How do you learn to cook? Beginners?

Question

So I'm 20 and I have no idea how to cook :(
I want to cook a nice meal for my girlfriends birthday in 4 days but I need help to learn.
Will a cook book help me learn? How do I know what I need to make a special meal???
Also I want to learn how to cook for my self and or the family.
Any suggestions on what I should do to help me learn how to cook??
10 points for the best answer.

Answer 1

I think it's helpful to watch and follow videos, so you see how to do everything.

The following site has lots of good recipes and easy instructions, mostly desserts, although recently she has started posting lots of main meals.

You could make for example spinach and ricotta cannelloni.



http://youtu.be/fXSF5nmt3qk

Answer 2

For your gf's birthday, get a cookbook from the library or borrow one from a friend. Find a recipe that sounds good to you, make a list of ingredients you'll need, and go buy them. Then, just follow the recipe.



My parents didn't teach me to cook, but I learned a lot from watching them. Other than that, I learned on my own. I got a Better Homes and Garden cookbook and made all the recipes that appealed to my husband and me. Then, I made them all again, tweaking the recipes to see what worked and what didn't. Then, I borrowed my dad's old Fannie Farmer cookbook and did the same with those recipes. I learned a lot of my favorite Southern recipes from my mother-in-law. I've become confident and willing to take on almost any recipe, although I do think some are more trouble than they're worth.

Answer 3

Nothing you name requires what I would really consider cooking. Most of those things require about the amount of skill to boil water. But don't be discouraged. Find a good basic cookbook-I recommend The Joy of Cooking. It covers from basic to more complicated recipes and all the different cooking techniques. Start by just reading and soon you will discover some simple recipes that you feel confident of trying. Don't let it get you down if some things don't come out well at first-keep trying.

Answer 4

You can make a nice meal without a problem for your girl friend.



Make a chicken dish: Heat oven to 350, wrap each chicken breasts with a slice of bacon and lay in a greased baking dish. Salt and pepper them lightly. Mix together a can of cream of mushroom soup and a cup of sour cream. Bake for 1 1/2 hours.



Wash, peel and cut up some potatoes and place in a pan in cold water with a sprinkle of salt. Wait until the chicken is on the last half hour to turn the pan on to cook.



Use any frozen vegetable, like peas or green beans. Place in pan with cold water and turn them on about the same time as your potatoes.



Buy a couple of nice rolls and pop them into the oven just before the chicken is done. Only keep them in for 5 minutes.



You can also buy single pieces of cheese cake at Walmart and most large grocery stores for dessert. You can drizzle some chocolate syrup on a dessert plate and place the cheese cake on these ahead of time.



Set your table earlier in the day. Use a nice table cloth if you have one and put a small vase of flowers on the table. If you have some little butter knives put them out near the butter dish. Use a bread plate if you have these to put the warm rolls on or put them in the oven for a few minutes to warm the plates with the rolls on them.



If you want to learn to cook, you can read cookbooks and try some recipes. Most community colleges have cooking courses and for a small fee you can audit one or more. I did this and it was fun as I didn't have to take the tests and wwe made several dishes and tasted them at the end of each class.

Answer 5

I found recipes online that were very simple and didn't require much skill or ingredients..... I never found cook-books useful because they almost always too advanced for me! lol The cookbooks I have used are 'college cookbooks' rather than normal cookbooks. This is because College Cookbooks have recipes that require simple ingredients and utensils (as college students don't have money to buy extra 'spices' and aren't capable of grilling or cooking in any fancy fashion)



When you are new to cooking, only use recipes that you know your capable of doing and that you know what all the ingredients/directions say...



Below I am going to give you a couple of the sites I use to find recipes:

Food.com

Allrecipes.com

Answer 6

The easiest thing to make is a pot roast and biscuits. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees, then place the pot roast, potatoes, carrots, and cabbage/corn, along with enough water to cover the bottom of a roaster and bake for 30-45 min. While the roast is cooking, get the biscuits ready to bake. The last 10 minutes of bake time, stick the biscuits in to bake so that the biscuits and meal can come out of the oven at the same time.

Good luck and I hope this turns out well for your girlfriend.

