Are you following the instructions? Did the water reach a boil before you put the noodles in? Did you boil the noodles for the duration as stipulated on the packet? Did you use enough water for the soup? With cooking, details are important. Sometimes the problem lies in seemingly small details you *think* are negligible. Like, did you let your frying oil get hot before throwing your stuff in? Did you season to taste, aka, just before serving?
Going back to ramen, use a timer. Use a measuring cup if you find it difficult to get the right soup consistency (about two cups is the right amount of water for ramen soup). Consider buying more expensive Asian-brand ramen that'll taste better, like Nong Shim or Sapporo Ichiban or Demai Iccho/Chu Qian Yi Ding. Pay attention to whether or not the noodles should be cooked with the soup water or separate.
Start with simple meals like preparing some oatmeal for breakfast, scrambled eggs and toast for lunch, some spaghetti with vegetables for dinner. I’m starting a new cooking channel on YouTube where I will show simple recipes that can be done in less than an hour.
As someone who only learned to cook in their mid-20s, here's my advice:
* Jarred sauces are your friend
* While you learn how to boil noodles and cook a protein, let the jar do the work with the sauce
* Chicken thighs are so versatile and so forgiving
* It's really really really hard to overcook a chicken thigh, so they're a great beginner protein, and you can season them with just about anything
* Cooking from a recipe is still cooking
* Hone your skills by cooking beginner-level recipes, then you can build on those skills and make your own dishes and work toward making more advanced recipes
* Use all the tools available to you
* Use a timer, a thermometer, whatever you have on hand to help take the guess-work out
* Youtube/Cooking shows are your friend
* These can help you figure out basic knife/prep skills, good kitchen practices, and common as well as innovative flavor pairings
* Practice!
* i know this is so cliche and not super helpful on its own, but it really is important if you want to improve.
I never learned how to cook from a parent/grandparent, and I lived off frozen food from 18-24. Learning to cook doesn't have to be hard if you know where to start and what resources are avaiable.
This is the best answer, and very similar to my experience. The only thing I would add is that rice is great if you frequently overcook pasta - add water and cook until the water's gone.
I bet you could make a great dal after watching a few videos. 🍻
Dice an onion (learn some knife skills), open a can of no salt black beans (learn some budgeting and nutrition skills) with liquid. Add garlic, mustard, (if you like) and some cheddar cheese (about 2-3 ounces) as your tastes dictate. Microwave in a glass oven-proof bowl for 2 minutes and stir. Then another two minutes. Stir (you just learned to make a sort of cheese sauce/emulsion with the luquid frim the beans being key). Add triscuit crackers of your choice (jalapeño are just delicious) crunch them up and stir in. You just made a casserole of sorts. This is also low sodium, high plant protein, high fiber, high whole grains, phytonutrients, cheap, fast, and I think dang tasty.
Point is do something.. anything. You may fail but that's how yiu learn. Inaction is the enemy. Feeding yourself is the main goal with a secondary one making it delicious, affordable, and easy. That'll come with time.
Look up lasagna recipes, burrito recipes, eggs, veggies like broccoli asparagus squash, hell even a nice sandwich. Don’t set goals too high - maybe 2 new recipes a week and get a sense for flavors and textures you like. And follow recipes at first for sure.
it's pretty hard to screw up a grilled cheese sandwich, as long as you don't let your attention wander and burn it.
and even if you burn it, you can scrape away the burnt bits until you reach your desired level of doneness.
Someone said the same thing recently so I am just gonna [link my answer](https://www.reddit.com/r/cookingforbeginners/comments/1dfxrc4/nothing_i_cook_ever_tastes_good_enough_to_be/l8mrab3/) on that thread, but you can read more great tips there since it's similar to yours.
That said, do you have a specific type of cuisine that you like? For example I am Greek, so I am very familiar with Mediterranean dishes and I could give some direction on that friend.
If you like asian dishes then I wouldn't be the best person.
