Am I the Only Mom That CANNOT Cook?

I never learned how to cook either!
As a young mom and wife I went through a LOT of experimenting with different recipes and cookbooks, and I didn't have the internet back then.
But thing is, I really wanted to eat, and serve, REAL food, good food. Not fancy, just fresh and tasty and healthy. So I was pretty motivated.
Eighteen years later I am a pretty damn good cook. And I have taught my kids how to cook because I think it's an important life skill.
When my sister (who is 36 and single) comes over she is amazed at the ease in which I prepare an omelette, or throw together a pasta salad. I remind her that these things take time and practice, no one learns how to cook overnight. She just laughs and says, well not me, I'll just stick with the frozen dinners and takeout.
If you WANT to cook you CAN cook, anyone can. It's not rocket science :)

You should look into buying a Basic Betty Crocker Cook Book. It is very basic and very easy recipes. It is my go-to cook book for easy fun good meals for me and the kids.

My sister cannot cook! Seriously...she can't even make microwave pancakes.

If you want to learn to cook you can try a class or just get a beginner cookbook. Just pick a random recipe on allrecipes.com and try it. What is the worst that happens? You throw it out and order pizza. FYI- I'm a pretty good cook and I still screw up and end up ordering pizza from time to time.

I'm REAL good at burning food. So much so that my husband is surprised when I don't burn dinner. And our four year old will actually whine when I put something into the oven "Mom not burn it this time?" *sigh*

Hon, my parents never cooked for us and if they did, it too was Hamburger Helper. I taught myself how to cook.

Start off by looking at recipe sites (I used allrecipes.com more than anything), make the recipes exactly as they're written. Make tons of recipes. When you start to see patterns in the recipes, or when your palette becomes more developed, then start playing with ingredients. Once you start playing with the ingredients you'll start to see what things you like together. Then you can come up with your own recipes.

Not everyone is good at everything. No matter how hard they try, their brains just aren't wired for it. It is exceedingly difficult.

If this is you and cooking, just work around it.

Some people are bad at math. They hire accountants. Some people are bad at physics. They take their cars to a mechanic. Some people are bad at cleaning. They hire a maid. Some people are bad at programming. They take their computers in to be fixed.

See where I'm going with this?

I happen to be really good in the kitchen, and can't understand people who aren't... but that DOESN'T MEAN EVERYONE should be able to cook!!! Just like not everyone can do their own taxes (or pay bills on time) or keep a Martha Stewart home, or hack a computer, or fix their own car! Just because something is easy for ME, doesn't mean anyone can do it.

((For the record I'm the person with an accountant, computer hacker, and WANTS a maid. Those 3 things do NOT make sense to me.))

If you really want to learn, don't follow directions. Go to www.foodnetwork.com and watch their How To videos. Everything from how to pick out produce, to how to chop it, to how to cook _______. Follow THOSE directions. See how things are supposed to be held, what they're supposed to look like.

But if it's not a "learn" thing... if it's a "I'm sorry, but my brain doesn't accept that kind of information." thing...

Work around it.

There are places that make 'freezer meals' where everything is assembled in shop, and you just heat them up. Trader Joes (if there are any near you) has about 30 options for 'cooking out of a bag by heating up what's inside' meals. You've already found box-meals (although those tend to be pretty awful for you, they ARE food). Sammies are things anyone can make who has any kind of gross motor control. It's just stacking. Trade with a friend who cooks well for things you do well (cleaning, car repairs, whatever). Heck, make cooking your husband's job.

If you're terrible at cooking... that's OKAY. Not everyone can hack a computer, fix their car, rewire their house, or whatever.

Cooking is nothing more than following detailed instructions accurately and precisely. Gardening is the same way.

Cooking doesn't require skill, just precision, accuracy and following instructions.

If you can drive a car, you can cook. Go to all recipes.com and watch some of the cooking videos. They are free and tell you precisely what you need to do. There are lots of cook books for beginning cooks.

Someone asked this question a couple of days ago wanting to know good cook books. Find the question and learn.

Good luck to you and yours.

Alright sister, time for tough love. There is no reasonable excuse in this age of information. You can do it!

Your homework starts now.

