I usually describe my cooking style as “minimal effort.” Throw things in a pot, apply heat, read Lemmy posts, stir occasionally, watch videos, and eat it when it looks sufficiently edible. Nothing fancy.
This time, though, I somehow ended up cooking three things at once. If you had seen me, I probably looked like someone who thinks they know what they’re doing but is actually just winging it extra hard.
Here’s how it happened:
I was hungry, so I opened the freezer. Five fish fingers and some frozen veggies. Tossed them in the air fryer. Done. But then I realized that wouldn’t be enough for everyone.
Checked the pantry. Canned tuna, beans, crushed tomatoes. Good enough. Threw those in a wok pan with some oat cream. Technically a meal, I guess. Eh, close enough. Should be fit for human consumption.
Then I realized one family membrer always wants pasta. Fine! Boiled some pasta in a small pot.
And that’s when it hit me: I was cooking three things at once. I don’t think I’ve ever done that before. Still not a chef, but for a moment, I felt almost competent. Is that normal? Anything like this ever happened to you?
That’s the first step. On day, you’ll wake up grilling your favorite veggie and wonder what happened.
Anything runny made either of legume or vegetable make a great sauce for pasta or rice. If it is too bland add salt.
Congrats! I used to work in kitchens so I organize my space so I can do that actively, but it’s overkill except for a couple of times a year. It gets easier with practice and you can learn where efficiency gains can be made to make the whole thing faster (including clean-up i.e. dish-as-you-go).
And it felt bizarrely efficient too.
Anyway, got any pasta tips? Are there any obvious little things that make a big difference?
Not really. Don’t overcook it is probably the most important. Don’t overcrowd a pot and don’t use too little water. Some people have fairly dogmatic answers (you must add this much salt, you must add oil to the water, etc.) but I’ve never really found them to bare out.
Big pot, enough water, follow the box instructions at least the first time (buy timers if you don’t have them), and adjust in small increments if you feel the pasta is over-/under-done. If you live at any significant elevation difference from sea level, package directions for boiling anything aren’t going to be accurate so bare that in mind.
Thanks! I’ve violated all of the rules already, so I guess it’s time to try something that actually works.
Not a big comment, but my wife says “Well done you!”
LOL. Thanks!
Looks great! It feels great to start cooking and you are going to be saving a lot of money. I’d recommend using the bottom left one for you big frying pan for more even heating btw! And now you can get some nice fresh veggies, give them a little bit of olive oil and some seasoning, and you are a pro. A lot of cooking is just about time management and making sure you don’t burn things haha
It’s a wok pan , so the top view doesn’t tell you the whole truth. Yes, I know, a regular pot would have been just fine. I just grabbed whatever happened to be conveniently within arm’s reach. 😃
A regular pan would definitely sit neatly on the bottom left circle.
Ooooh that makes so much sense! I need to pick up one of those flat bottom woks; they seem like they are fun to cook with.
It’s my fanciest pan. That’s why it’s always easily available. Also, the flat bottom and wide sloping sides are a surprisingly convenient combination.
You may not feel like a chef but you are at least a very capable cook who can juggle a few different dishes. Nice work!
It would be more accurate to call you a chef because you made kitchen magic happen. You made a meal without a recipe. Very nice work!
Oh recipes… 🫢
Oops. Totally forgot about those.Normally, I just throw all sorts of tasty ingredients together without worrying too much about the details. Recipes usually require ingredients I don’t have, make things too complicated, or both. I’m just making some ”generic improv stew” every time with whatever happens to be available.
Anyway, thanks for the compliments!
