8 yo can make scrambled eggs. 9 yo can make pancakes (from a mix) or French toast. 5 yo can make brown and serve sausages if someone turns on the stove for him.

10 year old - steak, salmon with supervision. Grilled cheese, pancakes, scrambled eggs, omelets on his own. 14 year old - just instant ramen. Can you guess which one is more interested in food?

Two eleven year olds. They are capable of doing most things in the kitchen but I don’t let them pull hot/heavy things out of the oven and I don’t let them pour out the boiling pasta water through a colander from a big heavy pot. They know how to use the stove, air fryer, hand mixer, cuisinart, toaster oven, vitamix, etc. One enjoys cooking and the other isn’t very into it. They’re messier than I am but no messier than their father…

I do think it depends a lot on the interest of the kid - I didn't set out to have my 8-year-old create her own 'recipes' and stuff but she likes watching cooking/baking stuff on youtube and then trying to create it so it evolved naturally. I did buy her kid's recipe books but she has no interest in them - likes to do her own thing or recreate what she saw - which is why her measurements and results can be off as well - but she's figuring it out. The first time she made cookies she used way too much flour and not enough sugar, so the next time she adjusts, she'll keep remaking it until she figures it out. Her latest batch tasted perfect but was super flat - so I'm guessing she put in baking powder or not enough baking soda but IDK unlike her I'm a follow-recipe girl - I need structure.

At 8 she's able to cook a full meal if needed - uses baking sheets in the oven, the stove to boil water for eggs, noodles, rice, corn, potatoes, etc., she can use the microwave, etc.

I'd highly recommend a learning tower by age 2 so they can climb up and help. We did 'kid knives' too but she started getting frustrated with trying to cut and chop. She wanted to use our actual Wusthof knives which made me nervous - so for Christmas this year we did the Zwillings Twinning Knife - which is an actual sharp-cutting knife but with a rounded tip for kids/tweens. I'd recommend both.

So now my 8 year makes cookies start to finish by herself - she freehands the recipe too or gets a partial one from youtube - they don't always taste the best or sometimes they come out flat and crispy - like she knows flour/egg/sugar but she'll want to cuts recipes down to only make 6 cookies but doesn't cut all the ingredients or uses a tsp instead of a TBSP or uses baking powder instead of soda or Crisco thinking its butter - but she's learning.

I let her have it as long as she cleans up afterward and comes and gets me if she gets over her head - like when all the cookie dough slides off to the bottom of the oven, she got me to get it out instead of trying to reach into the oven herself.

She's always helped me bake/cook since she was 2 and she still does but now she likes to surprise us with supper - she can boil water (we have a gas stove so we taught her how to light it and such) for noodles and such. Her dinners can be interesting but she's got a pretty good feel for things - like Noodles with Chili Powder, but putting cut-up kiwi on the side to soothe the heat.

My 7 year old can steam/boil on the stove. So pasta, green beans, broccoli. We have a stone countertop she can put the pot on before dumping it into the colander.

My 13 year old has been able to cook full meals since he was 9. My 12 year old can barely pour a bowl of cereal.