Go get signed up on allrecipies.com, cooks.com and realsimple.com
Set your dvr to record food network shows. SImple cooking shows include 10 dollar dinners, Semi-homemade and Money saving meals with Sandra Lee, also 5 ingerediant fix.. The fewer the ingredients, the easier the recipe!

Make a list of what your family orders when you go out to restaraunts. Make a list of your husbands childhood favorites or the things his mom still makes for him.

Then do your research. Your kid likes chicken fingers? Type simple chicken fingers in the search bar of allrecipies. You will get several great recipies with reviews. Read the reviews! They give great tips to make sure you are successful. Call your mil and ask for some of her recipies.

I am so there with you. I really WANT to be a good cook - I do - but no one taught me either and the desire - while strong - is not THAT strong.

We do lots of pizza, tacos, hamburgers/hot dogs, pasta - stuff that is quick and easy and kids will eat.

Someday I would love to master cooking and really whip up something delicious - but for now I'll settle with not burning the frozen pizza. lol

I can cook because I learned from my mom but its like any other skill, you have to practice. Now my twin sister, that girl can't make cereal! Im not kidding! Watch food network or a show like that. They are very detailed and are fairly easy to follow. Now baking, unless its a cake mix it comes out all wrong :( I couldn't make from scratch biscuits or a pit crust to save my life!! No ma'am, your not alone!

I have a friend who THINKS she can cook (but totally can't). Does that count?

But seriously, I heart Tracy K. :) There was a time that anything more than Spaghetti O's with meatballs, and Ramen with some salsa on it, were "gourmet" to me. I didn't know anything. I was learning how to be a wife, sahm, cook, and cleaner from scratch, all in the first year because I never really did stuff. (As a student, I thought I did good enough....but not good enough for "real, grown up life"). I would look at sales papers and say "Ok, cube steak is on sale. What do I do with that?" and then go to allrecipes.com and search by ingredients, "cube steak". It'd pop out recipes, I'd read through them and choose one. I'd do the same for pretty much everything, until I felt confident. I would do one day of each: seafood, beef, chicken, pork, vegetarian, and a soup or stew. Learn 1 new thing every week once you've gotten the hang of a few basics. It's time. Even if you're wealthy enough to have a cook, you still should know some basics. You've got a child to feed, and you should feed her something better than hamburger helper, yes? Just pick out a couple things and start following instructions: as 8kidsdad said, if you can drive a car, you can certainly cook!
The good news is my husband thinks I'm an awesome cook now. My friends get jealous when we're at a restaurant and he'll ask if I'm planning on cooking something in the near future before deciding to order. He'd rather have my food than many restaurant meals.
(Videos: my kids don't watch a lot of TV in the day, so I have NO guilt at all about putting them in the living room with a video while I spend 30 minutes in the kitchen....or let them come in and "talk" to you and eat a small snack that won't spoil her dinner (carrot sticks or celery, ONE graham cracker, etc---that way she's sitting down nearby, while you do your thing).

I do not like to cook...but I do. And it's just the basics...if there are more than about four ingredients; I'm out!

I can make Chili, meatloaf, mashed tators, and chicken and rice...those are my "specialties"...

where there's a will, there's a way.

you can learn. If you need to really "dumb it down" look up recipies to cook with kids. that way, perhaps you and your daughter can get cooking skills together. might also keep her busy, supervised, and less likely to tear the house apart.

good luck to you and yours,
F. B.

I'm sure you are not alone! I didn't know how to cook many things, and I don't particularly enjoy cooking!

But then I started looking at it a different way. What we eat is very important, it's where our bodies get nutrients and energy for the day. Eating junk food or things that are devoid of balanced nutrients means my family isn't getting the things they need to be healthy. Nutritional deficiencies mean they will get sick easier, or other health complications and diseases. It means my daughter might not have all the energy she needs to do her gymnastics--just because she's doing okay doesn't mean she's performing the way she could! It also means we could become overweight--or underweight.

So I started thinking of it as my JOB to make sure my family was getting all the nutrients they needed--and they weren't going to get it from hot dogs and mac and cheese!

