When I first started to teach adults who knew absolutely nothing about cooking, I used some of the same methods I had for teaching children. I placed a dozen children’s cookbooks on a table and asked the children as they arrived to choose the book they thought would help them the most. I did the same thing with the adults.
The results were the same with both age groups.
Both groups chose straightforward books–ones that didn’t have cartoons or treat the subject lightly, or that were packed with sidebars and pictures. The students preferred a simple presentation, without too much to read on each page. They also liked recipes with just a few ingredients.
But one difference between the children and adult novices was that the children learned quickly and happily because they didn’t consider the consequences; they had no fear of failure.
Adults, on the other hand, were terrified of failure and possible embarrassment. If only we could learn all we needed to know by the time we were 12 years old, how easy things would be.
It helped the adult beginners to have some small successes early. Many recipes that could be baked in the oven–baking powder biscuits, baked polenta, roast chicken with vegetables–gave the students confidence.
Before beginning the class, I asked the adults to read the three recipes I intended to teach–usually a simple menu–and to point out which instructions they found puzzling. Most were baffled by basic directions, the kind of instructions that even most beginner cookbooks assume readers can do.
Adults also feel as uneasy shopping for groceries as they do cooking, which is easy to understand with the vast numbers of products in supermarkets. The rice section, for instance, contains short grain, long grain, brown rice, wild rice, boxes of partly cooked rice and converted rice–totally baffling to a newcomer.
Working with novices, I also discovered how important descriptive words are–as they are in learning any new craft–and how confusing it can be if you take them too literally. When we were exploring the produce section of the supermarket, for example, I asked the students if anyone had bought and used green onions. One student replied that she had–but she had cut the white part off and discarded it because onions are called “green” onions.
Many of us are lonely and live with today’s mantra: “I’m so busy and have no time.” Buying takeout food, then eating it quickly and alone, often in front of a TV or computer screen, only contributes to the feeling of isolation.
But cooking at home is a wonderful antidote. Your world narrows into a personal space where you can share food and yourself with others. Sitting with friends and family around a table, sharing a meal that you’ve prepared with care, remains the most benevolent of human rituals.
BEGINNER’S ESSENTIAL TOOLS
The following list or equipment will serve your needs in preparating, cooking and baking basic recipes, it’s from Learning to Cook With Marion Cunningham.”
2-cup saucepan with lid
2-quart saucepan with lid
6-quart saucepan with lid
8-inch frying pan with lid
10- or 12-inch saute pan with lid
12-by-17-inch roasting pan
8-cup ovenproof casserole
Paring knife
7- to 8-inch chef’s knife
Bread knife with serrated blade
Plastic or wooden cutting board
2 rubber spatulas: one small and one medium-size
Metal spatula
Wooden spoon
Large metal spoon
Stainless-steel slotted spoon
Soup ladle
2 wire-mesh sieves: one 3-inch diameter, one 7-inch diameter
Colander
Flat hand grater
Citrus juicer
Instant-read thermometer
Bottle opener
Can opener
Set of measuring spoons: 1 tablespoon, 1 teaspoon,
1/2 teaspoon, 1/4 teaspoon
Set of dry measuring cups
1- and 2-cup measuring cups with pouring spouts
1- and 2-cup jars with screw-on lids
8-inch wire whisk
Electric blender
For baking:
1-quart mixing bowl
3-quart mixing bowl
8 small Pyrex cups
12-cup muffin pan
2 (8-inch) round cake pans
2 (9-inch) round cake pans
8-by-8 inch cake pan or baking dish
9-by-13 inch baking dish
2 cookie sheets
Large wooden rolling pin
Hand-held egg beater
2 wire cooling racks
2-inch round cookie cutter
Toothpicks
TOP 10 MARION-ISMS
Author and cooking instructor Marion Cunningham uses the following tips to help new cooks.
1. “When cooking, there is one main rule: Taste, taste and taste again.”
