school .I will be jealous of the girl who takes him from our home to cook for her.

Selfish girl :rolleyes:

Faith

Alun wrote: »

Despite being a bit of a foodie, I have to fess up to a fondness for a fish-finger sandwich with loads of ketchup

Hey, I've been known to eat pasta with just butter and salt. There's plenty of room for a crap meal once in a while, but she eats these 4 or 5 times a week!

remus808

Just moved out of home, and I love cooking. Never got as much of a chance before but now I cook every day and really enjoy it!

mike65

watna wrote: »

I don't think there's any excuse for not cooking most nights with fresh ingredients, even on a budget!

In my view fresh is cheaper if you buy the right stuff and can cook meals that have a fridge life of 48 hrs.

Mike.

Minder

I've been cooking for the past twenty five years. Started when I was in secondary school and both my folks were working. Instead of coming home and doing my homework, I preferred cooking the family dinner. I left home at 20 and moved to London. Lived on my own for a few years so I experimented with different foods. Tooting in South London is a dizzying mix of cultures, with Indian, African and Carribbean shops within a stones throw of each other.

I became increasingly frustrated with the rubbish that restaurants served, so tried different dishes at home rather than going out. Now I cook all of our family meals. My better half cooks for our two kids but she leaves our evening meals to me. Can cook, do cook - wouldn't have it any other way!!!

watna

mike65 wrote: »

In my view fresh is cheaper if you buy the right stuff and can cook meals that have a fridge life of 48 hrs.

Mike.

Oh, I agree with you on that front! It's just usually people's excuse for not cooking fresh.

Minder

I cook most nights, usually from fresh ingredients (first principles cooking, a friend calls it) and always enjoy putting a meal together. But there are times when I open the fridge and long for a pierce and ping meal. Something I can eat inside of seven minutes. I don't like (or eat) microwave meals, but sometimes I just wish I had something quick and easy.

tSubh Dearg

Another Can Cook/Do Cook here. I do most of the cooking in our house and most of the time it's from scratch. I cheat occasionally with sauces and I have a small supply of frozen fish bits and chips in the fridge for when I'm not arsed.

Himself does a bit of cooking but it tends to be more of the pasta and pesto variety, though he also does a mean parmesan chicken

dudara

Can cook and do cook, as does my other half also. Without being boastful, I'm pretty good, but he's top-notch (top-restaurant standard). In both our cases, it's self taught through trial and error.

We do everything from scratch, maybe resorting to frozen veg on occasion.

Cooking is a real pleasure and it's quite relaxing after a day at work.

Gavin "shels"

Can cook, but well at 17 the parents would be the regular cooks of the household. I also bake a mean apple tart (ask DesF for the verdict).

Toto Wolfcastle

I love cooking. My parents are fantastic cooks but I do a lot of the cooking when I'm home to give them a break, and I also bake every time I go home. I live with a girl who eats potato wedges and croquettes (the cheapest ones you can find in the frozen food section!) nearly every day. Once she had an easi-single in a stale burger bun for dinner. If she isn't eating wedges/croquettes she has those awful frozen savoury pastry things that smell horrible.

As entertaining as it is to marvel at how she is still alive (she has one meal a day and it never includes protein or vitamins, etc), it's kind of sad to imagine her sitting in her room eating wedges every night. (She ALWAYS eats in her room.)

I always have fresh veg, meat, etc in my apartment so that I can eat properly.

My boyfriend is the king of fajitas and my speciality is chocolate brownies.

The Hill Billy

Can cook/Do Cook

Mrs Billy does the cooking during the week while I'm at work, but once Friday night comes she is banished from MY kitchen. I love cooking. I really do. Next to my wife & children, (& Guinness of course) it is my passion.

I grew up in the presence of my Nan who was a wonderful cook. Good hearty stuff, & all manner of cuts of meat & offal were used. After marrying into a long line of cattlemen & butchers - my Nan really knew her stuff. She did the best stuffed beef-heart this side of Oxmantown Road.

While I had a great appreciation for good food, I didn't take to the cooking until my mid-20's. I suffered a serious ilness that had me off work recovering for 3 months. There was SFA I could do apart from watching TV. And my choices were limited - Ready Steady Cook or Oprah. Ready Steady Cook won. After a couple of weeks I thought to myself - "Maybe try cooking to relieve the mind-numbing boredom." I tried out a few of the recipes from the show. Plenty of trial & error & building up confidence in my abilities. I haven't looked back since.

I really love it when HB Jr I gives me a hand in the kitchen too. He loves his food & is mad for baking. I also don't know anyone - adult or child - who can peel a whole bulb of garlic as quick as he can.

That said - I'm still a hoor for a dinner box with a batter burger & curry sauce.