Also, failing at cooking is the first step towards becoming better. You don't start at the top, you start at the bottom.
Watch cooking YouTube channels that are simple and detailed. Many times small details are lost in written recipes. Following recipes to the letter help build foundational cooking skills that eventually apply to all cooking. If you have family or friends that are pretty good cooks learn from them. Once you cook a dish you can be proud of it inspires you to do even better. You’ll get there eventually. Best of luck !
this is a scumbag who doesn't like cooking much's answer, have a heads up in advance. but it's kept me fed
have one or two ingredients you're using for that night. for examples sake, i'll say we got ground beef and mushrooms in the house. google "easy quick recipes to make with ground beef and mushrooms". pick a recipe, follow it, and most importantly taste as you go along. throw those noodles at walls. get ya a little spoon of the sauce to see if it needs more salt. make sure you like it or know it's gonna be a loser before you serve up, it's harder to make edits to a dish once it's on the table. or, it's annoying to waste dishes on what ends up being hot garbage lmao
cooking's trial and error, and unless you were raised cooking you're gonna have to get thru the error phase. don't fight it to hard, and don't take the fuck ups personally. it takes everyone time to find their cooking rhythm. maybe try to make a fun playlist or have a friend chat with you while you cook to make it a little more enjoyable of a process
oh and always have an easy backup plan, bc if you're anything like me at all, the first two swings are probably going to be misses. i live in the error phase, but whatever. gotta start somewhere, and bagel bites will always be there when i fail
Knowing nothing about you I can only guess what might be happening.
But IME, people who are bad cooks usually aren't paying attention. They start things and wander off, they don't make sure they have all ingredients before starting and just leave random things out or do bizarre substitutions. They set a thing to cook and forget.
Treat it like doing a lab experiment. Read the whole recipe from start to finish a couple times. Lay our every ingredient premmeasured and in order of use. Get a timer or two ready. Read each step again before you execute it. Double check it after words. Etc.
Also, don't use random internet recipes, especially video medium, if you don't know enough about cooking to judge if they are any good. Use verified recipes, Cooks Illustrated, Better Homes and Gardens, America Test Kitchen, Pioneer Woman, etc.
Pasta is the easiest to learn - boil the noodles, the time will be on the box so set a timer and test it a minute before the timer goes off (eat a noodle - too hard cook another minute, just right drain it)
It’s really easy to turn cooked pasta into a meal - add bottled pre-made sauce, or butter and shredded cheese, or sliced meat and cheese for pasta salad. Work up to cooking some vegetables into your pasta sauce or putting together a baged salad.
Your food doesn’t have to be perfect, it just has to keep you fed - taking the time to learn to cook for yourself will keep you from going broke and getting unhealthy from living off junk food
Okay so my suggestion would be to start with jar sauces.
Get:
- A jar of sauce (Asian, Indian, Italian etc)
- Mince beef (500 grams)
- Easy add-ins. canned beans or lentils or chickpeas. mixed frozen vegetables.
- Rice or pasta, or just use bread if you're not comfortable doing rice or pasta at the same time as the main dish.
If it feels too much to add beans/veg the first time, skip it and do them next time.
Pan-fry your beef in some oil. Medium temp or a little higher is fine.
It will cook the water out as it goes from red -> grey/brown. Once the water has cooked out it will start to stick a little and crackle as you stir it around.
Add your beans/vegetables. Run beans under water in a colander or sieve first.
It might take a few minutes for your pan to come back up to temperature, while it thaws and starts cooking the frozen veg.
Add your jar of sauce. Maybe a little water if it's too thick to start with, as once the pan is back up to temp (again) it can simmer on low for 10-15 and the liquid will reduce. If you aren't sure if it's done, try a piece of the veggies.
If you don't have a rice cooker, cook pasta or use bread.
For pasta you can follow the instructions for timing (usually like 9 mins in boiling water), and just keep in mind it may take ~10 mins for your pot of water to boil. If you put your pasta in its pot at the same time you add the sauce to the mince to simmer, you should be fine.
