# Help a 19 year old guy learn to cook **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 10, 2012, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-a-19-year-old-guy-learn-to-cook/640607 "2012-11-10T19:22:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![azraiel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@azraiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/azraiel)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2012, 4:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-a-19-year-old-guy-learn-to-cook/640607/21 "2012-11-11T04:13:19Z")
Lightly butter a 10-inch skillet, heat over medium flame/coil, add an egg and break the yolk. Once fried, practice flipping the egg using only the skillet in hand and a semicircular motion of the arm. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat again. Repeat until he has it down. Once he can flip an egg without an utensil, he can make incredible omelets. Whip three eggs together in a prep bowl with a fork. Add the eggs to the already hot and greased/buttered/oiled pan. As soon as the eggs start to solidify, take a spatula and push the egg an inch or two towards the center while tiling the pan to allow uncooked egg to run from the top to the uncovered pan. Rotate 90 degrees and do the same. By the time he’s gone around the pan once, all of the liquid should be cooked to at least a gelatinous consistency. Use the spat to ensure that no part of the mass is sticking, and then flip it as described above (I flip over the sink, even after 20 years of experience. It can still go wrong.) Quickly add the already prepped omelet ingredients (cheese both first and last, if included) to half the egg bed. Use the spat to lift the half without ingredients over the other half, creating a half-moon in the pan. Then either flip from the pan to the plate, of flip with spat in pan and slide onto plate. Unlike the meager stuffed scrambled eggs that most restaurants call omelets, he’ll end up with an airy and fluffy egg jacket a quarter-inch thick around his well-chosen ingredients. It’ll fill half a plate, and satiate most comers. It’s dead simple, satisfying, and impressive to see done. Get good enough, and one can even cook eggs over easy with the flip. I’ll tackle just about anything in the kitchen nowadays, and it all started with the egg flip I was taught in a small-town diner. A learned skill that builds confidence and produces an impressive result leads to a lot more confidence, skill, and willingness. ETA: And per the OP, no real cooking skill involved. Cut and prep the omelet fillings, whip the eggs, and you’re good to go. Just master the flip. ---
**Author:** ![VOW](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/vow/32/3043_2.png) [@VOW](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VOW)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2012, 4:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-a-19-year-old-guy-learn-to-cook/640607/22 "2012-11-11T04:50:39Z")
> [@missred](#): > > An older (think 70s or 80s) copy of the _Betty Crocker Cookbook_ would be a nice gift for him. The older editions have a lot of beginner to mid-level recipes and instructional material without using a ton of tools and appliances (my late seventies edition doesn’t even get into microwaves). I’ve picked these up at used book shops for gifts over the years. In my never-humble opinion, you’re thinking of an even OLDER edition of the Betty Crocker cookbook. My mom had an ancient edition when I was growing up, and I loved that book. I married in 1974, and she gave me a new book for a shower gift. Bah. Many of the “recipes” were based on Betty Crocker MIXES. ~VOW ---
**Author:** ![zombywoof](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/9e8a1a/32.png) [@zombywoof](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zombywoof)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2012, 5:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-a-19-year-old-guy-learn-to-cook/640607/23 "2012-11-11T05:25:32Z")
I’d advise him to get a proper general purpose cookbook, like [this](http://www.amazon.com/Joy-Cooking-75th-Anniversary-Edition/dp/0743246268) or [this](http://www.amazon.com/Cook-Everything-Completely-Revised-Anniversary/dp/0764578650) or [this](http://www.amazon.com/The-Cooks-Illustrated-Cookbook-Americas/dp/1933615893/ref=pd_sim_b_1), and just go ahead and jump right into trying any recipes that look appealing - the only way to learn it is to do it. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2012, 5:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-a-19-year-old-guy-learn-to-cook/640607/24 "2012-11-11T05:26:08Z")
> [@Tara57](#): > > Publix has some very simple meal recipes, with shopping lists, that have always been successful for me. Each recipe has a sequence that tells you when to start each part of each dish so the meal comes out ready on time. The directions are step by step and easy to follow. > > [http://www.publix.com/aprons/meals/SimpleMeals.do](http://www.publix.com/aprons/meals/SimpleMeals.do) I found a mistake there. Under their list of kosher meals, they have [Tomato-Crusted Steaks Over Vegetable Ragu](http://www.publix.com/aprons/meals/SensibleRecipes/SimpleMeal.do?mealId=5699&mealGroupId=1010). The recipe includes beef and cheese - definitely not a kosher meal. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2012, 5:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-a-19-year-old-guy-learn-to-cook/640607/25 "2012-11-11T05:30:15Z")
