From cookbooks to classes, newlywed gets advice on how to up their cooking skills

Lillie-Beth Brinkman, Callie Athey and Helen Ford Wallace
·3 min read

QUESTION: I am a newlywed and would like to learn to be a great cook at home. When I was young my family ate out a lot, so I don’t have much experience in cooking. Any ideas of what I can do to learn how to make fantastic tasting food?

CALLIE’S ANSWER: The Food Channel is great. I know lots of people like HelloFresh or something like that so they don't have to buy all the ingredients. Good ole cookbooks are great too!

LILLIE-BETH’S ANSWER: There are several ways to start piecing together your cooking skills. An old-fashioned cookbook is a great place to start. Peruse a bookstore and find one with step-by-step recipes you like. If there isn’t something you understand how to do, you can try an internet search.

Often, cookbooks produced by local people and institutions will have more everyday recipes that are easy to follow, so I’d start with some of those. Two that come to mind are cookbooks from the Junior League of Oklahoma City and The Pioneer Woman Ree Drummond.

Also, look for food bloggers using social media media sites. They often share detailed instructions on how to prepare and cook their recipes. Find a recipe that looks yummy and easy to tackle and go from there.

Finally, look into a meal delivery subscription service like HomeChef, Hello Fresh, Blue Apron and others. I have only tried Hello Fresh, but I enjoy its recipes — you pick the ones from that week’s selection that sound good and they send you almost all of the ingredients (minus things like salt or olive oil) and instructions for cooking them. These are a great way to get started cooking and learn some things before you’re ready to launch out on your own. You can also look for cooking classes at area kitchen stores and at local vocational-technical schools and community colleges. Often they’ll feature one recipe in an evening.

HELEN’S ANSWER: It does take work and practice to become a good cook, but you can have the best time learning. Start with a cookbook with basic recipes. Notice what your friends are cooking and get recipes and ideas from them. Take a cooking class and try new recipes you see in the newspaper. Check online for recipes and instructions for dishes that you and your husband might like. Involve your husband in the cooking process. His pasta dish might be your favorite one! Be aware of healthy choices when cooking. Keep your recipes organized and make notes of how you like the dish turned out.

GUEST’S ANSWER: JaNae Williams, Food & Dining Reporter, The Oklahoman: The easiest way to get better at cooking is to give yourself the freedom to try new things. Make learning to cook a fun adventure for you and your husband by finding items you like eating and searching for recipes that sound good with those ingredients. If you are big fans of chicken, look for new chicken recipes online and try them out. Just don't limit yourself because it's something you haven't done before. Many recipes even have step-by-step video instructions.

More: Everybody wants to be a chef: Five places in OKC where you can learn to cook

Also, don't be afraid of shortcuts in the kitchen; tools like the Instant Pot and slow cooker can make difficult tasks much easier for a beginner cook. If you want to learn more about techniques look for classes at local tech schools and stores like Sur La Table in cities near you where you can often sign up for one-night classes that focus on a certain meal but teach techniques that can be applied to many more foods. Most importantly have fun and remember that making mistakes sometimes leads to the best dishes. After all, chocolate chip cookies, Nashville hot chicken and chimichangas were all accidents!

Since 2009, Callie, Lillie-Beth and Helen have written this generational etiquette column. They also include guest responses from a wide range of ages each week. So many years later, Callie is 20-plus; Lillie-Beth is 40-plus and Helen is 60-plus. To ask an etiquette question, email helen.wallace@cox.net.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: 20-40-60 etiquette: Advising a newlywed on how to be a better cook