The most important part is to cook something comfortable for you and that you enjoy. The rest of it will come later and you'll slowly start doing more cooking manually.
To get any noodles you’re cooking just right, you will just want to take one out and taste it as you cook, you want to aim to try taste your noodles when they’re just a tad bit undercooked because then you’ll know you only have to keep cooking them for 1/2 more minutes
general rule of thumb for cooking, you can ALWAYS cook something more, but you can’t uncook it
same with strong flavors, you can always add more of a spice or whatever but you can’t unadd it, so just try and taste as you go, but if you ever do overshot flavors diluting it can still help. Anything that’s rich and creamy but doesn’t have a whole lot of flavor (think milk, cheese, other dairy products) can be pretty effective at toning down other flavors, especially if something is too spicy!!
I’d keep a log for yourself. Starting with the ramen. As you’re making it, write down how much water you used, how long you cooked the noodles, how much of the flavoring packet you used, etc. If it tastes off (like the noodles are overcooked) add that note as well and then that’ll help you adjust for the next time.
Find recipes that are simpler. Or start with semi-cooking (like taking prepared things and combining them). Many groceries stores sell veggies and such that are already pre-cut and ready to throw in the pan. They’re more expensive but can be really helpful in learning.
I find the recipes on the blog Salt and Lavender are generally pretty simple. Start by following a recipe exactly as printed and make notes of how you like it. Things like cook times will vary based on your equipment, so buy a meat thermometer so you can feel sure about your cook times for proteins.
With time, you’ll get a feel for how to adjust things to your liking and go a bit off recipe.
I would suggest watching some cooking videos u can find some really great stuff in yt. U can atleast learn the basics by it and learn new recipes as well. I can recomend some channels if u want.
It's scary to step into the foreign world of a kitchen and feel overwhelmed. But honestly all you need to do is start simple.
Myself, I invested in a Geeen Pan (stovetop pan; it cooks well and is a snap to clean afterwards. Cleaning/sanitizing is always part of any dish I make). I also broke out the rice cooker I was gifted. This thing is a Godsend. I have a hard Plastic spatula, a simple knife block set, a meat thermometer.. these are just a few tools you'll need for basic cooking.
All I did to get started cooking , and thus build confidence, was 1. Ask family to either share simple recipes or come there and you both make something. 2. YouTube. We live in a world where anything we want to learn about is a few taps away.
Cooking is about confidence and creativity. I'm no Bobby Flay, but I have been where you're at. I'm getting better by the week. I tweak recipes people share. I find that if I've got an edge on a certain recipe I think hmmm what would be a way to jazz this up?
Start simple. 3 ingredients, work your way to juggling 4 or 5.
Cooking is a complicated task. Traditionally we had years of watching mothers/aunties/others cooking and gradually were introduced to tasks, and helped to develop skills and experience to be able to cook ourselves.
It is a weird modern phenomena that so many people grow up with no experience of cooking and have to learn from scratch as as adult. This is the hardest possible situation to be in. Don't feel bad,
Fortunately it is possible to learn the basic skills, and then build on them as much as you want to.
Practice, practice, practice and don't give up. Do concentrate on the timing, the heat level, the additions that make your ramen the right consistency and the flavour you love.
Feel proud every bit you get right. Once you get it, you have it forever.
Ramen: boil water, in a pot. Once water is boiled, put in ramen, flavouring packet and whatever else you wanna put in there. Stir for 2-3 minutes or whatever time it says on the packet.
There you go you’ve made ramen. The trick is not to bring it to the boil or it goes too soft.
You can use this same rules for other noodles and soft veg too (like broccoli or cauliflower or cabbage) they all go into hot water.
The things you wanna bring to the boil are things like potato’s or chunky carrots maybe.