Answer 7

When I was about 12 or 13 I would just follow the directions on the boxes,cans or bags of food. From there on I started making semi-homemade dishes. Then from there I went to culinary school briefly. In that time I learned a lot more than I did on my own. From my teacher but also from my On Cooking book. If you can get a hold of one of those it's great. Lots of technical information as well as recipes. It's expensive but worth it. I still refer to it years later after school.

Answer 8

Go to different recipes and find easy recipes that you could follow. If you keep practicing with those then you will get better and better. I am in college and just had to learn how to cook as well. Online recipes have helped me a lot.

Answer 9

Sure, start off with a simple recipe like spaghetti. That is just boiling the noodles until they are done and adding the sauce. When you feel comfortable making that you should add more elements to that one recipe or look in cookbooks to get more ideas. You could add shrimp, sausage, ricotta, multiple cheeses to that one recipe and change it into something even better. Just practice! Good luck to you!

Answer 10

EASY COOK -COOK BOOKS-- they are great and you look up on the computer EASY RECIPES [4 WHAT EVER U WANT] THEN GO FROM THERE- go 2 thrift stores and check out the books they have and get some- go 2 the library 2------

Answer 11

grill bacon until crispy set aside

chopp and fry mushrooms

chop and fry chicken

boil pasta, penne shape is good

drain pasta

chop bacon

add all ingredients into the pasta which is back in the pan now

grate parmesan, add black pepper and about 200ml single cream

stir and serve with rocket side salad and white wine



see what kind of cuisie she likes then do a very simple recipe..

like if she likes mexican, get an avocado cut it spice it up and put it with some tortilla chips

fry chicken strips with pepper and onion with fajita spices and put in a wrap with some lettuce salad

and dinner mango or pineapple icecream with fresh fruits



u need to read cookery books with pictures and try different recipes

Answer 12

I am now using these wonderful ready made foods and they are VERY good.

(But if you wish to cook from scratch, go here for wonderful dinner recipes:

http://www.cooks.com/rec/ch/main_dishes.html )



You can buy precooked meats that come in sealed packages and heat in the microwave. Found in the cold section of the grocery store, not the freezer. Ask a clerk to help you find them:

Beef Tips with Gravy

Meatloaf with Tomato Sauce

Sliced Barbecue Beef Brisket

Sliced Roast Beef with Gravy

Salisbury Steak with Gravy

Beef Stroganoff

Meatloaf

Chicken Breast with Gravy

Maple and Brown Sugar Glazed Ham

Pork Chops with Gravy

Shredded Barbecue Pork

Sliced Turkey Breast with Gravy

And many more.



On the side you can use frozen or canned vegetables, canned potatoes or sweet potatoes. Canned fruits.



Precooked rice of all types, open a corner of the packages and heat in a microwave. Ask a clerk to help you find them.



There are many wonderful dry dinners found on shelfs. Buy the top brands and follow directions on containers. Ask a clerk to help you find them.



Have a clerk show you where to find "Hormel's Compleats" meals. They are located on a shelf. No refrigeration needed. Microwave. Check them out at this Hormel website:

http://www.hormel.com/products/Variety.aspx?ID=16&RecipesOnly=False



Boxed "Pasta Roni", no refrigeration needed:

http://www.ricearoni.com/Products/Pasta_Roni/Classic_Favorites



Frozen dinners are now delicious. Buy the top brands. Follow the directions for microwaving.



Canned meats such as salmon; tuna; beef; chicken; kippers; sardines; chicken and dumplings; soups; stews; canned baked beans taste good cold; Velveeta processed cheese; canned fruits; jar of peanut butter; packaged slim jim's; packaged jerky; and more. Ask a clerk where to find them.



Deli's have roasted chicken and fried chicken if you are in a hurry and on the way home. Most have coleslaw and potato salads.



Crock Pots are wonderful. Put meats/chicken/pork/etc. in the pot in the morning, set for 6 or 8 hours, cover with top, and your meal is ready at dinner time. Recipes at:

http://www.cooks.com/rec/search?q=crock+pot



George Foreman counter top electric grills are another wonderful device.

Go to google.com and type in "George Foreman counter top electric grills pictures" and see what they look like.

Then do a google.com for "videos of recipes for George Foreman electric grills". You'll be glad you did.

Answer 13

Trial and error, boy. I've been starving off my own cooking since I was a kid. A cookbook can give you some good ideas; get one & experiment.

Answer 14

Join the Army and you will be taught all kinds of skills !!!