What was the first thing you learnt to cook

Herbie

Herbie

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I'm pretty sure mine was porridge (Husband was not impressed and said that was not cooking).

Anyway, the other day I was looking after my nieces and nephews and the eldest (11) had asked his mum if he could make the lunch (fried egg sandwiches, whichy he had helped her make the day before) so I was to supervise. It made me realise how technical it is.

First I showed him to crack the egg into a bowl so he could practice not getting shell in, then there was the right amount of oil, heat, cooking time, regulating the heat after several egg
s. He thought they were ready when there was still translucend 'white, then there is the gettting it out of the pan or flipping over for those who like their eggs done that way. It's quite an art.

I am so very proud of him wanting to learn to cook. He says he wants to master eggs. I think this is a good way to start - cheap, nutricious, tasty meals.

So, what did you first learn to cook and who taught you?
 
Pancakes!! I've always loved them & I wanted to learn how to make the batter & cook them in the frying pan! Ran into a few bumps & bruises along the way, but I kept on trying until I got it right!! This was when I was about 9 years old. :wink:
 
Shermie said:
Pancakes!! I've always loved them & I wanted to learn how to make the batter & cook them in the frying pan! Ran into a few bumps & bruises along the way, but I kept on trying until I got it right!! This was when I was about 9 years old. :wink:
Click to expand...

That's quite ambitious as a first dish! Especially at 9 years old.
 
I can't remember! I was utterly hopeless. Couldn't even boil an egg when I left home and lived on Vesta curry from a packet, Indian meals in a local restaurant (it was cheap especially if you were vegetarian, as I was) and food from the canteen at University. Otherwise it was bread or toast. I'll have to try to remember when I first cooked something...
 
Breakfast when in Scouts. The first thing I made truly on my own was spiny lobster. I did it using the steamed crab seasonings my family used for blue crabs. The first tails I did were over cooked, but I learned to make the adjustments quickly. It wasn't a waste of money as I caught them myself.
 
Pikelets with my nana, they were the fluffiest ever, cream and jam, what a treat for a 9yo. Her secret was letting the batter sit for an hour before cooking on a hot griddle.Then as about 12 or 13 at high school home economics course at school. I made pineapple upside down dessert. It was heaven. Made it again about 3 days later at home. That started me going.never looked back.

Russ
 
Scrambled eggs, probably a little later than most, maybe 13 or so, because in my house growing up, cooking was not something a boy should be doing.

No one showed me how, but then again, scrambling eggs isn't that hard. :)

As I got older, I did more kind of boxed pre-fab foods, but also burgers and grilled cheese, deep fried french fries, bacon...all easy enough. Again, a boy/young man was definitely *not* encouraged in my household, so I kind of had to wait until my dad wasn't home (or anyone else who'd grass on me) and cook then (and then eat the evidence :) ).

When I joined the military and moved away, I lived in a dorm/barracks setting, with a community kitchen, and that's when I started making slightly more ambitious things, like lasagna, baked/roasted chicken, chili, etc.

From there, once I got married, I just kept on, and I just made whatever recipe looked good.

Then, several years ago, my wife had a stroke, and she couldn't work for a long time, and it was difficult to always go out to eat, so then I had to crank it up into overdrive. Before her stroke, I really only cooked at the weekend, and now, we really only go out maybe once a week.
 
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