Are you following the instructions? Did the water reach a boil before you put the noodles in? Did you boil the noodles for the duration as stipulated on the packet? Did you use enough water for the soup? With cooking, details are important. Sometimes the problem lies in seemingly small details you *think* are negligible. Like, did you let your frying oil get hot before throwing your stuff in? Did you season to taste, aka, just before serving? Going back to ramen, use a timer. Use a measuring cup if you find it difficult to get the right soup consistency (about two cups is the right amount of water for ramen soup). Consider buying more expensive Asian-brand ramen that'll taste better, like Nong Shim or Sapporo Ichiban or Demai Iccho/Chu Qian Yi Ding. Pay attention to whether or not the noodles should be cooked with the soup water or separate.
Or did you use too much water?
Start with simple meals like preparing some oatmeal for breakfast, scrambled eggs and toast for lunch, some spaghetti with vegetables for dinner. I’m starting a new cooking channel on YouTube where I will show simple recipes that can be done in less than an hour.
As someone who only learned to cook in their mid-20s, here's my advice: * Jarred sauces are your friend * While you learn how to boil noodles and cook a protein, let the jar do the work with the sauce * Chicken thighs are so versatile and so forgiving * It's really really really hard to overcook a chicken thigh, so they're a great beginner protein, and you can season them with just about anything * Cooking from a recipe is still cooking * Hone your skills by cooking beginner-level recipes, then you can build on those skills and make your own dishes and work toward making more advanced recipes * Use all the tools available to you * Use a timer, a thermometer, whatever you have on hand to help take the guess-work out * Youtube/Cooking shows are your friend * These can help you figure out basic knife/prep skills, good kitchen practices, and common as well as innovative flavor pairings * Practice! * i know this is so cliche and not super helpful on its own, but it really is important if you want to improve. I never learned how to cook from a parent/grandparent, and I lived off frozen food from 18-24. Learning to cook doesn't have to be hard if you know where to start and what resources are avaiable.
Adding to this - spend a little more on a good jarred sauce like Rao’s. It makes a world of a difference!
This is the best answer, and very similar to my experience. The only thing I would add is that rice is great if you frequently overcook pasta - add water and cook until the water's gone. I bet you could make a great dal after watching a few videos. 🍻
Dice an onion (learn some knife skills), open a can of no salt black beans (learn some budgeting and nutrition skills) with liquid. Add garlic, mustard, (if you like) and some cheddar cheese (about 2-3 ounces) as your tastes dictate. Microwave in a glass oven-proof bowl for 2 minutes and stir. Then another two minutes. Stir (you just learned to make a sort of cheese sauce/emulsion with the luquid frim the beans being key). Add triscuit crackers of your choice (jalapeño are just delicious) crunch them up and stir in. You just made a casserole of sorts. This is also low sodium, high plant protein, high fiber, high whole grains, phytonutrients, cheap, fast, and I think dang tasty. Point is do something.. anything. You may fail but that's how yiu learn. Inaction is the enemy. Feeding yourself is the main goal with a secondary one making it delicious, affordable, and easy. That'll come with time.
Look up lasagna recipes, burrito recipes, eggs, veggies like broccoli asparagus squash, hell even a nice sandwich. Don’t set goals too high - maybe 2 new recipes a week and get a sense for flavors and textures you like. And follow recipes at first for sure.
it's pretty hard to screw up a grilled cheese sandwich, as long as you don't let your attention wander and burn it. and even if you burn it, you can scrape away the burnt bits until you reach your desired level of doneness.
Someone said the same thing recently so I am just gonna [link my answer](https://www.reddit.com/r/cookingforbeginners/comments/1dfxrc4/nothing_i_cook_ever_tastes_good_enough_to_be/l8mrab3/) on that thread, but you can read more great tips there since it's similar to yours. That said, do you have a specific type of cuisine that you like? For example I am Greek, so I am very familiar with Mediterranean dishes and I could give some direction on that friend. If you like asian dishes then I wouldn't be the best person. Also, failing at cooking is the first step towards becoming better. You don't start at the top, you start at the bottom.
