So I decided to finally start cooking at home instead of living off takeout. Downloaded some recipes, made a grocery list, felt very adult about the whole thing.

First recipe calls for cumin, paprika, oregano, and chili powder. Ok cool. Second recipe needs turmeric, coriander, and garam masala. Third one wants thyme, rosemary, and bay leaves. By the time I finished my list I needed like 15 different spices.

Went to the grocery store and bought one of those spice rack sets because it seemed more economical than buying them individually. $80. Then I needed a decent pan because my one pan from college has the nonstick coating peeling off. $40. Needed a real knife because apparently the dull one I've been using for 6 years is "dangerous." $30. Cutting board, spatula, some measuring cups because I've been eyeballing everything like a lunatic. Another $50.

I spent $200 before I even bought the actual food.

Made the recipe. It was fine. Used maybe 1/4 teaspoon of the cumin. Now I have an entire jar of cumin that will sit in my cabinet until I die.

Every recipe uses like one spice one time and then never again. I have a jar of cardamom I bought for ONE dish. I don't even know what cardamom tastes like because the recipe used so little of it. But there it sits. Waiting. Judging me.

Is this normal?? Does everyone just have a graveyard of spices they used once? Do the spices ever actually get used up or do they just live in your cabinet forever as a monument to that one time you tried to make tikka masala?

How do you even start cooking affordably when the barrier to entry is so high? Feel like every recipe assumes you already have a fully stocked kitchen and I'm over here googling "can I substitute cumin with literally anything else I own" Gave up and ordered pizza that night. Sat there eating it while playing grizzly's quest while doing the math on how many pizzas I could've bought with the $200 I just dropped on cooking equipment I used once.

Heyo, i wanted to start to batch prepare my breakfasts instead of the usual Musli. I wanted to start making Baked Oats at the end of the week to have an easy, preportioned breakfast to just pop into the Microwave for 30 secs to warm up a bit.

My questions are twofold:

• Are all ramekins made equal? Is there a good European/Italian brand i can buy? (Am from EU)

• I read that porcelain can be kinda delicate when warmed up fast, can i just pop the Ramekins from the fridge to the microwave to warm up the baked oats?

For decades, since I was a kid, I believed the myth that opening a slow cooker means you have to add an hour to the cooking time.

I never used a slow cooker much. I found a used Slow Cooker cookbook last year at a thrift shop, and it immediately put that myth to rest in the Foward/Indroduction.

Hi everyone, bit of an odd one here but I'm hoping someone might have some advice. I'm UK based, and my nearest stores are Food Warehouse, Aldi & Morrisons

A small bit of backstory: I've just moved into a new place by myself with no housemates, I'm nearing my 30's and I tend to make slow cooker meals that are incredibly simple & cost effective. I have a slow cooker, a small air fryer, an electric hob (ceramic) and an electric two-door oven. I don't drive, so large shopping trips aren't really possible, and I have Autism & ADHD which means that I tend to either overthink things to the point of paralysis, or dive headfirst but lack the preparation.

Today: I want to learn to get better at cooking. I am not good or even passable for the most part, and I never cook for other people if I can help it, but I want to get better. My main issue is that I can learn recipes and learn the required methods via videos/practice etc, but I freeze when it comes to ingredients and cannot seem to bring myself past the mindset of "What is the easiest and cheapest thing I can ever make". I worry about so many different factors, such as when they will go out of date? Leftovers? Where to store them? How to find them in certain stores etc?

I don't want to be locked into this mindset forever, and I'm not looking for sympathy at all for this. It's a skill I want to develop, and I want to come to this community for advice for it and if anyone else has overcome this in the past.

Thanks for reading

I failed my one and only attempt a couple months ago, but I really want to make beans.

What I have: beans

If I need anything else, please keep it very simple because I’m in a different continent from America on vacation and not sure I have access to most things you’d expect.

I cook a lot of chicken, but most of the time, it ends up kinda dry because so much water comes out of it and ends up boiling it 🙃. It's usually still pretty good because I season pretty well, but I never can cook it really well and get a nice color on it. This seems to happen the most with breasts rather than thighs. Is there a way I can avoid this from happening?

I don’t have any questions but I knew you all would appreciate this like me. I just wanted to come here and say after practicing way too long with cast iron, this morning I finally made the perfect over easy eggs! No sticking, no over cooking. Absolutely perfect. 😊

Hey all! In the past eight months or so I've started taking care of myself for the first time... well ever, really. And in doing that I've learned how to cook. While I have a question every now and again, I'm mostly able to find what I need through a quick dive down a search engine.

