View Full Version : Favorite cooking task?
In response to the other thread, thought it'd be fun to list our favorite parts of cooking! I like when a dish starts to simmer real well and you get those little bubbles coming up through the mixture. I like cooking bacon because the smell is great, and I like the sound of the sizzle and pop. I like assembling the various ingredients for a crock pot dish, knowing that I'll have something awesome ready for me when I get home from work. I like scraping the sides of the bowl after making cheesecake and licking the spatula.
One of my favorite things is browsing different cooking/recipe sites and trying to pick out the next dish I want to experiment with. Sometimes I have a particular ingredient I want to use, and other times I just like to browse around and see what other people have been cooking.
lhamo
I like checking out new recipes, too. And making bacon! It smells so good and the popping and sizzling is satisfying! :-) I also like sticking the bread in the oven after its final rise and sauteeing things with onions and garlic in it (makes the whole house smell yummy).
Browning ground meat. My mom was never much of a cook growing up and I was a fussy eater but I always liked sloppy joes or tacos. Think it's the whole comfort food angle on that one for me.
As a kid licking whipping cream from the beaters was my very favourite thing to do, as a mom I now hand that duty off to one of my kids. Another one of mine is making gravy. Preparing the Beurre Manié, carefully adding it to the drippings, and finally watching the transformation take place before my very eyes. Rich, thick, delectable gravy! The aroma!
Baking bread and making a good white sauce would have to be my favorites.
treehugger
4-5-11, 12:01pm
This one is hard...I genuinely love the whole process of cooking and baking, that I can't seem to single out one favorite task. That said, I do love making large batches of things and enjoying the satisfaction that a good store of something in the freezer or cupboard brings.
Kara
Watching someone else cook and then being able to eat it :-)!!!!!
Watching someone else cook and then being able to eat it :-)!!!!!You stinker! :)
You stinker! :)
I once boiled water...but I think I burnt it :laff:
Actually I am totally addicted to cooking shows. I really love to watch people cook (seriously) as it makes me appreciate the effort and work involved in preparing a meal and it makes me enjoy the meal I'm eating more.
Watching someone else cook and then being able to eat it :-)!!!!!
That would be awesome. I never get to do that.
I like the ritual of making my tea in the morning, probably because the tea is just for me.
I like browning onions - love the smell, the physical transformation, and the promise that something really good is in the works.
And I love using really sharp, good knives.
Bump!
Just happened across this thread and thought it would be fun to resurrect. Would love to hear from more of you Re:.
P.S. Yes, it's an oldie... but a goodie!
Blackdog Lin
11-26-12, 9:38am
Okay. I like making sauces, preferably ones with many ingredients and complex flavors. Gravies a close second, which is kinda the same thing, but much simpler. I don't even mind if it's a sauce that needs constant stirring - I LIKE whisking. Something about the transformation from lumpy or brothy nothingness to creamy, velvety, melt-in-the-mouth wonderfulness. Guess I also like that a good sauce or gravy can absolutely transform the plainest whatever.
Never really thought about this before - now I think I'm weird.
SteveinMN
11-26-12, 9:42am
For me, probably using a good knife to cut appropriately. It's good to know the difference between "chop", "mince", "chiffonade", "julienne", and others and I like the Zen aspect of steeling a knife and prepping the food so it cooks properly.
Not weird at all, Blackdog Lin!
I also like searing! Love hearing the sizzle and taking in the mouthwatering aroma of seared goodness! Never fails to make me hungry!
SteveinMN. I lack a quality selection of kitchen knives, but one day...
I like seeing people smile when you hand them a plate/bowl of something that turned out really well. Come on by Spartana.
leslieann
11-26-12, 11:07am
I love making it up as I go along. Soup lends itself well to this. I love the days when "there's nothing for supper" turns into something that's just fine, thank you. I also love the sensory aspects: the crunch of vegetables being chopped, the scent of onion, garlic, or citrus, and feeling of bread dough forming itself into something elastic and smooth (even though bread is long gone from my diet, I still miss the process of baking it). I even like cleaning up; I love the tidy kitchen after lots of cooking has gone on.
I don't like cooking on demand (six pm comes and you have No Idea). But mostly I avoid that by cooking when I do feel like it and making sure there are Things To Make Into Dinner.
Nice thread. I'll drop by, too, Gregg, with Spartana. I'll bring the wine.
catherine
11-26-12, 11:37am
I once boiled water...but I think I burnt it :laff:
haha!! that's me! One time my son, who was about 6 at the time, asked me if he could make pancakes. I was not in the mood so I said no--he persisted, so I finally relented. I got the box out and started reading the directions. Crabbily, I told him, "OK, put water in the pot." My 6-year old looked at me funny and said, "Dad doesn't make pancakes this way."
"Just do it." I said. After he did that, looking very confused but afraid to confront his impatient mother, I said, "OK, now put the butter in.." Now DS6 is looking VERY confused.
It wasn't until the water was actually boiling that I realized I had the instant mashed potato box in my hand--not the pancake box--and I didn't even know the difference! THAT's how bad a cook I am!
However, that being said, it was a long time ago, and, like leslieann, I have grown to LOVE making soups. Soups are like nutrition in a bowl to me, and there is no canned or frozen soup around that compares with a fresh homemade soup. So I love to chop and dice and simmer and throw in fresh herbs from my garden.. mmmmm!!!!
I enjoy chopping as long as I'm not feeling rushed. It's very meditative.
Serving the meal in attractive containers.
I'm a planner. I really enjoy planninng out a week's menus and making a shopping list for all the ingredients I need. I especially like planning a special occasion meal. I'd just as soon let someone else take over from there though until it is time to eat and then I'd prefer to fade out on the clean up. Let's just put me down for the planning and eating parts.:|(
Great stories and reflections everyone!
Prepping vegetables and cleaning the kitchen. Both are tedious.
Powered by vBulletin® Version 4.2.5 Copyright © 2024 vBulletin Solutions Inc. All rights reserved.