Food i don't know how to cook, can anyone recommend a good starter cookbook?

shoppingisme

shoppingisme

O.G.
May 18, 2007
346
1
#1
i don't know how to cook very well and i don't like to cook, so i'd like to find a cookbook that has SIMPLE recipes. i don't want something that has more than 10 ingredients and takes more than 30 min to make...don't like rachel ray's cookbook so i'm just looking for any suggestions anyone can offer.
 
#2
"How To Cook Everything", by Mark Bittman.

Subtitled, "Simple Recipes for Great Food"

Nice thick cookbook that even gives the basics of how to cook a certain meat, a vegetable, etc,. and then gives recipes, too. I really like it, and go to it a lot.
 
#5
I also like the Betty Crocker. I also tried the Joy of Cooking when I first started cooking; half of the recipes were not very tasty (not a function of my ability to cook at that time - I tried cooking them again after becoming a fairly decent cook and they were still unsatisfying).
 
#8
If you're just starting, just figure out what you want to eat, type it in, and search for simple recipes. This is how I taught myself how to cook after getting married 3 years ago. I am a less than 10 ingredient type of person too. Don't like Rachel Ray either. If you want an actual "book,":

For Asian food (my fav), Korean cookbooks:
A Korean Mother's Cooking Notes
Dok Suni
Simple, TDF recipes. YUM!

Honestly, I would recommend not even wasting money on a book and just surf the web for recipes. Minus the books above, I just go on the web and do searches. I cook about 5 days/wk. For American food,
www.foodnetwork.com
www.epicurious.com
www.allrecipes.net
www.cooks.com
They rate simplicity and stars, just type in what you want to eat :yes:. I always skip things that have lots of ingredients, even if they're highly rated.
Asian food:
www.uwajimaya.com Everything is great, love the Hawaiian oxtail soup, so simple and delish!
www.recipesource.com No pics, but if you know what you want, all the recipes are there. Even for dim sum.
www.chinesefood.about.com

Good luck.:wlae:
 
#13
I also use Mark Bittman's books and would recommend "The Minimalist Cooks At Home."

I like making my own sauces and stock, but when I am pressed for time, I look for shortcuts and have found recipes in these cookbooks easy and quick:

"Almost From Scratch" and "Homemade In A Hurry" by Andrew Schloss
"Cheap Fast Food" by Beverly Mills and Alicia Ross

I order from www.ecookbooks.com.
 
#14
There's a saying in my house when someone asks how to cook something, tell if meat is done, or carve a turkey....I say "Go ask Julia." LOL I refer them to Julia Child's classic "The Way To Cook". In my opinion it's THE classic and I prefer it to The Joy of Cooking (which has sat unread on my cookbook shelf for many years).
 
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