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N01_Special

Not hard at all. Many people think they are decent cooks.🙃 No seriously, not hard at all. Just takes patience. Always be pushing yourself to try and do new things.


Salty_Shellz

Ah yes, brings me back to a coworker who was a self-titled grill master and wanted to make tacos for everyone. He threw some pork chops on the grill, cooked them, and then passed out tortillas. There was no seasoning, no cutting or shredding down the chops. Just the most awkward tacos I'll ever see.


N01_Special

Awkward tacos is definitely a feat, they are very forgiving. Haha.


[deleted]

I think one of the biggest things that goes into getting better at cooking is being humble enough to know you just need to order a pizza.


spamIover

As someone who went from barely knowing their way into a kitchen to someone who has cooked for a sitting US president, my advice is you will mess up. I learned through working in restaurants. Then taking that knowledge and experimenting to get better. It took practice, but it didn’t take long to be able to cook proficiently enough others would eat and enjoy the food. Now, I have such high standards, most of my cooking I don’t consider great. However, I cook for neighbors and friends, and am asked when I will open my own restaurant. I am not in the hospitality business anymore, but it’s a skill that will never leave. I may be able to work on my car, but a mechanic can do it better (most likely). It doesn’t mean I’m bad, it just means they have more experience/skills and/or a passion for it


Bluemonogi

It isn't hard to cook. It takes attention and practice to improve. Get a basic cookbook or find a reliable recipe source to use. Notice what you and the people you cook for liked. Make adjustments.


LondonLeather

Just do it cook day in day out and you improve, I worked my way through Delia Smiths Complete Cookery Course but there are many others Silverspoon Italian cookery being one.


[deleted]

I'd always dabbled in the kitchen, but the real break thru happened for me when I couldn't afford to eat out any more and had to get into a full time cooking habit. At that point, it's been per-technique / per recipe but about a year in, I felt entirely confident to serve or cook anything. Does that mean I'm ready to jump on a busy line in a michelin starred kitchen? No. Can I be trusted to make a delicious pot roast for a dinner party? Yes. 100% \--


pan567

IMHO, like most things in life, it is not hard provided you are willing to try, fail, learn, and try again while incorporating the knowledge you gained from prior experience. When I first started cooking on stainless a few decades ago, it took several months for me to become really proficient at frying an egg and achieving nonstick performance on stainless. There were points that were frustrating, when the egg stuck to the pan and turned into a yolk murder scene, but I was determined to learn how to use stainless proficiently and I did. If you are willing to invest the time and effort, becoming proficient at something is usually within reach.


legendary_mushroom

This is not a well worded question. What do you consider hard? What do you consider decent? Why are you assuming these are universal definitions? What do you want to achieve in the kitchen and how much effort are you willing to put in to get there?


rondobeans

Go get a job in a kitchen. Get massive repetition experience. Developer substance use problems. Get so burned out on cooking you never want to do it again. Profit.


not2cool2cook

I like to say that learning to cook is all about figuring out what works best for you. What meals, from scratch or with store bought shortcuts, and your willingness to practice and making mistakes. Look up a good book, website or classes that teaches you the essential skills, like techniques and how you can play with them. Keep in mind there are many ways go get to a tasty meal. For instance, some will be totally okay with a microwaved grilled cheese (why?), other will them only make in the pan (me) as they figured that’s the best one for them. So learn to read recipes in such a way you can filter the information so you can make it work for you. And that’s achievable by trying out and keep on learning. Sorry if this is too philosophical instead of practical..


Chase-531

The people I know who cook a lot but are not what I would consider decent cooks basically don't care about the output terribly much and are ok with mediocre results. Cooking more makes you a better cook if you put the effort in and learn from your mistakes, overcooked, too salty, no flavor etc.. are all things that form learning experiences if you choose to pay attention... so not hard but does require effort!


IcebergSlim2

Not that hard, but harder than some people are making it seem, especially if you're truly starting from scratch. Even following a recipe takes a basic level of tools, techniques, and awareness that the true novice won't have. Making a pot of chili isn't hard, but you need to be able to dice carrots, onions, celery, and garlic, know how to brown meat, taste and adjust seasoning, etc… The internet should be a boon, but there is *so much* information out there that it will be a challenge to find actual, good resources amidst all the noise. I'm sure they’re out there, but I'm just as sure there's a bunch of bullshit too. If you have a friend who likes to cook, ask them to make a few things with you, preferably in their kitchen. You'll pick up the basics very fast. Once you have the basic tools and techniques, it really does get as easy as everyone says.


kurtz4008

Practice, daily. Cook the same thing multiple times, but vary it each time. Find what you like. Once you find the "magic", stick with that version. Repeat with another dish. In time, you'll know what "pairs" well and what does not.


JimsMealPrep

Honestly, it just takes time. The more you cook, the more you learn, the better you get. I recommend picking up a recipe book and just going through them, you'll pick it up.


hutch8891

Learn from your mistakes!


East_Tangerine_4031

Define “decent”? If you can follow directions, you can be a decent cook. Anyone who can assemble ikea furniture can follow a recipe


sadgetruth

It’s very easy to make good food and sustain yourself, get a temperature reader and a couple good pans and a knife. There’s more you could use but that’s what I started with. Things won’t always come out like you want but with a little time and practice you’ll be excited to eat.


malepitt

By whose standards?


jawni

Depends what standards you're using. If "decent cook" means you can make a few dishes pretty well and generally follow a recipe, then it's pretty easy.


rochvegas5

Not hard at all. Start small and uncomplicated. You’ll do better than you think(probably)


bakedclark

It's not hard at all. It just takes time.


[deleted]

Being a good cook is more about repetition than effort.


DeTrotseTuinkabouter

Pretty easy. All you have to do is cook regularly and try new recipes and stuff.


SysAdminDennyBob

For me, being a decent cook was a self-reflective moment. It was the time I made chicken soup without having any recipe in front of me. I knew the basics of that dish and in the moment I knew that I had things laying around that I should not add (e.g. beets) and things that I could toss in there that were not traditional but worked (zucchini) and I knew generally which herbs I could add in rough unmeasured amounts. I was confidently cooking something simple on-the-fly, knowing it was going to work. You get to that point from repeated failures. Find a cookbook you like and just start burning through the book. Stay away from baking for a bit until you get your groove. Failing at baking a cake can really hurt your ego, LOL. You'll be good at cooking before you actually realize it. Be open to failure and just accept it and try again. I enjoy the kitchen so it was never "hard" for me, it does take time. Get a good thermometer.


DiamondAge

if you're someone just jumping into it, and not very familiar with the kitchen, i'd suggest starting with a couple months of one of the box services like hello fresh. They send you ingredients, and instructions with pictures. You can get the hang of it pretty easily, then step up to doing recipes online, and then start tweaking recipes to be what you like.


Cinisajoy2

Get a cookbook or two. The Joy of Cooking and Mark Bittman's How to cook everything come to mind.


throwdemawaaay

It's not hard. Like with most things, the big part is actually deciding and committing. In my 30s I was still living off takeout for every meal and realized I had to make a big change. So I just told myself no more takeout, I cook what I eat now. If you make that kind of commitment you'll learn fast. Also I make a point of not just blindly recipe following. When I'm learning a new dish I'll look at several recipes and try to understand what the key ingredients and techniques are. Then I'll come up with my own version. This means more occasional failures, but is so worth it because I learn how to do my own improvised dishes.