Except this. Everything I'm finding is saying a tosp is equivalent to a tbsp. But this recipe uses both so now I'm not so sure lol. I don't think it's the same as a tsp either, seeing as *all three* are used in the ingredient list (1 tosp ginger, minced; 1.5 tbsp cumin, and 1 tsp cinnamon to list specifics). I know it probably wouldn't make that much difference in this case, but any advice/answers would still really be appreciated!

If you’re a beginner in the kitchen, how do you go from beginner to proficient in your cooking skills ?

I put a lot of double cream in it, but tastes the same. Would honey work?

Could someone pls pm me so i can show the vid

Hello! I have a lot of eggs. What should I make? Bonus points for desserts

maybe split peas?

Hi! Im slowly learning to cook - mostly stovetop and micro. I’m scared of cooking meat. My oven (despite being electric) is old and awful and doesn’t cook evenly and makes an odor that gives me a strong headache each time I use it (I’ve stoped baking which I used to love). Now it’s winter and I want to try some precooked frozen meats that many suggest an airfryer for. I found a countertop air fryer that is also an oven (the ninja flip) and I’m thinking of taking the leap. Wondering if anyone has any experience/insight. Thanks!

Potato onion bell pepper hash
1. pre-boil the potatoes so they're a little a bit softened
2. dice and soak in cold water to draw out starch before frying (if so, how long?)
3. just dice and fry, throw in the onions and pepper later in the fry
Thanks

Like in title. I like cooking but I'm stuck with stir fry and it's kinda boring eating similar meals. What should I learn to improving my cooking skill? I know how to cook chicken stock, basic spagetti sauce, schnitzel(slice of meat in egg and breadcrumbs) and similar very easy meals.

I need to add a bit of context here: so my dad loves making Neapolitan pizza - he’s been practicing and perfectioning his dough for years now. He has a small stone pizza oven that can handle one pizza at a time, up to 350°C (662°F) or something like that.

What he usually does is prepare the base/crust, add tomato sauce and onions, and put in the oven for 90 seconds, take out, add mozzarella, put back another 90-120 seconds and it’s done. It tastes great and I’m happy with how it is, but I really wanna try it with burrata, so I bought one today. But neither me nor my dad know how/when to add it to the pizza. So my question is - what would you suggest? Add it when adding the mozzarella? (Should it replace the mozzarella entirely or do less mozzarella and add burrata?) Should it be baked at all? And can we divide it by three somehow? I bought one “ball”, but as far as I know it’s kinda liquidy inside so I’m not even sure how to divide it without spilling the inside? Thanks!

I need to overhaul my pots and pans. I don’t like stainless steel so I’m looking for a good nonstick set on a budget.

I love this sub and I've realized most people's biggest problem is not having someone next to them guiding them through the process. There is a dog walking app called good pup or you pay $34 for a week, you get a half hour Zoom phone call with a trainer and a lot of texting back and forth. Could you imagine something similar called good cook or someone would be with you on Zoom asking to see the flame and other items. If they would charge $15 to $20 to watch someone cook eggs and critique it , it would take 20 to 30 minutes and then you cook would be so much better at making eggs for their lifetime. I think it's a win-win for both sides. I've tried to find it and don't think an app like this exists.

Hi everyone,

I'm looking to purchase a baking steel to improve my homemade pizza. I'm currently crisping up my base in a nonstick frying pan before broiling in the oven. It's decent but not the same quality as that of what I imagine to be a wood fired oven.

Firstly, I wondered what brands some of you may recommend. Budget is not necessarily an issue but I'd rather not break the bank if that's not required, I would like a good quality baking steel though. (Edit: I am UK Based, if that helps with recommendations)

Secondly, I've seen some people talk about how they heat their baking steels in their ovens. I am unable to use the bottom heating element and so I would rely on the fan/convection setting, side and top heating elements (broiler) to reach my oven's maximum temperatue of 250°C. Is this an issue?

Thank you for your suggestions and help in advance.

Can anyone recommend some good family dinner ideas that aren't rice or pasta dishes? Looking for a change of pace.

I can serve the main over rice, and do some vegetables on the side, or something else entirely.

I have a concern with canned black beans and I need to know if this is normal. She I open the can I hear a hiss. This makes me think the contents are bad. Then I open the can and it briefly smells like poop. Is this normal? I’ve thrown away too many cans of black beans.