Problems with a recipe often can be remedied while preparing a dish. It’s much harder, if not impossible, to tweak afterward.
2. “The oven is our friend.”
You don’t need to watch over something if it’s in the oven. Use the time to enjoy your dinner guests.
3. “With each dish, try to achieve one taste.”
Too many ingredients result in a culinary cacophony.
4. “Your hands remember things because they’re closer to the ingredients.”
Don’t be timid about touching the food you cook.
5. “There are no substitutes, except when you are forced by fate to substitute.”
If you do substitute, keep track of what you’re changing so you can replicate the recipe.
6. “Butter will smooth out sharp tastes and rough edges.”
Use butter as a flavor tool.
7. “No matter what the recipe, things can change.”
Slight differences in ingredients, room temperature, humidity, lunar gravitational pulls, solar flares or other unknown conditions can affect how a dish turns out. So always taste as you go and make note of any changes.
8. “Salt and sugar are instruments of flavor.” They can help marry ingredients in a recipe.
They’re usually best used when the dish is cooking, not after.
9. “Home food is not restaurant food.”
You don’t have sous chefs and busboys in your kitchen, so keep it simple.
10. “Your attitude comes through the food.” If cooking a particular dish is true drudgery, don’t do it. Cook what you like to cook.
THE TECHNIQUES
Here are instructions for three basic kitchen skills–the easiest ways to chop a tomato, bell pepper and onion.
How to chop a tomato
Use a sharp, smooth-edged knife or a good serrated-edge knife.
1. Cut off the stern top and discard.
2. Cut the tomato on a chopping board into about 6 slices crosswise
3. Stack the slices into two or three piles.
4. Cut the tomato slices into bite-size pieces
How to prepare a bell pepper
1. Slice off the stem top.
2. Cut the pepper in half lengthwise.
3. Remove the seeds and veins with a paring knife and discard.
4. To slice: Stack the halves and cut the pepper into strips 1/4-inch wide.
5. To chop: Line up the strips side by side; then, holding them in a bunch, chop crosswise into little pieces.
Hot to peel, slice or chop an onion
1. To peel: Using a paring knife, slice off the fuzzy brown root end and the stem top of the onion and discard. Peel off the papery outer skin of the onion with your fingers or a paring knife and discard.
2. To slice: Cut the onion in half from stem top to root end. Put the onion halves cut side down on a cutting board. Cut slices crosswise from each half. Cut slices about 1/8-inch thick. As you slice, curl under the ends of the fingers of your hand holding the onion, so you don’t cut yourself. Move your hand back a little after each slice.
3. To chop: Slice the onion in half from the stem top through the root end. Place each half flat side down on a cutting board. Holding a half firmly with one hand, make about seven vertical slices from the stem end to the root end, but don’t slice completely through the root end (this will make it easier to slice). Next, slice crosswise, letting the little pieces fall. Repeat with the second half of the onion.
BASIC RECIPES
The following recipes are good for novice cooks. They have few ingrdients and a high probability of success.
POLENTA BAKED WITH VEGETABLES
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 45 minutes
Yield: 4 entree servings or 6 side-dish servings
1 bunch fresh spinach, or 1/2 box frozen chopped spinach, thawed
1 cup polenta meal (use yellow cornmeal or an Italian brand of polenta, not instant polenta)
3 1/4 cups lukewarm water
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
1/4 cup olive oil
1 large ripe tomato, cored, chopped into bite-size pieces
1/2 green bell pepper, chopped into bite-size pieces
1/2 yellow onion, peeled, chopped
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Polenta is the Italian version of our cornmeal mush. It has become popular here recently, perhaps because the Italians have shown us different ways to liven it up with other ingredients. A good thing about this dish is that you can put it in the oven and forget about it for a half-hour or so while you prepare the salad or set the table.
1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. If using fresh spinach, remove any large, tough stems; wash leaves. Pile about half of the spinach on cutting board; chop into pieces the size of large postage stamps. Press leaves firmly into measuring cup; measure out 1 1/2 cups. (Wrap and store any extra spinach for future use.) If using frozen spinach, squeeze out any excess water with your hands.