As general advice, there are cookbooks designed for college students. They’re generally based on the assumption you’re starting out with minimal skills and equipment. ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2012, 5:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-a-19-year-old-guy-learn-to-cook/640607/26 "2012-11-11T05:54:19Z")
See if you can get _The Compleat I Hate to Cook Book_ by Peg Bracken. Or one of her other “Hate to Cook” books. It’s quite dated, but for the most part, the recipes are easy, fairly tasty, and nearly foolproof. Peg notes that there are times when one feels obligated to have someone over for a meal, and has given some good recipes and menus. There’s a new edition of this book out, too. This will at least get him started. You can find the older editions on eBay and Amazon. When looking for newer cookbooks, check to see if they give instructions on how to cut up a chicken and other basic skills. A beginning cook needs to learn these things. My [roast chicken dinner](http://lynnbodoni.livejournal.com/8015.html) is fairly simple, and quite tasty. However, it might not be enough for four people, especially if two of them are teens. He might want to try making the dinner for his girlfriend a couple of times. He might need a meat thermometer, but otherwise he doesn’t need special equipment. The refrigerated rolls and biscuits and bread that are in the dairy case can help round out the meal, or he can make Stove Top Stuffing as a side dish. Or he could even make real stuffing. Teach him how to make gravy, if he doesn’t know how. Homemade gravy is far tastier than the stuff in jars. ---
**Author:** ![kittenblue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ba8739/32.png) [@kittenblue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kittenblue)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2012, 7:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-a-19-year-old-guy-learn-to-cook/640607/27 "2012-11-11T07:14:45Z")
Do not give a 19-year-old a recipe that involves wine. Remind him that if he had paid attention in his Foods1 class in high school instead of goofing off he’d know this stuff already. (What? My sister teaches that very class in a high school. Half of her students are flunking because they simply refuse to do the work. She spends a third of each class period confiscating phones and laptops and sending people to the office. And then calls me each morning in tears.) These are the two recipes my children knew how to cook before they left home. Chicken and Potatoes. Buy the Pick of the Chick package of chicken…breasts, thighs, legs…or just bone-in, skin-on breasts, enough for one piece per person. If you don’t have a 9x13 pan, buy two cheapy foil ones and use them both together because they are flimsy. Preheat oven to 350’. Scrub potatoes (red or white, just don’t buy baking potatoes) and slice them in half lengthwise and then into 1/4" thick slices. Spray the pan with cooking spray or rub with butter or oil…dump in the cut potatoes and even out the layer. Place cut-up chicken parts on top of the potatoes and sprinkle with Lawry’s Seasoned Salt, or whatever brand your store carries. Place a dot of butter (a chunk about 1/4" square) on top of each piece of chicken. Put pan in oven and let bake for an hour and 15 minutes. An hour into the cooking time, open up a bag of frozen vegetables and prepare according to the directions on the bag, depending on whether you have access to the stovetop or the microwave and the correct type of cooking vessel. Stuffed Porkchops. Same 9x13 size pan needed, buy two bone-in pork chops for each person. Get a loaf of good bakery bread, not sandwich bread…a sliced loaf of Italian, or Vienna, or even sourdough. stack four slices of bread and cut into strips and then into cubes…repeat until all the bread is cut. Place in a large bowl. Chop up one or two onions into a small dice. Cut up about 8 ribs of celery into a small dice. Melt a stick of butter in a frying pans, add onions and celery and cook until both are soft. Add a can of chicken broth, salt and pepper. Pour this mixture over the bread cubes and stir until all the bread is moistened…add a small amount of water if needed instead of opening another can of broth. Sparay your baking dish with cooking spray. put half your porkchops in the pan in a single layer. Spread the stuffing mixture over the top, spreading it evenly to cover the entire pan. Place the rest of the porkchops on top. Pour a small can of V-8 juice over the chops (or two tiny cans…just don’t pour a whole huge jug.) Cover with foil and bake in a pre-heated 350’ oven for an hour. See above for vegetables. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2012, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-a-19-year-old-guy-learn-to-cook/640607/28 "2012-11-11T14:04:41Z")