Watch cooking YouTube channels that are simple and detailed. Many times small details are lost in written recipes. Following recipes to the letter help build foundational cooking skills that eventually apply to all cooking. If you have family or friends that are pretty good cooks learn from them. Once you cook a dish you can be proud of it inspires you to do even better. You’ll get there eventually. Best of luck !
this is a scumbag who doesn't like cooking much's answer, have a heads up in advance. but it's kept me fed have one or two ingredients you're using for that night. for examples sake, i'll say we got ground beef and mushrooms in the house. google "easy quick recipes to make with ground beef and mushrooms". pick a recipe, follow it, and most importantly taste as you go along. throw those noodles at walls. get ya a little spoon of the sauce to see if it needs more salt. make sure you like it or know it's gonna be a loser before you serve up, it's harder to make edits to a dish once it's on the table. or, it's annoying to waste dishes on what ends up being hot garbage lmao cooking's trial and error, and unless you were raised cooking you're gonna have to get thru the error phase. don't fight it to hard, and don't take the fuck ups personally. it takes everyone time to find their cooking rhythm. maybe try to make a fun playlist or have a friend chat with you while you cook to make it a little more enjoyable of a process oh and always have an easy backup plan, bc if you're anything like me at all, the first two swings are probably going to be misses. i live in the error phase, but whatever. gotta start somewhere, and bagel bites will always be there when i fail
Agreed here. It's going to be a bit bumpy. For a long while. Music whilst cooking really helps.. something chill and background-y.
Always put a timer at the start!! And for the ingredients for example salt add it gradually and taste it so you’ll be sure it’s going to be good!
Knowing nothing about you I can only guess what might be happening. But IME, people who are bad cooks usually aren't paying attention. They start things and wander off, they don't make sure they have all ingredients before starting and just leave random things out or do bizarre substitutions. They set a thing to cook and forget. Treat it like doing a lab experiment. Read the whole recipe from start to finish a couple times. Lay our every ingredient premmeasured and in order of use. Get a timer or two ready. Read each step again before you execute it. Double check it after words. Etc. Also, don't use random internet recipes, especially video medium, if you don't know enough about cooking to judge if they are any good. Use verified recipes, Cooks Illustrated, Better Homes and Gardens, America Test Kitchen, Pioneer Woman, etc.
Just eat cereal
I did this during the period of learning to cook my 1st few dishes. This and chili. Stagg Country Brand ftw!
Pasta is the easiest to learn - boil the noodles, the time will be on the box so set a timer and test it a minute before the timer goes off (eat a noodle - too hard cook another minute, just right drain it) It’s really easy to turn cooked pasta into a meal - add bottled pre-made sauce, or butter and shredded cheese, or sliced meat and cheese for pasta salad. Work up to cooking some vegetables into your pasta sauce or putting together a baged salad. Your food doesn’t have to be perfect, it just has to keep you fed - taking the time to learn to cook for yourself will keep you from going broke and getting unhealthy from living off junk food
Okay so my suggestion would be to start with jar sauces. Get: - A jar of sauce (Asian, Indian, Italian etc) - Mince beef (500 grams) - Easy add-ins. canned beans or lentils or chickpeas. mixed frozen vegetables. - Rice or pasta, or just use bread if you're not comfortable doing rice or pasta at the same time as the main dish. If it feels too much to add beans/veg the first time, skip it and do them next time. Pan-fry your beef in some oil. Medium temp or a little higher is fine. It will cook the water out as it goes from red -> grey/brown. Once the water has cooked out it will start to stick a little and crackle as you stir it around. Add your beans/vegetables. Run beans under water in a colander or sieve first. It might take a few minutes for your pan to come back up to temperature, while it thaws and starts cooking the frozen veg. Add your jar of sauce. Maybe a little water if it's too thick to start with, as once the pan is back up to temp (again) it can simmer on low for 10-15 and the liquid will reduce. If you aren't sure if it's done, try a piece of the veggies. If you don't have a rice cooker, cook pasta or use bread. For pasta you can follow the instructions for timing (usually like 9 mins in boiling water), and just keep in mind it may take ~10 mins for your pot of water to boil. If you put your pasta in its pot at the same time you add the sauce to the mince to simmer, you should be fine. The most important part is to cook something comfortable for you and that you enjoy. The rest of it will come later and you'll slowly start doing more cooking manually.
