Anyone have suggestions for a new at home dad who doesn't usually cook but would like to learn how? My sister in law works with a woman whose husband is about to start staying home.
cookbook advice
Joy of Cooking
Joy of Cooking is a great resource for all things cooking. It gives the basics on all things- fruits, veggies, and meats, plus it tells you how to cook them, bake them, saute them, etc. I would start there.
Another option is a "slow cooker" recipe book. If the dad is adverse to cooking or just can't "get it," he can throw everything into a slow cooker, let it go all day and dinner will be ready at night.
Cooking A-Z
Is the one I started with. Like the Joy of Cooking it gives you the basic set of tools you need to learn technique first. It is also loaded with exemplar recipes that help you practice the techniques while also eating well.
If you're hardcore pick up a Larousse Gastronimique. This one is a hardcore tome, laid out like a dictionary with recipes and skills; it intimidates me, but I've managed to crack it open a few times, and was very pleased with the French Onion Soup I managed out of it.
For the more recipe-oriented, I would just go with a Cooking Light magazine. The recipes are indexed in the back by type (appetizer, sides, beef, pork, poultry, seafood, vegetarian, breads, soups, salads) and the recipes themselves don't leave you feeling lost about what to do next or swimming in a pool of terminology that you do don't(how the hell do I chiffonade something??). When I first started staying home I got a subscription and with my magazine in one hand and the circulars from three different grocery stores in the other, I would lay out the meals for the week on Sunday afternoon and go shopping Monday morning. Cooking Light also has a website where you can do searches for recipes for free.
Thoughts about fatherhood, philosophy, fencing, and hockey abound at http://shawn-burns.livejournal.com/
grill everything
Just cook everything over a fire
Joy or no Joy
If he doesn't like cooking, I don't think there is a good cookbook out there. Most of the "I don't like cooking" cookbooks focus on Bisquick or on putting veggies in store bought mac-n-cheese. I'm not dissing either of these, I just don't think they make a well-rounded full menu for a family.
I have had many people tell me that everyone in the world should have a copy of Joy of Cooking, Better Homes and Gardens and New Taste for New Times.
Joy is truly a great book, but it can be overwhelming to start with.
Get him a subscription to Family Circle or Good Housekeeping magazines. They have tons of recipes. Here, I just pulled this off the GH website:
http://www.goodhousekeeping.com/recipefinder/slow-cooked-pulled-pork-1100
Yum.
Most of us, though, couldn't cook a frozen chicken pot pie at first. So try to get going slowly.
Other advice:
1) Build a repertoire of about five things you like to cook (start with easy stuff -- scrambled eggs, spaghetti). Write a list if you want. Slowly add to that list as you get comfortable.
2) Have a couple of pizzas in the freezer for when you screw up.
3) Don't get too fancy at first. Just learn and enjoy. You can get fancy in a year or two.
4) Get a slow cooker, throw some stuff in, see what it tastes like.
5) websites: www.allrecipes.com , www.about.com/food/ , tons of others.
6) Take it easy. If you don't, you'll get frustrated and end up at Applebee's five nights a week.
7) Especially since he "doesn't like cooking" I re-emphasize, take it slowly, take it easy. There is much beauty in simplicity.
Ok, I'll dis them
Seriously, a stay-at-home dad that doesn't like to cook? Wow, didn't think they existed. I've been pouring over cookbooks since I first learnt to read gooder. The "Bisquik, slow-cooker, throw some veggies in mac-n-cheese cookbooks" are about as useful in my opinion as putting Pampers on the family dog. Sure they'll work, but why would you want to?
Despite what Emeril, Bobby Flay, and the rest of the pseudo-celebrity chefs that dot the television would have you believe, cooking is easy. The fear that some have in cooking, in my experience, stems from information overload. Looking at techniques they see in print or on TV, recipes with multiple steps, and weird or exotic ingredients is enough to put some off. The key to overcoming this fear is understand how to read a recipe and breaking it down into smaller, easier to understand steps.
Like the fat, dead, figment of one rat's imagination said, "anyone can cook."
That said, give Alton Brown's I'm Here For The Food a look, specifically starting at page eight where he talks about how to read a recipe. Yes, how to read a recipe. If those few paragraphs don't seriously help any aspiring cook, there's no hope.