Since that realization I've made a big effort to cook well-balanced meals. We always have some kind of fruit or veggie, some kind of potato and rice, and some kind of meat. You don't have to be fancy, it doesn't have to take a long time! I've become an expert crockpot chef, my favorite part is dumping lots of ingredients in the crockpot in the morning or early afternoon (if you have little ones, naptime is the perfect time!) and then viola! Dinner is done later on! Since I'm the busiest in the evenings, cooking in the crockpot has saved me! It's like having a personal chef in your kitchen, cooking dinner while you're doing other things.

I just think of it as one of the most important jobs I could have. Ensuring my family is getting what they need for healthy bodies!

You can do it!

I'm so glad you asked this question so I can see what they have to say!! I hate cooking and I am terrible at it!! I can bake very well, but cooking, no way. I'm interested to see what others have to say! :-)

Nope, you are not alone. My hubby, when the urge strikes him, can grill up wonderful chicken breasts or just about anything else. My stuff is is basically just palatable. I think I'm a little afraid to use seasonings for fear that I'll use too much or something.

M

I used to burn everything I cooked, even down to the pans. Then I discovered the programmable crock-pot, and now I can actually turn out a simple, non-burned (for the most part) meal! I throw everything into the pot, program it so it turns off or to warm at a certain time, and then I can't burn it because I forgot about it. Plus, for minimal effort, dinner's ready. It's a bit of prep-work; finding the recipes that I can handle (lots online, cookbooks), making sure to take a list of the necessary ingredients to the store (which I'm terrible at remembering), but after that, we have dinner, and leftovers, for awhile!

I never learned how to cook because every guy I dated was an amazing cook.
Plus I didn't enjoy it.
So not only did I not have to but I had people cook for me.
What in the world was my incentive? Ha ha.

Fast forward a few years. Met my husband and he's like "You mean you can't even boil an egg? Make spaghetti?" Nope! Sucker. Should have asked me on our first date.

Now I love to cook. I watch cooking shows. That's what changed my mind and made it fun!

BK (before kids) when I worked full time outside the home, I decided the night before what I wanted to make & took out the meat to defrost. I got home an hr before hubby so it was easy.

I used crock pots a lot. Loved that. I don't use them right now but I cook easy dishes when I can.

Now that I have a child I play a lot w/him, do housework & take c/o of a friend's child so I don't dedicate as much time.
I have a few simple "go to" dishes & sometimes I p/u Rotisserie chicken, Chinese Takeout etc.

Hi V.,
I'm sure you're not alone, but it ain't rocket science! ;)

Find a recipe, follow directions, and voila! Meal's made. I'm not a cook that "guesses" on amounts. I follow the recipe the first time, then tweak according to taste if it's a keeper that my family enjoyed. Good luck!

And I agree that allrecipes.com is a great place to start.

i didn't learn how to cook until my kids were older and i had more time. too bad for them, they spent their young formative years with hot dogs, spaghetti-Os and hamburger helper!
i'm an awesome cook now. you will be too.
:) khairete
S.

Not at all! Not only can I not cook, I really don't like to either. Now I can bake but cooking...I've given my husband food poisoning, burnt countless items. You'd think people wouldn't want me to cook! haha

*********************************************************************************Attention moms trying to think up a business. There seem to be a lot of moms that do not know how to cook.!!!!.

You could go to their homes and teach them, You could be a personal cook, or you could have them over to your home and cook meals together so they can learn.

*********************************************************************************
I love to cook. When I was a child, I loved to watch my family cook, I liked to help.. My Grandmother on my fathers side was an amazing cook! She was famous for her cooking here in Austin.

I was also a latch key kid, starting in 3rd grade, so many times, I would "start" dinner.. This meant making the salad, making sure things were defrosted.. etc.. Then later moved up to prepping the food and then cooking easy things.

The first thing I learned to "cook" was a grilled cheese sandwich in an iron skillet!

Eventually when I was 13, I started a summer camp at our house for my sister and some cousins. We would come up with a weekly menu and then make up the shopping list and then I would prepare all of the lunches.

I still love cooking so much, I find actually find it calming.