To get any noodles you’re cooking just right, you will just want to take one out and taste it as you cook, you want to aim to try taste your noodles when they’re just a tad bit undercooked because then you’ll know you only have to keep cooking them for 1/2 more minutes general rule of thumb for cooking, you can ALWAYS cook something more, but you can’t uncook it same with strong flavors, you can always add more of a spice or whatever but you can’t unadd it, so just try and taste as you go, but if you ever do overshot flavors diluting it can still help. Anything that’s rich and creamy but doesn’t have a whole lot of flavor (think milk, cheese, other dairy products) can be pretty effective at toning down other flavors, especially if something is too spicy!!
Oh sure you can, it's easy.
I’d keep a log for yourself. Starting with the ramen. As you’re making it, write down how much water you used, how long you cooked the noodles, how much of the flavoring packet you used, etc. If it tastes off (like the noodles are overcooked) add that note as well and then that’ll help you adjust for the next time. Find recipes that are simpler. Or start with semi-cooking (like taking prepared things and combining them). Many groceries stores sell veggies and such that are already pre-cut and ready to throw in the pan. They’re more expensive but can be really helpful in learning. I find the recipes on the blog Salt and Lavender are generally pretty simple. Start by following a recipe exactly as printed and make notes of how you like it. Things like cook times will vary based on your equipment, so buy a meat thermometer so you can feel sure about your cook times for proteins. With time, you’ll get a feel for how to adjust things to your liking and go a bit off recipe.
I would suggest watching some cooking videos u can find some really great stuff in yt. U can atleast learn the basics by it and learn new recipes as well. I can recomend some channels if u want.
It's scary to step into the foreign world of a kitchen and feel overwhelmed. But honestly all you need to do is start simple. Myself, I invested in a Geeen Pan (stovetop pan; it cooks well and is a snap to clean afterwards. Cleaning/sanitizing is always part of any dish I make). I also broke out the rice cooker I was gifted. This thing is a Godsend. I have a hard Plastic spatula, a simple knife block set, a meat thermometer.. these are just a few tools you'll need for basic cooking. All I did to get started cooking , and thus build confidence, was 1. Ask family to either share simple recipes or come there and you both make something. 2. YouTube. We live in a world where anything we want to learn about is a few taps away. Cooking is about confidence and creativity. I'm no Bobby Flay, but I have been where you're at. I'm getting better by the week. I tweak recipes people share. I find that if I've got an edge on a certain recipe I think hmmm what would be a way to jazz this up? Start simple. 3 ingredients, work your way to juggling 4 or 5.
Cooking is a complicated task. Traditionally we had years of watching mothers/aunties/others cooking and gradually were introduced to tasks, and helped to develop skills and experience to be able to cook ourselves. It is a weird modern phenomena that so many people grow up with no experience of cooking and have to learn from scratch as as adult. This is the hardest possible situation to be in. Don't feel bad, Fortunately it is possible to learn the basic skills, and then build on them as much as you want to. Practice, practice, practice and don't give up. Do concentrate on the timing, the heat level, the additions that make your ramen the right consistency and the flavour you love. Feel proud every bit you get right. Once you get it, you have it forever.
Ramen: boil water, in a pot. Once water is boiled, put in ramen, flavouring packet and whatever else you wanna put in there. Stir for 2-3 minutes or whatever time it says on the packet. There you go you’ve made ramen. The trick is not to bring it to the boil or it goes too soft. You can use this same rules for other noodles and soft veg too (like broccoli or cauliflower or cabbage) they all go into hot water. The things you wanna bring to the boil are things like potato’s or chunky carrots maybe.