I love cooking, but because my mom is too much of a bimbo and my dad too much of a “manly man” to ever step into the kitchen, I never had the chance to learn from them. I grew up on delivery, takeout, eating out, and the incredible food made by the amazing woman who cooks for our family. I became deeply interested in cooking at the start of my teenage years and taught myself through the internet, books, that same woman, and other relatives.
I worked in a group home in college, and part of the job was cooking. When I started, my cooking level was pretty much spaghetti and sauce from a jar. Fortunately for me, there was a set menu with recipes to follow.
I’ve learned quite a bit since then, but I’m still very much a “mechanical” cook. I’m good at following recipes, but I won’t typically be able to improvise a meal with whatever is on hand. I’ll take a look at what we have and start searching for likely-looking recipes.