I'm not a fan of the Joy of Cooking. I prefer Mark Bittman's How To Cook Everything, lots of technique that's broken down and illustrated well, as well as a ton of really good recipes. (Mine is dog eared, with my notes scribbled in the margins of just about every page, and the pages are starting to fall out. It gets used. A lot.) If you're really serious about learning technique, as well as a lot of really good recipes to boot, seriously consider The Professional Chef. It's the textbook of the CIA. If you want to know how to do it, it's probably in there. I have the 7th edition.
However, and heaven help me for saying this, if there is still some aversion to the idea of cooking, 30 -Minute Meals. I loathe Rachael Ray, but she does have some good ideas, even if they aren't original. And everything is really accessible too.
-Will
http://www.gamingwithbaby.com all your diapers are belong to us
my flickr
fear of cooking
"The fear that some have in cooking, in my experience, stems from information overload. Looking at techniques they see in print or on TV, recipes with multiple steps, and weird or exotic ingredients is enough to put some off."
Exactly. One of my own rules about ingredients (granted, I'm sure I am a bit plebeian) is that I skip any recipe that needs 1/2 tsp Tibetan Yak Milk or other bizarre ingredients.
Alton cracks me up. I am sure his book is awesome.
Something Different
If they don't like to cook, try some place that does all the prep work for you. I have done www.dishinitup.com, in Denver. You select which meals you want and then you go in and put the meals together and store them in your freezer. They do all the chopping and dicing. Each meal serves 6, so for us we were able to split each one. So for about, $165 we got 16 different meals that I probably never would have made.
Rachael Ray is a hack
If you have extra cash.. Going to the CIA for a week long class on basic cooking techniques is a very good idea..Go to the web site and look up continuing ed. I think there are online courses you can take now.
Betty crocker does a decent job with their new cookbook ( lots of pictures ) .
the new Pro chef is good a little on the tech side and you will have to understand the section on converting recipes to smaller sizes.
There is also a new movement in the industry for "DIY Guys" there are kitchen/ store cropping up that are set up for you to go there and cook on the premises and take it home. I feel this is an excellent way to get your feet wet .
http://www.letsdish.com/best/?engine=adwords!10009&keyword=%28Cooking%29&match_type=&gclid=CL6cxs7q1ZECFQUQlwodsyLwag
No mess to clean and it is fresh...
Even though I hate her Sandra Lee w/ semi home made, is a good place to start also.( I call her the half ass cook)She does make it easier to convert store bought to something tastie.
Any of Julia Childs books are great sources of info
And for all of you cooking techies check out the books" ON FOOD AND COOKING " and "What Einstein told his cook"
Chef Kev
Ask not what your country can do for you, Ask what can you do for your country
On Food and Cooking is wonderful
But it's definitely for the foodies/techies. Be meaning to pick up "Einstein."
I know most consider this sacrilege, but I've never liked Julia Child. Even as a kid her food handling skills made me cringe. But she is a legend, and for good reason.
I hate Sandra Lee with all the passion that I hate Rachael Ray. That being said however, if they got together and did the right kind of "project" together, I might watch.
-Will
http://www.gamingwithbaby.com all your diapers are belong to us
fatdadcooking.com coming soon!
my flickr
Deceptively Delicious
I do 98% of the cooking in our household but, like TickTock, I can't say I enjoy it (except for grilling meats).
I use JOY OF COOKING on occasion as well as THE MAYO CLINIC WILLIAMS-SONOMA COOKBOOK. I have borderline high cholesterol, so I have to be careful what I eat.
Although I was skeptical, I've used our newest cookbook a lot lately. My wife bought DECEPTIVELY DELICIOUS: SIMPLE SECRETS TO GET YOUR KIDS EATING GOOD FOOD, which is Jessica Seinfeld's (yes, it's Jerry's wife) cookbook.
The book recommends pureeing fruits & veggies like spinach, sweet potatoes, broccoli, and cauliflower and adding them to your kids' food. For instance, she adds a sweet potato spread to her grilled cheese, pumpkin or sweet potato to pancakes, butternut squash to quesadillas, etc. For the most part, you cannot taste (or see) that these purees have been added. I should note that she also still recommends serving fresh fruits & veggies at meals.
The book is has a nutrition section, lots of pictures of each finished dish, and recipes for breakfast, lunch, dinner & dessert.
Since my kids eat most fruits and some veggies without the "deception," I've used her recipes for the less-healthy food that we occasionally eat. I've tried the Mac n' Cheese, pancakes, grilled cheese, mini-pizzas (on whole wheat pitas with spinach puree). The kids (and my wife) didn't know the difference. Will try one of the desserts soon.
