Comments on: How to Love & Enjoy Cooking

By: Simple Living News Update: Week of Nov 2

Simple Living News Update: Week of Nov 2 — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 14:05:57 +0000

[...] How to Love Cooking [...]

By: shar

shar — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 15:51:41 +0000

I hate to cook but am trying to do it more, and I really liked all your ideas…thanks for sharing

By: heather

heather — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 12:19:34 +0000

@AJ- Planning ahead is something I still struggle with, and it’s probably my biggest hurdle right now. Some weeks I do better than others! But I really do need to pre-plan my meals on a consistent basis.

@Allison- I second you on using the Farmer’s Market. Mine just closed for the winter last weekend, and I’m so sad! I’ve really loved going there to buy everything from leeks to eggplant, and the sheer variety of cheap, fresh produce really helped me expand my cooking skills this summer and fall. Now I guess I’ll have to get inventive at my local grocery store.

By: Allison

Allison — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 21:15:05 +0000

I would pretty much echo what you’ve already written. I used to have so much more cookware and tons of gadgets compared with what I have now. However, I am a much better cook now that I have a better understanding of technique. A few quality pieces go a long ways. Most gadgets do not make you a good cook. I actually find standing at my old wooden cutting board chopping vegetables with my trusty knife to be meditative at times and prefer this to the latest chopping gadget that’s available.

While I miss the bright red walls of my previous kitchen, I have added a couple of pieces of colorful artwork to my current space and have a bright rug. Like you, I usually have music playing and a glass of wine close at hand. I also have about 50 cookbooks that I use to motivate myself to be more experimental. This year I have challenged myself to cook one new recipe per week and I’ve been doing pretty well. I’ve found a bunch of great new recipes (and yes, a few duds too). This also helps in learning to be more improvisational. If I find that I really don’t like a cookbook after making a few recipes, I give it to a friend or put it in my library donation pile.

I also try new ingredients that I find at my local farmer’s market, which keeps things interesting. New recipes and new ingredients don’t also work well, but I feel like I learn something from my failures and I rarely end up with something completely inedible so I am not being wasteful. Sure there are nights when I whip up an old standby or get takeout, but I have come to really enjoy most of time in the kitchen.

By: AJ in AZ

AJ in AZ — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 18:23:10 +0000

My husband and I sit down every Sunday night, no matter what, and make a menu for the following week. It doesn’t have to be fancy, nor do you have to adhere to it exactly, but it ensures that you buy the ingredients for the meals you want to have, AND saves you from having to think of something to cook when you come home tired. If you already know what you are going to have, and that you do have the ingredients, cooking it goes back to being a pleasurable thing to do.
We have been doing this for almost 30 years now, and it works. We eat out maybe 4 or 5 times a year, and we don’t feel deprived, either.