July 17, 2023

My Top Ten Cooking Tips for Beginners

After cooking for over 60 years these are my Top Ten Cooking Tips. I can remember starting out as a beginner cook. It was intimidating really. There is so much to consider before even starting the fire. What am I going to cook? Do I even have all that I need? How hot or how cool? Do I whisk and or where is my whisk? Or what the heck is a whisk?

Now, I realize I am being overly dramatic here, but the point is there are multitudes of variables involved with cooking. But at the end of the day, it all boils down to, Planning, Preparation, and Execution. Pretty much in that order. What are you planning on cooking? Preparing everything in advance. Then execute the plan, where the rubber meets the road as they say.

So for the Beginner Cook here are My Top 10 Tips:

Tip 1: Start with simple recipes: Begin with recipes that have fewer ingredients and simpler techniques. This will help you build confidence and develop essential cooking skills.

Tip 2: Read the recipe thoroughly: Before you start cooking, read the entire recipe from start to finish. This will ensure that you have all the necessary ingredients and equipment ready, and you understand the steps involved.

Tip 3: Prep your ingredients beforehand: Take the time to prepare and measure all your ingredients before you start cooking. This technique, known as “mise en place,” helps you stay organized and prevents any last-minute scrambling. I can’t emphasize this tip enough. Taking the time to do this ahead, sometimes even a day ahead, will destress your cooking. I’ve been there. Trying to find my Parika only to find out I don’t have any. Meanwhile, my chicken is burning while I’m considering what to do next.

Tip 4: Invest in basic kitchen tools: Purchase essential kitchen tools like a chef’s knife, cutting board, measuring cups and spoons, pots, and pans. Having the right equipment makes cooking easier and more enjoyable. I just purchased a cordless mixer. Wow! Now I’m unplugged, and loving it.

Tip 5: Season your food: Don’t be afraid to season your dishes with salt, pepper, herbs, and spices. Seasoning enhances the flavors and can turn a simple dish into something delicious. Spice is life, and there is a whole world out there for you to try. Tip 5.5: My advice is to be conservative with spices you’ve never tried. This leads us to Tip number 6.

Tip 6: Taste as you go: Throughout the cooking process, taste your food to ensure the flavors are balanced. Adjust seasoning and other ingredients as needed. Remember, you can always add more but it’s harder to take it away.

Tip 7: Master basic cooking techniques: Learn fundamental cooking techniques like sautéing, boiling, roasting, and grilling. These techniques form the foundation of many recipes and will expand your cooking repertoire.

Tip 8: Don’t be discouraged by mistakes: Mistakes happen, even to seasoned cooks. If a dish doesn’t turn out as expected, take it as a learning experience and try to identify what went wrong. Learn from your mistakes and keep practicing. Lordy, I have made my share of mistakes.

Tip 9: Experiment and be creative: Don’t be afraid to experiment with flavors and ingredients. Cooking is an art, and you can add your personal touch to recipes by trying new combinations or variations.

Tip 10: Practice, practice, practice: The more you cook, the better you’ll become. Cooking is a skill that improves with practice, so keep trying new recipes and techniques. Don’t be discouraged by failures; they are all part of the learning process.

More Cooking Tips:

Sign up for Cooking Classes. I still go to cooking classes at least 2 to 3 times a year. My Husband even attends with me. Although I think he goes to make sure I don’t spend too much money on the way out of the store. You know what they say. Going shopping with your husband is like going hunting with the Game Warden.

Watch cooking channels on YouTube. I like Chef John’s channel @FoodWishes. He is an excellent instructor and very entertaining.

And as a selfish plug for my channel: https://www.youtube.com/@DarlenesTable/videos as well as this Blog: https://darlenestable.com/category/blog-post/. Being a Recipe Tester you are assured that my recipes have been verified in my Home Kitchen. And trust me there are a lot of recipes online that just don’t work. I’ll evaluate whether or not it’s worth the effort and if it is I will attempt to fix it and revise it.