Purchase Cookbooks
Don’t go into the kitchen for the first time thinking you’ll become an expert quickly. So many people give up on cooking after expecting excellent results first time. Becoming a good chef comes with practice. With so many professional cookbooks on the market, using existing recipes is the best way to begin. Just be sure that the ones you choose aren’t too complex. Don’t try cooking the most complex dish in the book either; slowly work your way up from the simplest meals.
The better you get at cooking, the more you can deviate from these recipes but until then don’t stray too far from a reliable cookbook. Using a professional cookbook will also teach you the culinary terminology so that you are able to separate your ‘saute’, from your ‘julienne’.
Get to Know the Kitchen
Okay, so you’ve studied the cookbook and seen the recipes, but what good is this without the relevant expertise of using the right cutlery? Owning the right equipment can make or break a meal because if you’re not comfortable using utensils the correct measurements and cooking techniques can instantly ruin your meal. This does not necessarily mean you need to know how to use unconventional items but could instead just be the simplest of things like not using the correct knives.
Never begin cooking a recipe if you already know that you are realistically not ready for such an undertaking. It’s good sense to cook for you a few times before doing it for others. if your recipe doesn’t work well for yourself it’s not the disaster it will be if you cook for others. It’s good to challenge yourself but not set yourself up for a failure. Good skills come with practice. No chef became a pro overnight.
Good Cooking Will Become Natural
The good news about cooking is that once you know what you like and how to prepare it, it becomes far from a chore and more like a pleasurable hobby. The more you cook from existing recipes, the more you will learn to develop your own skills as you begin to add new ingredients to these meals. Your confidence in the kitchen will increase with each meal and if you keep notes of what works and what doesn’t. Before long you will develop an understanding of what foods work well together and how best to prepare them.
Even if you start off making simple recipes it won’t be long before you’re working on gourmet meals using ingredients like fresh white truffles and truffle oil for your guests’ enjoyment.
