Were you taught to cook or did you teach yourself?

Hi JenInTN, Nice topic! When i was a little girl, my mom always told me to learn some cooking or no one will marry me.lol. I learned some of the cooking skill from my mom, then i cooked some dish by my own. I think learn from some TV show is good idea too. My cooking still no improvement so far. I mean i can show it to my family and they will eat it all and be nice to me. But if there are guests out there waiting for food, i don't think i have that confident cook for them. No way.

In our homes, girls learn to cook from their mothers and other elderly ladies. Slowly y learn things and start coking on their own. I fact, one learns cooking throughout the life.

I was taught the basics, when I was very young...but the rest was all me. ^_^ Nowadays, I tend to learn things by trial and error, 'cause it's more fun that way. Since I've learned alot already, this method isn't too bad as I don't utterly fail at creative cooking as much as I succeed.

A mixture of both. I mean no one learns by him/herself but a teacher is always there an active one or a passive one, it must be with him/her. For me I have tried to cook in my childhood many times but every time my mum stopped me from doing it and she was asking me to concentrated on my studies as well as a my sports rather than kitchen. But I did use to see how she cooks and it helped me a lot when I lived alone in New Delhi with my friends. I am now a good cook, mind you!

My mother being the obsessive cleaning freak that she is, is a brilliant cook and has taught me nothing! She did not like me in her kitchen because she was always worrying that I would mess it up! By the time I left home all I knew was how to cook was omelettes and scones. We lived on daily omelettes for a couple of weeks when we first got married and decided that I better learn! I did cooking classes and nowadays I can manage simple meals and I am not inclined to learn any more because to be frank, I hate it! I hate cooking; all that work for a fifteen minute meal and dishes to do! I have not made scones since leaving home either!

Um, both really. I mostly taught myself, but my mother is a good cook. I am kind of disappointed that she didn't teach me more, but she wasn't one to push anything, and I didn't show an interest in cooking as a kid, so I can't blame her. I don't find it too terribly difficult. I have learned to cook all kinds of things, from family recipes to exotic things. I do call my mom occasionally for help with a family recipe. I have found the best cookbook for those that just need help with basic cooking. It is "How To Cook Everything" by Mark Bittman. It tells you how to cook everything, from how to roast a bird to how to make that perfect pie. It is my first source I consult before attempting any dish for the first time!

Hi! Jen! I was taught to cook. I did not learn it at my own. Whatever cooking I know, I learnt it from my respected mother. However, I do not get much opportunity to show my skills in the kitchen because my better half is a very perfect cook..........LOL!

was I taught or did I teach myself.... well the best answer to that is "Yes!" I did get pointers from a variety of people growing up, but for the most part I taught myself.

My cooking is influenced by my mother, as she made one mean crockpot stew with the tenderest beef with pasta... I also love my stepfather's meat loaf although my version is a lot different, more like turkey burger-crumbles with all sorts of what not tossed in for giggles. * I'm a hodge podge of different influences from family and TV, (yes Mom is a junkie for cooking shows) and even have herbs growing on my window sill.

I learned how to cook partly from my mother and partly my own own determination to learn. When I was still a kid, I helped my mom in doing simple tasks while she cooks. I did the paring of the vegetables, cut the meat into pieces until I learned how to sautee. When I became older, I experimented on cooking until I learned how to cook.

I don't remember being taught how to cook. I think it just came to me because I always had to help my mom cook or my older sisters. I guess then you can say I was taught how to cook but I just don't think of it that way. All you need to do to learn to cook is get some recipes and just follow them. You can get recipes from grocery stores sometimes and from newspaper articles and online. So there is a lot of places to get some and it doesn't have to cost money by buying books. Well good luck with your cooking and keep it up because you can only get better the more you do it.

I learned to cook from watching my parents and grandparents cook. I knew what I liked. I have had some culinary schooling but i never learned professionally. I just picked up what I know from home and from working in Restaurants as well. Before I ever worked in a restaurant I was preparing meals for my family at home though. I got good with breakfast at a young age. Eggs and such. Graduated the making dinner. Today I can make anything you want. If I haven't made it, I can watch it being made once and I got it. Most people really want me to open a restaurant. I actually had plans to but things were set back. We'll see what happens this year.

Hey there! No one taught me how to cook. But there were times that I would ask my parents how to cook some dishes such as Chinese and Arabic food. At first, of course, you'll fail. But through practice you'll learn how to do it well.

I learned how to cook back in school when i was on my fifth grade. I learned it on our Home Economic class. We were thought how to prepare the table, how to make breakfast, the different recipes you can make from eggs, how to make lunch, desserts and dinner, how to grill and many more. The final test would be to prepare a complete meal. Though i really don't try cooking at home but at least i have the idea whenever i REALLY need to cook. lol! It was fun learning though because i get to taste other groups' food. lol!

My mom is the best I know. I watched her cook and from there I learned. She taught some recipes and it was so cool. My friends would love the food I cook for them and they would ask me how I learned it. I will proudly say that it is my moms recipe. Until now my mom use to cook for the whole family and we all enjoy her delicious food.

Hello JenInTN, I learned by myself. I come from a big family and I have six elder sisters. When I was young, I didn't do the house chores including cooking. When I get married like four years ago, I learned to cook so that I can cook good meals for my husband. At first, it was hard. I learned from the book and the biggest help came from my eldest sister. I think I can be proud of my cooking skill right now though I still don't have confidence to cook for others except for my family members.

I mostly taught myself to cook after I left home. In the first days, I made a lot of mistakes, and the food looked bad and tasted worse. Little by little, I came to know how much water to put to cook rice, how to cut nicely, how much spices to put, and how long to cook. Children need to be taught the house chores, including cooking. It helps to develop their independence, and in turn confidence.

Some things I was shown and other things I learned on my own. Any one who can follow directions can learn from reading recipes and watching videos.

In my case I learned what I ate,everytime I went out to dine,I always check out all the ingredients,if I liked it,I'll try to cook it at home,before it's kinda trial and error,but now I can really cook for myself and my friends,the easiest for me is grilling,but now I can cook my fav dish Paella...those food channels are a great help to learn how to really cook edible food. :-)

I had to learn on my own too. I love to experiment and try new things. One thing I like to do is take a standard recipe and make it healthier. I love to get cookbooks (I have a ton), and try new things, but I usually don't stick exactly to the recipe. =) At one time in my life I was bedridden for a number of months. Did a lot of TV watching. Of course, what interested me was the food network (as well as the diy home makeover shows...not into Soaps). I was amazed at what I learned, the tips and tricks that I picked up from those cooking shows. When I got better, I went on a cooking frenzy...and I redecorated my house. Inspiration! =) My husband loves it. =) Hope you're having a wonderful day!