Whether you’re a natural cook or you “just get by” in the kitchen, you’ve probably inherited all of your culinary knowledge from your mum and when the time comes, you’ll pass it all down to your kids.
From following the recipe to making sure there’s a decent portion of wine thrown in, here are 10 things our mums taught us about cooking.
Stick to the recipe
Experimentation in the kitchen usually leads to one thing: hunger. They are professional chefs for a reason and it says to include a particular ingredient for a reason – that reason being that it makes the dish edible and delicious.
Go easy with the seasoning
There’s seasoning and then there’s ruining. The distinction is very important. (However you never tell her if she’s used to much salt and pepper.)
Preheat the oven/oil the pan/warm the plates
Failing to prepare is preparing to fail… although we have to admit that the third one usually falls by the wayside. With a group of hungry mouths around the table and a messy house, warm plates is way down on our list of priorities.
Don’t skimp on the wine
Be it in the food or as an accompaniment or while you’re actually cooking, nothing beats a good glass (or two) of vino. Hey, it’s the end of the day, we’ve earned it!
Vegetables aren’t vegetables without a bit of butter thrown in
This is why mum’s dinners were the best and this why our kids will think ours are the best. Butter is a good friend that should always be around the table (within reason of course).
Taste before you serve
It’s the only way to learn and ensure that you’re not giving your family something that tastes disgusting. She also told us that when entertaining, always have a takeaway menu close at hand in case things don’t work out as planned.
Check your spaghetti is ready by throwing it at the wall
While we’ve heard that this isn’t strictly true, we still do it. Any excuse to throw food and take out a bit of frustration after a long day.
There’s no such thing as too much
Portion control? Don’t make us laugh. We’ll take another helping and then we’ll have dessert. Sure we’re a growing family.
You’ll never make it as good as her, she’ll never make it as good as granny
Unfortunately this is true and there’s nothing anyone can do about it.
Always clean up after yourself
A necessary evil and a shortcut to learning about the joys of “steeping the dishes.” Now, if only we could teach the little ones to do this with their toys…