> [@papergirl](#): > > You can cheat with a jar of spaghetti sauce (just the plain no-meat type), add some nice cooked sausage and whatever fresh veggies you desire, and simmer for an hour or so. Top with some good parmesan and you’re suddenly a really decent cook. This is a good first meal for guests. It’s practically idiot-proof. Some decent Italian sausage, browned and added to the bottled sauce, then simmered for an hour, and it will taste like you’ve spent much more time on it. Serve over spaghetti or penne. ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2012, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-a-19-year-old-guy-learn-to-cook/640607/29 "2012-11-11T14:15:47Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > This is a good first meal for guests. It’s practically idiot-proof. Some decent Italian sausage, browned and added to the bottled sauce, then simmered for an hour, and it will taste like you’ve spent much more time on it. Serve over spaghetti or penne. One of my favorite meals. The OP should teach his friend how to make a roux. This opens up a gateway to so many things. Soups, gravy, pot roast… ---
**Author:** ![Bridget\_Burke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7cd45c/32.png) [@Bridget\_Burke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bridget_Burke)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2012, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-a-19-year-old-guy-learn-to-cook/640607/30 "2012-11-11T14:39:30Z")
PBS has been running the **Martha Stewart Cooking School**. Each half-hour show coves a basic topic & she demonstrates simple technique. I’m fairly experienced, but I picked up a few hints. [The website](http://www.marthastewart.com/939759/martha-stewarts-cooking-school) includes many choice clips.There’s a book, too… ---
**Author:** ![even\_sven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dfb087/32.png) [@even\_sven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/even_sven)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2012, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-a-19-year-old-guy-learn-to-cook/640607/31 "2012-11-11T14:59:39Z")
Mark Bittman’s **How to Cook Everything** is by far the best book for beginning cooks out there, and I highly recommending giving him a copy. I think there is even a “basics” version if he really wants to keep it simple. I believe there is also an app version. Bittman’s book give simple, classic, authoritative recipes for pretty much anything you’d want to cook. The recipes are straightforward, but not dumbed down or turned into modified package food, like so many bachelor cookbooks. He also has a section on ingredients and techniques. But the best innovation in the book is that he guides the reader towards thinking like a chef rather than simply following recipes. He guides the reader through how recipes can be modified, and how different sets of flavors work with each other. For example, he may teach the reader how to make a basic roasted chicken. Then he’ll show how it can be changed into by adding lemon juice and oregano, or adding rosemary and sea salt, or adding soy sauce and orange juice. So you learn the basic technique, but you also really learn how to understand and use that technique, rather than just seeing it as a step in recipe. ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2012, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-a-19-year-old-guy-learn-to-cook/640607/32 "2012-11-11T15:08:28Z")
Pear and avocado salad Serves 1 (can be multiplied as necessary) Ingredients: 1 pear 1 avocado Lemon juice (Optional: Dill, salt, pepper, etc., to taste) 1. Peel and core pear; cut into small cubes. 2. Halve avocado and remove the stone; cut into small cubes (I find this is easiest to do with a butter knife, still in the shell). 3. Combine in a bowl, sprinkle with lemon juice and serve. It looks really fancy and nouvelle cuisine and tastes good and requires… the ability to use a knife. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2012, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-a-19-year-old-guy-learn-to-cook/640607/33 "2012-11-11T15:14:39Z")
> [@kittenblue](#): > > Do not give a 19-year-old a recipe that involves wine. Fortunately, the Béchamel does not require wine. I just like to use it sometimes, and forgot about the age issue. > [@Shakes](#): > > The OP should teach his friend how to make a roux. This opens up a gateway to so many things. Soups, gravy, pot roast… Yep, roux is a very useful thing to know how to make. Before I learned how to ‘toast’ flour, my gravy tasted like flour. Fortunately I learned about roux early on by watching _The Frugal Gourmet_ on PBS. Another useful thing is ‘The Holy Trinity’ – sautéed onions, celery, and bell peppers. Mirepoix (‘meer-pwah’) uses carrots instead of bell peppers. You can use them for their intended cuisines, or just jazz up some rice with maybe a bit of shrimp thrown in. Leave out the celery/carrots, and add the onions and peppers go well with fried potatoes. **papergirl** ’s suggestion of spaghetti with a jarred sauce is good for the beginning cook. I personally prefer Prego, but a lot of people like Ragu. Trader Joe’s has some good ones too. Brown some ground beef, add some sliced mushrooms, bump up the garlic and oregano, and there you are. ---