Minder

dudara wrote: »

I'm pretty good, but he's top-notch (top-restaurant standard). In both our cases, it's self taught through trial and error.

Is he a professional chef?

dudara

No, purely recreational. But he's better than the vast majority of restaurants I've eaten in.

Attol

Would not consider myself a good chef at all but I love to cook. It's just so relaxing and fun. My dad and I are the foodies of the family whereas my brother and mum just eat because they have to. Unfortunately I don't have much time these days with work, college and socialising so haven't had a chance to do much cooking. I'll admit to a lot of ready meals in the freezer but I do read the labels to make sure they're not TOO bad. Currently living off a tomato risotto I made the other day. Has tomatoes, Quorn chicken, cauliflower, mushrooms, spinach and it isn't half bad. At work I tend to go for McDonalds and Subway as I just don't have much time and our microwave is broken. When out with friends we often end up eating out too.

I think less of someone who lives with their olds at your age Watna (I assume your about 22) than someone who can't cook.

I love cooking, I never eat readymeals or fast food. Although If we had decent pizza slices and falafel in this country I would.

Pigletlover

Can cook/do cook

I'm only living away from home for the last year so that's how long I've been cooking regularly for, before that I only got to cook about once a week. I get home around 7 every evening and cook a meal for myself and my boyfriend. I usually cook from scratch but sometimes I'll use a jar. A lot of people seem to be surprised by that but I enjoy it and I couldn't eat a ready meal for my dinner every night. I don't think any of my friends can cook, they all thought I was mad taking on Christmas dinner this year but I managed it fine. Everyone can cook and I think anyone who says they can't is just lazy!

BaZmO*

You're asking people on a Food & Drink forum if they can and do cook? I'd be very surprised if the majority of answers weren't yes and yes.

Faith wrote: »

I'll be honest, I look down on people who can't/don't cook.

You honestly "look down" on people that can't/don't cook? hmmm

watna

BaZmO* wrote: »

You're asking people on a Food & Drink forum if they can and do cook? I'd be very surprised if the majority of answers weren't yes and yes.

I am aware of that. I'm also aware of the board's rules and people's preferences for posts being in the correct forum.

EDIT: Just got home to the strange sight of my room mate boiling something in a saucepan, shock horror! Then she walked away, left it on the hob and burned whatever she was cooking and the saucepan. The house stinks now. I guess if you can't boil somtehing you should probably stick to ready meals and packets of soup!

The Sweeper

Can cook, do cook, am in the difficult position of having a husband who can cook, won't cook. Himself has ability in the kitchen. Give him a chopping board and a knife and he displays far more preparation skill than a lot of people I know who cook regularly but take 20 minutes to dice an onion and julienne two carrots. To give him his due, he will happily assist me when I'm cooking, so I get to play "Delia" and cook from a bunch of already prepared ingredients - meat sliced or cubed or chunked, vegetables sliced or rounded, mixes beaten, cream whipped etc. However there's an invisible line around the cooker and he usually won't step over it.

I remember reading someone on here slagging off her husband because he was cooking for the kids for a week and he served them vegetable burgers and baked beans two or three nights in a row. I had no sympathy for her. If you truly do all of the cooking, all of the time, you'll appreciate a plate handed to you, even if it does have fish fingers and baked beans on it. Since I know how much my OH hates cooking, I thoroughly appreciate it when I get something handed to me in the evening!

As for the pierce and ping element, I do suffer from that. We used to spend an average of £30 a week on takeaways in the UK because I was working long hours and so was he - two to three nights a week we'd just order in because we were too wrecked and it was just easier. Plus it becomes a habit, and you start ordering takeaway even when you're not THAT hungry, because you want something and you forget that this is one of the evenings where a pasta-pesto would at least fill the gap.

Where we are now I couldn't really order takeaway even if I wanted to. We do have one chinese restaurant in the town, but it's rubbish. We've come to a sort of half-way-compromise on takeaways now. There's a charcoal chicken in town, that does stuffed chickens, roasted on a turning spit over a charcoal fire. I have to check this out, but I believe they source their chicken locally and they're reared at freedom-food standard - so not free range, but not battery. We'll buy a roast chicken from there, a loaf of fresh bread from the bakery and a bag of salad leaves from the shop. Come home, raid the fridge for tomatoes, capsicum, spring onions, whatever's there, and scarf down charcoal chicken with buttery bread and salad bits. It hits the spot every time.

Sometimes I also revert to my "student pizza" days and open a tin of chopped tomatoes, add pepper and oregano, then toast bread under the grill on one side, flip it, and pile it with tomato and cheese, then back under the grill to melt the cheese. You'd be surprised how satisfying that is.