2. Put polenta meal, water, salt and olive oil into 8-inch square baking dish; stir with fork until blended. Add tomato, pepper, spinach and onion to polenta; stir to distribute vegetables evenly.
3. Put baking pan on center rack of oven; bake 30 minutes. Check to see if liquid is boiling around edges of pan. If so, leave temperature as is. If not, turn oven up to 400. Bake 15 minutes longer, or until all water has been absorbed.
4. Remove pan from oven; place on heat-proof counter, trivet or hot pad. Sprinkle Parmesan cheese evenly over top; let stand 5 minutes.
5. Cut polenta into squares; lift portions from pan with spatula. Serve warm.
Note: If you have any leftover polenta, fry squares of it in olive oil until golden on each side. Sprinkle with Parmesan.
Nutrition information per serving (based on 6):
Calories ………… 215 Fat ……….. 12 g Saturated fat ….. g
% calories from fat .. 50 Cholesterol … 7 mg Sodium ……. 670 mg
Carbohydrates ……. 7 g Protein ……. 22 g Fiber ……… 3.4 g
GREEN HERB SAUCE
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Yield: About 1 cup
2 lemons
5 garlic cloves, peeled, finely chopped
1 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves
1cup chopped fresh basil leaves
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley leaves
1 cup olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
This sauce is good on baked potatoes, hearty fish like salmon, scrambled eggs, added to a bowl of beans or broth and, of course, on salads. To give the sauce a peppy edge, add 2 tablespoons capers and omit the lemon. This variation is very good on steak or beef roast.
1. Grate zest (outermost yellow skin, not the white part) from both lemons. Halve lemons; squeeze juice from them.
2. Combine garlic, lemon zest and lemon juice in bowl. Stir in chopped cilantro, basil and parsley. Add olive oil. Stir until well blended. Add salt and pepper; stir to blend, then taste it. Add more salt, if desired.
Nutrition information per tablespoon:
Calories ………… 125 Fat ………… 14 g Saturated fat .. 1.8 g
% calories from fat .. 95 Cholesterol … 10 mg Sodium …….. 150 mg
Carbohydrates ….. 1.4 g Protein ……. 0.3 g Fiber ………. 0.5 g
LEEK AND POTATO SOUP
Preparation time 20 minutes
Cooking time: 45 minutes
Yield: 6 servings
4 leeks
1 1/2 pounds russet potatoes, peeled
1/2 stick (1/4 cup) butter
6 cups chicken broth
Salt to taste
6 teaspoons butter for serving
1. To prepare leeks: Cut tops off leeks where the color begins to turn from very light green to darker green. Cut off root ends; discard, along with the tops. Cut leeks in half lengthwise. Separate the layers with your fingers and rinse under cold running water to remove all dirt. Cut crosswise into 1/4-inch pieces.
2. Cut potatoes in half lengthwise. Place halves cut sides down on cutting board; slice crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick pieces.
3. Melt 1/4 cup butter in a heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add leeks and potatoes; use large spoon to distribute vegetables over bottom of pot. Cook about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. If leeks begin to brown, turn down heat.
4. Add broth; stir to mix leeks, potatoes and broth. Heat to boil; lower heat so soup is simmering. Taste for salt; add a little if soup tastes flat. Cover; let soup simmer 35 minutes. Soup is done when potatoes are soft.
5. Mash the vegetables, or put soup through a blender or food processor if you want it completely smooth. Put pat of butter in each bowl. Pour in soup; serve hot.
Nutrition information per serving:
Calories ………… 285 Fat ……….. 17 g Saturated fat .. 10 g
% calories from fat .. 52 Cholesterol .. 40 mg Sodium ……. 945 mg
Carbohydrates ……. 7 g Protein ……. 27 g Fiber ……… 2.6 g
