Thecornerplot.blog

Food blog

How to learn how to cook

How do you learn to cook from scratch? Be successful in your kitchen with our tips

Do you want to learn how to cook delicious things from scratch? And the day comes when you decide to learn how to cook. Food is an act of survival, and while it’s easier to call for a delivery service on call, knowing how to cook gives us so much more than something to put in our mouths.

If you become independent of who has cooked so far (from your family to your ex), your new chapter starts here. The same goes for those who want to enjoy cooking on their own. Or for whatever reason, you’re learning something new, and that alone is worth celebrating!

When to Start

Take it easy. There are many recipes out there, and many of them are very simple, but you’ll need some basic tools to get started, right? Here they are

Your basic kit or closet to learn how to cook

  • A saucepan or pot with a lid .
  • Skillet . It’s best to have 2 or 3 measures, 18, 22 and 26 cm. would be a good selection.
  • Baking tray or baking tray.
  • And the doubts begin … What size? What material? As my grandmothers would say: everyone’s medium if you live alone. A big one if there are more than 3. Later, you’ll supplement your dishes with larger and smaller versions of each.
  • If you can’t find good stainless steel items, choose items with Teflon or other non-stick coatings. And let the base be heavy.
  • If not necessary, try to buy good quality pots and pans. Food will stick to you less, and you’ll get a lot more out of it. And you can, as long as they accompany you through life.
  • Be careful to keep in mind what type of stove you have. Not all are suitable for ceramic stoves, induction or fire.
  • Churn .
  • Liquid Meter.
  • This may not be the easiest utensil, but a set of measuring spoons will help you with recipes that call for ” one teaspoon,” “one tablespoon,” etc.
  • cones with a lid , if you can, in different sizes. But don’t be discouraged. Start with the ones that serve for storing food rations. The trend is away from plastic and back to heat-resistant glass lunch boxes. They are more fragile, yes.
  • Remember, there are plenty of glass jars of vegetables and canned goods that you will use throughout your life in the kitchen. So don’t get overwhelmed by buying thousands and thousands of candles. In a few weeks, you’ll have plenty of glass containers to use and recycle.
  • Oven paper .
  • foil paper
  • Cutting board.

Here you have to learn something very simple: cross contamination. It is better to have one for meat, one for fish, one for vegetables and one for cheese or bread. Breathe. There are sets of three tables of different colors that you can buy at a very good price.

What material? Flexible silicone ones will help you pour food into pots and pans more easily. Those with a small groove around the perimeter will serve to drain liquid, such as from meat or fish.

Size? The ones that fit in your kitchen. Although those that are as large as an A4 sheet are very handy.

kitchen utensils

  • A sharp knife . It will be your ally. And contrary to what it may seem, the sharper the safer. There are many types of edges, and they are all designed for a specific function. You’ll have time to have all kinds of knives. But start with a medium blade that fits comfortably in your hand.
  • soup . A ladle for serving.
  • A spoon for stirring. You can make it out of wood, for example, although they absorb some of whatever you’re cooking. On the other hand, plastic or silicone ones will help you not scratch the bottom of your pans.
  • Skimmer . This is that round spoon, usually perforated. This will help you manipulate solid foods that are in the liquid. For example, in a piece of broth chicken or vegetables.
  • If you’re not very good at peeling potatoes with a potato peeler knife. And you will use it for a lot more things than you think.
  • A spatula or spatula , like the ones you use to flip hamburgers. You’ll also use it for flipping food as well as for serving things like lasagna or cannelloni.
  • Electric whisk or mixer.
  • Of all the kitchen gadgets, perhaps the most useful, at least at first, is a basic electric mixer/mixer.

The basic ingredients of your kitchen

Here it will already depend on your tastes or food preferences. But in general terms:

  • Eggs
  • Milk
  • Flour
  • Rice
  • Pasta
  • virgin olive oil
  • Must
  • Pepper
  • oregano
  • Thyme
  • Romero
  • Sweet or smoked paprika
  • Paprika or ground pepper
  • Garlic, onion and pepper . Your title trio in a good sauce . I know many cooks who, after frying these three ingredients, start thinking
  • about what they are going to eat.
  • potatoes
  • Queso

You don’t have to buy the most expensive stuff you can find. But yes, get the good stuff. Especially olive oil, make it extra virgin . It’s healthier, more varied and tastier.