Oh your not alone, my sister was known as the Mircrowave Master. I on the other hand, am your exact opposite. I know how to cook, I do it well. Though I HATE cooking. Its boring, tiresome, thankless, and I end up having to clean up the mess afterwards too.

no you are not alone!!! Bird's Eye "Voila" is a staple at our house. My microwave is my best friend in the kitchen. I never learned how to cook either and my house growing up was pretty chaotic. I'm looking forward to summertime because we like to grill.

My sis-in-law cooks dinner 5 days a week and is annoyingly organized. I borrowed a couple of her easy pasta recipes and I just modify them to make them easy. I also buy rotisserie chix at Costco and pull it off the bone to use in recipes rather than boil my own chicken to use for enchiladas.

Start slow and try one easy recipe a week. I found a 5-ingredient cook book that is awesome because the recipes are easy and tasty. If you know how to make Sloppy Joes and Hamburger Helper, then there are a lot of recipes you can be successful at.

Have fun and dont be so hard on yourself!!

I love to cook. But it takes a lot of time and effort. I was lucky enough to have a mother who cooked every single night, and I helped her, and learned a lot that way. So when I got married I already had some cooking chops. The rest, I picked up along the way. Just buy a bunch of recipe books and get started! I also watch a lot of Food Network, especially Alton Brown. His show 'Good Eats' is really helpful.

My mom still can't cook.

I can't! Don't like it, not good at it. Thankfully hubby is good and likes it! I recently made my daughter a grilled cheese sandwich and she said "don't tell daddy you know how to cook!" lol :) I'm an excellent baker though..measurements, directions, timers. And he's not good at baking.

My Mom was never a good cook. We were fed, but that was the extent of it. My sister is the same way. I tell her she is "domestically challenged" She lives and dies by her microwave! Even buys the microwaveable mac and cheese :) she is spreading her wings though (she is recently divorced and her ex used to do all the cooking) and is trying new recipes.
I, on the other hand, enjoy cooking. I am not a creative cook (my husband is!), but I do try new recipes and make changes to them for our liking. Cooking takes a lot of planning (the right groceries, the right seasoning, etc.), but the more you do the easier it gets.

Hi V., You are not alone. I'm not good at cooking and I don't really like it, I will be 45 in a couple weeks. But I'm getting better!!! I'm the queen of getting easy recipes online. I have been collecting them for years, but just recently started actually making them. Its actually easier than I thought, you just have to plan ahead a little. Also, I love this website: makedinnereasy.com She emails the week before FIVE easy dinner recipes, menu AND shopping list for the week! I have not mastered doing the entire week, but I have tried several of the recipes and my family has liked all of them. And I have to say, although my husband has NEVER complained about my cooking...he has been THRILLED with my new attitude of trying new recipes. So, I have found that there are a ton of easy recipes you can do that are just as easy as hamburger helper and are healthier (which I'm making an attempt at doing also). So just search on the internet, find a couple you think you can do, and just give it a try! =) Good luck!!

Best and most simple cookbook to get is one that's been around for 25 years (or more) is the large red Betty Crocker one. It simply says BETTY CROCKER on the cover. My son took it with him when he moved out to 1st apartment because he and friends got in to doing cookouts and wanted to make some new things. I learned how to cook when I got married by this book and it was a gift to me at that time. I too was one that could only make things that included hamburger ... spaghetti, hamburger helper, chili. I was comfy in the kitchen in no time. It has very good, simple recipes that you can easily do and are basic things.

Hello my friend!

It seems like maybe you need quick, simple, healthy meals. I will be glad to send you some. Like another poster, I always look at the Publix and Aldi sales paper to see what is on sale. I plan my meals around those sales. I try to alternate meats and have one veggie night. I plan my meals and actually write them out on a chalkboard in my house. I even plan my sides. If anything is going to need extra prep time, I will do that Sunday night or the night before the meal after the kids are in bed. It has gotten harder since baseball season has started, BUT we have only had takeout once in the past 6 days...so we are doing pretty good! I love allrecipes, the 5 Ingredient Fix cookbook, and Pinterest for recipes. I am also addicted to Foodnetwork and the Cooking Channel. You can do it! Let your daughter help you in the kitchen!
Good luck!