It’s safe to say that no one is born a great cook with lots of knowledge. We all acquire cooking skills throughout life; some are faster, some take longer. Of course, there are people with obvious cooking talent, but without practice and study their talent will soon go to waste. Whether you’re a talented, but uneducated cook, or you simply want to improve your kitchen skills to be able to always surprise your family with fresh and tasty meals, you can take just 6 steps and only a month to bring your cooking skills to a higher standard.
Switch tasks
No one has flourished while doing the same repetitive things over and over again. A much better way to get the skills you need is to try several different tasks in a short period of time. If you’re the only one cooking in your home, this is going to be easy for you. Switch between cutting produce, mixing ingredients, cooking on the stove and preparing food for the serving, and soon you will be able to turn your attention to a new challenging task in no time. Use the time between different kitchen processes to do something new: for example, while the chicken is being roasted in the oven, use that hour to chop up some fresh salad or make a delicious dessert.
Start with easy recipes
Some amateur cooks prefer to being their kitchen journey with recipes that are as complicated as possible, but usually it does nothing but confuse them and let them down because of possible mistakes. This is why we recommend starting with some easy and clear recipes. They will teach you how things flow in the kitchen, which task comes after what, and how to make the cooking more efficient. As you learn, you can move on to more complicated tasks, and now you’ll find them much easier because of the elementary training you got in the beginning.
Be prepared in advance
There is nothing more counterproductive in the kitchen than starting the cooking process and not having everything you need at hand. When you are cooking according to a recipe or from memory, make sure the necessary ingredients and tools are where they’re supposed to be and in the right condition. For example, if the recipe for cookies calls for room-temperature butter, the butter needs to be taken out of the fridge at least an hour before you start cooking. It’s also a great idea to measure the needed ingredients and have them sitting in separate bowls, waiting for their turn to be cooked.
Shop the right way
Grocery shopping is a rather tricky subject; even experienced cooks often come across ingredients of low quality, not to mention the beginners. There is no universal recipe for successful shopping for food – the produce can look fresh and amazing but turn out to be bland when you taste it. Always make sure to buy fresh ingredients, especially meat, dairy and vegetables. It may be good for you to make friends with sellers in the market you often go to – they will happily set aside the necessary ingredients of the highest quality if you just ask them.
Get proper tools
Although some may say that our ancestors cooked using a single knife and a pot, not taking advantage of technology today would hardly be a smart move. In order to succeed in cooking, your kitchen doesn’t have to contain every tool imaginable, but it has to have a decent set of equipment to make the cooking process faster and more efficient.
Start by getting a high quality set of knives that will serve you for years, along with a knife sharpener. Get some cutting boards and use them separately: one for meat and one for vegetables. Also you’ll need some mixing bowls and measuring equipment like cups and spoons. Cookware is also very important, since it’s impossible to cook a quality meal using some old rusty pan. Finally, you can get some kitchen appliances – they are not mandatory, but they are great at making your kitchen life easier. We recommend starting with a blender and an electric mixer, and then you can move on to more advanced appliances.