Might be one option for the new dad.
Jim
Bittman and EVERYDAY FOOD
OK I vote YES, YES, YES on How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman (he just introduced [url=http://www.amazon.com/How-Cook-Everything-Vegetarian-Meatless/dp/0764524836/ref=pd_sim_b_img_1[/url]How To Cook Everything Vegetarian[/url], as well).
In addition, although I must admit I haven't read them....
His Quick and Easy Recipes and the basics are probably fabulous
HOWEVER what I most recommend is a subscription to Everyday Food. My wife and I cook at least 3-4 recipes from each issue. You can preview some recipes on their website. I have convinced several folks to subscribe (if of course money is not an issue).
Josh
SAHD Since August 2005
Deceptively Delicious
I second JimD's comments about Deceptively Delicious. I picked that up last week and so far everything I've tried has turned out pretty good.
I also recommend Cook 1.0 by Heidi Swanson- these are great and VERY EASY recipes. Granted, they're all vegetarian, but especially now that we've got so many picture avatars on here I don't think a couple of veggie meals would hurt you gentlemen :p
I dig Rachel Ray ...
because she shows that you don't have to be a chef to be a cook. I don't really like her books, though. I do like her show.
Never mind AHDs. I don't really understand how someone goes through life without getting interested in cooking at some point. If you can't cook, you are basically dependent on other people for the most basic of things. It just is not in some people's nature, I guess.
I actually love to cook. I learned the basics just from watching my dad, who also likes to cook, but really just likes to eat, which is my weakness, too. Then I learned more from watching the earliest cooking shows -- Carlo Middione, Biba, Emeril, before he went live, and Capriale (sp?), Martin Yan. I hate recipes, so I would watch them and take notes and try anything I thought was interesting.
That all being said, I agree that Alton Brown's first book is about as good as it gets, either for a beginner or for someone who is pretty good but wants to know more about exactly what is happening when we cook. It is sort of a scientific, methodic approach, and there is a lot of good stuff in there. (The most valuable, to me, was his method for cooking a perfect prime rib in a home oven. :-) )
Another book
Joy of cooking is a good reference. It's great for answering questions like "how can I cook this particular veggie" or "how do I tell if the meat is done" or for finding a recipies for many standard and not-so-standard items.
The problem is that it's only reference, no philosophy, and, thus, doesn't help with the concept of actually putting a workable whole meal together. Preparing the food is generally easy, it's figuring out what to make that can be tiring. For that, I like "Jamie's Dinners":
It's by the "naked chef" guy, but don't let that turn you off... he doesn't actually appear naked anywhere, and there's a lot of decent interesting recipies and a good dose of a (dad-friendly?) philosophy...making good and interesting things from simple ingredients but fast prep, etc.
You can also get all the recipies you could ever want from epicurious.com. There are also the dad-approved recipies here: http://athomedad.org/recipe
Food Glorious Food.
Hey cmegg,
That’s a tough one. I agree with CIA a class may get him more excited about his new projects but that isn’t always affordable.
My advice?
1. Get a good knife. A chopping knife. It makes a world of difference.
2. Get recipes from friends and relatives, things your friend may have already enjoyed and make a file. That way he can ask questions and he should also know how they taste when they are done.
3. Skip cook books. Go to the book store and get a few cooking magazines and make the things that look the easiest. Tear out and add to file. I make stuff from “Vegetarian Times,” all the time.
4. Rachel Ray may not be the best but, a cooking show like “30 Minute Meals” is a good way to become exposed to ingredients and were to get good stuff. Ray also incorporates a lot of store bought and pre-made stuff which may help get you pal started.
5. Grilling a cheese sandwich is an art. Learn that art.
6. Good oil and garlic can make up for a lot of mistakes, trust me.
Good luck to your friend.
I'm with Kevin
cleaning and the laundry get less time than they deserve because I do enjoy cooking. I picked up On Food and Cooking over Christmas and would highly recommend it to anyone interested in the chemistry and history of food.
One book I picked up recently is Alice Water's, The Art of Simple Food. Everything I've made out of it is great and I appreciate her philosophy of food (local, fresh ingredients make a world of difference, you don't have to do much to make them good).
I second Josh's second of Mark bittman. I don't own his book but his videos on nytimes.com have provided me with several great dishes.
I'll pass this thread onto my sister in law and if he doesn't find some encouragement or ideas here....
Too many ingredients
I can't recall who said it, but one thing I try to remember in cooking is the following (paraphrased): "If it contains more than 5 ingredients it's not food."
This does not apply to jerk chicken.
Thoughts about fatherhood, philosophy, fencing, and hockey abound at http://shawn-burns.livejournal.com/
Sandra Lee
pisses me off because I've never seen her actually roll up her sleeves when she's cooking. C'mon, at least pretend that you're really cooking on your show.
I love Rachael Ray. I don't care about her food that much (I don't turn up my nose at it, it just doesn't inspire me), but I do appreciate her approach to teaching people how to cook without making them feel incompetent.
Thoughts about fatherhood, philosophy, fencing, and hockey abound at http://shawn-burns.livejournal.com/
I Hate To Cook
I am not afraid to admit in front of all you cooking heroes that I cannot stand to cook, and I will not cook anything unless I absolutely have to. My wife is the chef in the house, and I am damn proud that she is very good at it. She cooks enough at meals so that my son and I usually have very good leftovers to eat. I manage to cook the occasional breakfast, but that is a rare occurrence. On the other hand though, doing laundry is a release for me, and I am a very good maid. My wife and I have a great understanding: she keeps me fed, and I keep the house clean and in running order. Works great for us! Just wanted to let the new guy know that not EVERY stay-at-home dad has to be an amazing cook or even like to do it.
Randy
Cincinnati, OH
SAHD to Ryder (23 months)
You guy's make me proud
That not only do you own ON FOOD AND COOKING but you endorse it...A tear has welled up in my eye...
EDIT: I knew I would get all misty eyed over this thread...
Chef Kev
Put salt and pepper on it, if that doesn't work smother it in cheese ( marvelous cheese, so scrumptious and lovely)
I need a new copy
I need a new copy of On Food And Cooking. Mine is tore up.
I'll share one of my theories on food and cooking.
The Unified Gravy Theory-
The Unified Gravy Theory, or UGT, postulates that no matter how foul the food, no matter how poor the presentation, no matter how lacking in flavor a meal may be, everything can be improved to the point of edibility through the liberal use of gravy. In those rare instances where the UGT is not entirely effective, it is recommended that one use the UBT, or Unified Bacon Theory.
-Will
http://www.gamingwithbaby.com all your diapers are belong to us
fatdadcooking.com coming soon!
my flickr
Unified Bacon Theory
This theory, I think, was advocated by the BBC's "Two Fat Ladies" from years ago. They put eight pounds of bacon and ten pounds of butter in everything they made -- even their ice cream, I bet. I didn't really think I could stomach most of their recipes. But, oh man! they did a great show.
New cookbook in our house...
I recently picked up "Better Homes and Gardens' Fast Fix family food" cookbook at the book fair at my son's school.
It features more than 400 easy recipes that are quick and easy and, for the most part, healthy too. The food photos are nice and there are also a lot of how-to photos, tips and hints on how to get the meal on the table fast. That can be helpful for families on the go. (like ours!)
Lots of breakfast, snacks, lunch ideas, quick dinners, as well as the Sunday family feast. (which is something we like to do, and the one day of the week my wife likes to cook)
I used to subscribe to Cooking Light, but gave it up. More than 1/3 of the magazines is beauty tips for women. Another third goes to health tips and ads (geared towards women and moms) and the rest for the good stuff, the recipes. The recipes are great! I've gotten some good and easy ones from there, like "my" garlic, basil and goat cheese stuffed chicken, "my" Yankee Pot Roast or "my" Blue Ribbon Apple Pie. (I call them mine because I've made them so often and modified them a little here and there.) What I do is order the annual hard cover book with all the recipes from the year in it, still organized the same way the magazine has them.
Anyway, I wasn't that great of a cook when I started this gig eight years ago, but in that time I've gotten better and learned to REALLY like it, even LOVE it! (just like gardening, but that would be another thread)
Keep it fun and involved the kids when you can. It is a great way to get them to try new foods. They always seem to want to try something they made. It is a great way to learn measuring, and above all QUALITY TIME!!!!!
Bone Appetite
er, bon Appitite?
bon appettit?
enjoy!
BrianC
Seinfeld cookbook article by AHD
Chicago AHD and weekly columnist wrote a funny article about the Jessica Seinfeld cookbook. Here it is:
www.southtownstar.com/lifestyles/ludwig/835465,031208athomedad.article
Jim
Joined: 2007-09-04
Dad Points: 160