How do I know if I’m a good cook?

[Anonymous]

Ask kids. Kids are more honest

[Anonymous]

My spouse compliments every meal I make. Heck he even compliments the nachos I make.

[Anonymous]

I'm occasionally a very good cook but sometimes just not that good at all.

My DH and one DS will eat whatever is in front of them (the other one is picky). Occasionally my DS will comment if it's really good. I know if my DH likes it if he gets seconds...and thirds.

I don't expect regular compliments and the occasional ones I get are good enough for me. I cook because I'm interested in it for myself.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m still stuck at the fact that you make 365 dinners a year.

This whole post smells of bullshit. You make 365 dinners a year and got only a dozen compliments. Surprise!! Your food sucks.

[Anonymous]

Is your death toll 0? If so automatic A

[Anonymous]

I get it- cooking dinner is really time consuming for me. Like 2.5 to 3 hours a day for planning shopping cooking and cleaning up. It's nice to get feed back one way or another. I tend to internally self-rate my meal. My family is hungry at dinner and that helps their appreciation.

[Anonymous]

If you don't know if you are a good cook, you probably aren't. Just sayin'.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It is not normal to only cook for one person. Why don’t you ever invite people over?

I assume that OP is eating her own dinners as well, so she is cooking for two people. That said taste your own food. How does it compare to other food you have eaten. How does it compare to restaurant food and the food you ate growing up and food you have eaten that friends and relatives have prepared.

[Anonymous]

"He just eats whatever is in front of him."

This person isn't a good judge of good food if he just eats whatever slop is in front of him.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you don't know if you are a good cook, you probably aren't. Just sayin'.

Agreed - I feel like if you know, you know.

Have you ever tasted a sauce/dish etc. midway through and just been like, damn!, that's so good? Or conversely, tasted something while cooking and can zero in on what is missing - salt, acid, spice, more time, etc?

I'm a good cook and rarely ever follow recipes to a T, unless I'm baking, where ratios really matter. If I want to make a new(ish) dish, I will typically look at many different recipes and pick and choose the ingredients and preparations that suit my palette the best, and just wing it from there and taste as I go.

My mom and MIL both consider themselves great cooks, but neither has ever once ventured off course from recipes as stated, and it shows. Not saying there's anything wrong from sticking to the tried and true, but the definition of a good cook is someone who can take ingredients that they have on hand and make something delicious!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My spouse compliments every meal I make. Heck he even compliments the nachos I make.

Is that because your nachos are awesome? Which is actually hard to accomplish, tbh, or because he compliments anything you make no matter how it turns out?

[Anonymous]

Some people just don't make direct compliments.

Try loading up on butter, salt, and sugar to give it that "wow" fine dining factor at the minor expense of health.

[Anonymous]

I also want to know more specifics about your cooking. Describe some of your dinners.

The other night, I made a very simple dinner, but it just WORKED. I made chicken things in a way I've made them 100 times -- coated in Dijon mustard and rolled in seasoned breadcrumbs, then baked. Couscous made with chicken broth. Roasted carrots that came out just right. Mushrooms sauteed with thyme. I thought it was good, but the proof was that my teens ate it ALL. I had thought it would be two dinners, or dinner and a lunch. Nope. All gone. I felt really good about that one.

I think the difference between being a good cook and a bad cook is little touches + sometimes a little luck. When I've made similar meals before, maybe I didn't have broth, so I cooked the couscous in water, which works, but it's very plain. This time, I lightly steamed the carrots before roasting them, and we all seemed to like them better that way. I might have just gotten a great pack of chicken at the grocery store. Little things add up.

[Anonymous]

That was supposed to say THIGHS, not THINGS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you don't know if you are a good cook, you probably aren't. Just sayin'.

Agreed - I feel like if you know, you know.

Have you ever tasted a sauce/dish etc. midway through and just been like, damn!, that's so good? Or conversely, tasted something while cooking and can zero in on what is missing - salt, acid, spice, more time, etc?

I'm a good cook and rarely ever follow recipes to a T, unless I'm baking, where ratios really matter. If I want to make a new(ish) dish, I will typically look at many different recipes and pick and choose the ingredients and preparations that suit my palette the best, and just wing it from there and taste as I go.

My mom and MIL both consider themselves great cooks, but neither has ever once ventured off course from recipes as stated, and it shows. Not saying there's anything wrong from sticking to the tried and true, but the definition of a good cook is someone who can take ingredients that they have on hand and make something delicious!

I agree with all of this. I'm a good cook and I 'know' because other good cooks and food people compliment me on my cooking and we share tips and tricks. I can't remember the last time I followed a recipe perfectly! When I'm looking to cook something new I often read 5 to 10 different recipes to get the gist and then just...go with what feels right from what I remember from all of them. Everything is approximate. I measure for baking, but never cooking. I own like 100 tiny spoons and taste and alter as I move along. I think this approach is something that differentiates a good cook from someone who can follow a recipe.