**Author:** ![missred](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/missred/32/14096_2.png) [@missred](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/missred)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2012, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-a-19-year-old-guy-learn-to-cook/640607/34 "2012-11-11T16:36:31Z")
> [@VOW](#): > > In my never-humble opinion, you’re thinking of an even OLDER edition of the Betty Crocker cookbook. > > My mom had an ancient edition when I was growing up, and I loved that book. I married in 1974, and she gave me a new book for a shower gift. > > Bah. Many of the “recipes” were based on Betty Crocker MIXES. > ~VOW I just double checked mine. It’s the 1978 edition. That one is still a good beginner to intermediate cookbook. Perhaps the 1974 one got a bit offtrack. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![doctor\_krieger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a87d85/32.png) [@doctor\_krieger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doctor_krieger)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2012, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-a-19-year-old-guy-learn-to-cook/640607/35 "2012-11-11T17:06:54Z")
Let me just say thanks as I’m an awful cook and I’m taking notes. ---
**Author:** ![Turble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8dc957/32.png) [@Turble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Turble)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2012, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-a-19-year-old-guy-learn-to-cook/640607/36 "2012-11-11T17:46:52Z")
I would say rule number one for such a situation is “Don’t try a new recipe for an important event.” Whatever he decides to make, he should make it at least twice beforehand. Seems to me the pasta with jarred sauce is a great idea; I would suggest getting away from the kid-friendly Ragu or Prego and try one the more expensive sauces, and I would serve rigatoni or penne instead of spaghetti just to make it less likely sauce gets slopped onto somebody’s chin or shirt. Add a bagged salad and a good loaf of fresh Italian bread (Not knowing the people’s tastes, I would just serve butter, not garlic bread.) If he want’s to get creative, he can spend some time researching and practicing salad dressing. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2012, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-a-19-year-old-guy-learn-to-cook/640607/37 "2012-11-11T18:00:04Z")
> [@Turble](#): > > I would say rule number one for such a situation is “Don’t try a new recipe for an important event.” Whatever he decides to make, he should make it at least twice beforehand. Indeed. A large part of learning how to cook was to experiment in the kitchen to find out how to do things. Recipes are tried out on myself before I make them for others. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2012, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-a-19-year-old-guy-learn-to-cook/640607/38 "2012-11-11T18:30:27Z")
> [@Turble](#): > > I would say rule number one for such a situation is “Don’t try a new recipe for an important event.” Whatever he decides to make, he should make it at least twice beforehand. > > Seems to me the pasta with jarred sauce is a great idea; I would suggest getting away from the kid-friendly Ragu or Prego and try one the more expensive sauces, and I would serve rigatoni or penne instead of spaghetti just to make it less likely sauce gets slopped onto somebody’s chin or shirt. > > Add a bagged salad and a good loaf of fresh Italian bread (Not knowing the people’s tastes, I would just serve butter, not garlic bread.) If he want’s to get creative, he can spend some time researching and practicing salad dressing. Pretty much none of the jar sauces are decent without doctoring, so I’d go with cheaper and add herbs/meat/veggies. Or just open a big can of diced tomatoes and do the same thing: cheaper and same result. ---
**Author:** ![VOW](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/vow/32/3043_2.png) [@VOW](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VOW)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2012, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-a-19-year-old-guy-learn-to-cook/640607/39 "2012-11-11T20:19:00Z")
A big can of Hunts or Del Monte spaghetti sauce sells for around 99 cents (look for sales, stock up). Brown a chopped onion, add a can of diced tomatoes, and throw in some hamburger or Italian sausage. The mainstay of cooking for a working mommy! ~VOW ---
**Author:** ![medstar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f07891/32.png) [@medstar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/medstar)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2012, 9:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-a-19-year-old-guy-learn-to-cook/640607/40 "2012-11-11T21:52:26Z")
I’d also like to suggest a subscription to Rachael Ray’s monthly food magazine–she has a section that has a listing for a week’s worth of meals with a shopping list and menu for side items. I’ve found that her recipes are fairly easy to follow and the shopping list will help the young man have enough items in his pantry (fridge, freezer, too) so that he can start to think of meals that use these supplies rather than shop from scratch in emergencies. Also, he can use the leftovers for lunches the next day. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-a-19-year-old-guy-learn-to-cook/640607.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-a-19-year-old-guy-learn-to-cook/640607.md?page=3)