15 tips to get you started in the kitchen

  1. Take your time, start with the easiest recipes . Only when you get some security can you try the more complex ones.
  2. Follow the recipes literally , in every detail . In this way, you will get the hang of it and figure out the amounts, until the moment comes when you no longer need to look at the “chop”.don’t despair. Maybe the stew didn’t turn out well, or the rice is very old or raw, or you salted it too much, so it turned out greasy… But always remember that even the best cooks burned their food when they started.
  3. Don’t get carried away, we recommend you gradually modify the recipes, including at least one a week, to discover more possibilities, combinations of ingredients, new techniques …
  4. Always remember that even if you use the same quantities and the same ingredients, there is something magical about cooking: everyone gives a different flavor and nuance to it.
  5. If you cook only for yourself, you will find it difficult to find recipes for one dinner , you will not be able to know the quantities, so you have to cook for more people . You can’t always invite friends over, so get a good supply of lunch boxes and meals and use the freezer to make the most of all the food you cook.
  6. Hygiene and safety are crucial: always start cooking with perfectly washed hands .
  7. Wash your hands after contact with raw meat or fish .
  8. For food safety, remember that raw meat cannot come into contact with other foods in order to avoid cross contamination, pathogenic bacteria and possible diseases. Nor can you use the same tools with which you cut the raw meat for other foods.
  9. For the same reason, it is extremely important to wash surfaces, utensils and cutting boards .
  10. Don’t be tempted to buy an endless supply of kitchen utensils; most of them are very rarely used. A basic set (which we will suggest below) is enough.
  11. Salty dishes give you more room for your own reinvention and play with quantity.
  12.  However, sweet dishes (such as cakes, pastries, cookies…) require a perfect balance of ingredients. Follow the directions without getting lost.
  13.  Another tip if you are going to prepare masses : for better integration of the elements, solids are usually mixed together (unless the recipe specifies otherwise) and liquids are added.
  14.  You must learn to substitute : for various reasons you may be missing an ingredient for a recipe. Since most recipes allow for some flexibility, with a little ingenuity, they can be substituted with others that are perfect.

basic cooking techniques

Little by little, you should become familiar with the following cooking techniques, which will allow you to make many preparations:

  • Cooking : with this technique you will cook delicious rice and pasta, as well as gourmet vegetables, etc. Pay attention to the cooking time, which is usually indicated on the packages or containers.
  • Baking : you can cook a large number of stews, meats, fish, potatoes, vegetables… in the oven. You just need to follow the time and temperature indications.
  • Mix : use the blender to make creams, purees, smoothies…
    Sauté : this is a classic pan frying technique in which the food is browned on the outside while remaining juicy and tender on the inside.

Keeping things tidy and clean

If you want to start cooking, it’s important to know how to keep your work area clean and tidy. Imagine thinking about learning how to cook Mexican food. You get the ingredients to make the tacos, and everything seems to be going well, but before you start, you realize that your dishes are dirty and that you don’t have room in your kitchen to cook the dishes. This will certainly slow you down! All your guests will arrive and the food won’t be ready.



On the other hand, keeping your kitchen orderly will help you follow the steps of the recipe you are cooking. Remember that you are just starting out, so the process of learning how to cook can be a little confusing. Working in a clean and tidy room will be very helpful to avoid mistakes.

Bonus – Caesar Salad Recipe.

How do you learn how to make a Caesar salad?

In the second recipe, we will see how to learn how to cook healthy food; in this case, a Caesar salad. It is one of the richest and easiest salads to make, as well as a healthy alternative.



In this regard, nutritionist Adriana Puente, in her online course “Healthy Eating: Eating for a Better Life,” emphasizes the importance of changing our eating habits. He explains that improper nutrition affects us not only physiologically, but also emotionally, because it increases stress levels and fatigue.

What does it take to make a Caesar salad? As for its ingredients, there are only four:

  • Lettuce leaves.
  • Two slices of toasted bread.
  • Grilled chicken fillet.
  • Grated parmesan cheese to taste.

However, the true secret of this recipe for culinary training lies in the sauce, which tastes similar to mayonnaise, albeit with sweet notes. To make the Caesar sauce, you will need:

  • 2 tablespoons light mayonnaise
  • 1 teaspoon mustard
  • 1 tablespoon parmesan cheese
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 tablespoon soy sauce

Preparing

In a bowl, place the well-washed lettuce leaves, slices of cooked chicken and squares of toasted bread. Meanwhile, to make the sauce, you just need to put all the ingredients in a blender. If it is very thick, you can add a little skim milk. Finally, pour the parmesan cheese sauce over the salad and it’s ready to eat. It’s delicious!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *