I have been thinking about cooking habits recently. More so today, since it would seem I will have to bake some macaroons by myself tomorrow, and I am terrified. It is not something I should be scared of since no matter how they turn out they will taste good anyway, but I really don't like doing stuff alone for the first time.
This is where habits come in. I have always loved helping Mom with all kinds of cooking and baking since I was little and my brothers would like it as well. At first, we would help by holding the bowl Mom whipped the egg whites in, so she could hold the somewhat cumbersome machine by both hands, we would help cut and decorate the Christmas gingerbread cookies and so on. The thing is she rarely asked us to cook something all on our own. We would always just help out in small processes.
The weekend before the last, my parents were busy in the morning so I offered to cook lunch while they were away, and it made clear a lot of things for me. Prep work becomes super important when cooking alone. When we cook together we do everything we can simultaneously. Melt the butter while we cut the onions, fry the onions while the rest of the soup is prepared, depending on what we are having. We basically half the time it takes, but that is not something I alone would attempt. I would burn everything.
Interestingly enough, although I didn't really learn confident independence in the kitchen, I learned to understand processes and to look for the place where I can help. I love watching someone work and seeing where one more hand would do more good than harm. Though I might be reading too much into things and it is just the kind of obnoxious person I am, but I do think it might have had an impact.
Having a lot of time to think while I was frying the pancakes, I ventured to solve the question of which way is better parenting, and although then and even when I started typing this down I was convinced that teaching kids to be self-sufficient in the kitchen is more important, now I wonder if maybe both are just as valid answers. So I would say it depends on who we are trying to teach... I guess :D
It's an interesting issue. I come from the opposite side of the spectrum: I never really did any cooking until I moved out into my own apartment. Being self-taught, I'm very independent but also unsophisticated. You're probably a lot more well-versed in recipes and cooking techniques than I am.
@Achaius I wouldn't call myself well-versed when it comes to cooking, but it's kind of you to say that. The thing is, a lot of times recipes are stingy about the smaller but just as impactful details. They just assume you know how to not ruin whipped egg whites and such. So as long as you check out a nice blog that tells you about all the tricks, you can also be sophisticated.
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