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We usually think about acquiring good cooking habits and ways to improve our masterchef skills by implementing novelties, tips and tricks, and going out of our comfort zone. In fact, we previously wrote a handful of useful posts just about that and you can find them here, here and here.
But the truth is, unless we earn our bread from cooking, most of us are pretty susceptible to daily kitchen mishaps, faux pas and questionable recipes that would make any chef’s hair stand on end. “What bad cooking habits get on your nerves?” asked one Redditor on the Cooking community and added “For me it’s when people use the highest flame setting to cook EVERYTHING. It is wasteful, overcooks food, overboils everything and it really does ruin pans.”
The thread immediately resonated with cooking aficionados who saw it as a perfect opportunity to spill all the bad cooking habits that totally annoy them. And it’s not looking pretty.
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#1
"I can't get my lasagna to taste as good as yours."
"Did you follow the recipe?"
"Yeah, but I don't really like pork so I substituted chicken, and instead of salt, I added extra sugar, because I prefer sugar. "
#2
Putting no salt in anything and expecting the salt shaker at the table to do the job. Nothing seasoned at the table with a salt shaker will ever even approach the flavor of something that was seasoned throughout the cooking process.
Kimi Tomminello 2 years ago (edited)
Some people have to cook family meals for people with dietary restrictions. I HATE not bring able to use salt when preparing certain holiday meals because my dad is sodium restricted.
#3
Parents who only steam veggies and barely use salt or pepper on them and then act all shocked when their kids don't like it. Of course they won't like that, most adults would be peeved getting something like that.
Something as simple as roasting veggies with some basic herbs and a good olive oil can make a huge difference.
#4
10 years in kitchens here so bear with me...
crowding pans, moving/scraping cut ingredients with the sharp side of knife, knife in the sink, steaming most veggies, not salting pasta water, watering down beer for brats, way too much water when boiling pasta, adding garlic too early & burning it, not toasting buns, not letting leftovers cool before putting in tupper-ware & fridge, etc etc etc.
edit: add to that impatiently flipping/mixing around food while its cooking! whether it's burgers/steaks/veggies whatever! sometimes you need a lil color/char
but also if someone else cooks for me, i will love whatever it is sincerely and not say a word.
#5
Boiling vegetables until they are mush. My husband didn’t eat vegetables for more than half of his life because he thought they were disgusting. I found out it was because his grandmother just boiled everything and then covered it in that nasty “0 calorie” spray butter. ROAST THEM. SAUTEE. GRILL. please don’t boil veg unless for something specific like potatoes or you need to blanch something.
Huddo's sister 2 years ago
Both my sets of grandparent did this, which meant for a long time my parents did too, because they didn't know how to do it better.
#6
My mother’s glass cutting board. I lack the words to explain the torture of using a glass cutting board. Awful. I did finally buy her a couple good knives that she won’t use. This year I am getting her a nice wooden board for her to not use.
Foxxy (The Original) 2 years ago
Oh yes, my parents had a glass chopping board when I was a kid and I hated the sound out made.
#7
Stop opening the oven. If you're looking, it ain't cooking!
Jon Steensen 2 years ago
especially for suffles and profiterolles, which will collapse and be spoiled by opening the oven too soon.
#8
My husband “seasons the pan” instead of seasoning the food. As in, he sprinkles salt/pepper/Italian seasoning into a hot pan and then adds plain, unseasoned protein on top. He seems to think this accomplishes the same thing as seasoning the meat directly. It does not.
#9
I can’t deal when they put the onion and garlic in at the same time and expect the onions to be caramelised. I need more time than the garlic will allow !
#10
Following the recipe even when your food is clearly going to sh*t. Looks burnt at 20 mins? Maybe don't cook it for 25.
#11
There’s a guy I work with that makes me cry when he cooks a steak. Toss a cold steak in a cold pan and cook on med-low, flips it at 15 minutes for another round. Cooked meat should not be gray.
#12
More of a lack of a habit than a habit, but not sharpening knives regularly is one of the worst things to do to your knives. And 9 out of 10 times, people cut themselves on a dull knife, not a sharp one. Its also just better for the food you are going to end up eating; your veggies wont be so bruised, your steaks wont be that little bit extra tenderized from forcing a dull knife through it. The dullest knife ive ever seen couldnt slice through the skin of a baked potato. So it is in your interest and the food's also.
#13
Every. Single. Thing. My. Dad. Cooks.
He puts good meat in a slow cooker with nothing but water. Slowly boiled meat. Yum.
Puts all ingredients in a pan before he heats the pan
He uses a glass cutting board
"As far as I'm concerned, the microwave is the best way to cook _____."
A thick layer of aerosol cooking spray on meat before grilling it.
Never give this man a ribeye.
Lance d'Boyle 2 years ago (edited)
My Dad cooked one meal a year and acted like it was going to be a gourmet experience for all. I remember him describing the best way to cook green beans: put them in a casserole, with french onion soup mix and water and cook slowly for an hour. My step mother and I looked at each other and said "uh, no". Steam them for a minute or two and put some butter on. Let the green beans be green beans and speak for themselves. I think my father was thinking slow cooked meat is yummy so slow cooked beans would be too.
#14
I have had to teach so many of my friends to TASTE THEIR FOOD AS THEY COOK IT. Shocked me that apparently that wasn’t obvious to some people
#15
Dirty cooks. Leaving the knife dirty, not wiping down the counter, cross contaminating everything.
"I don't cook with salt."
And people who only use shortcuts that get mad because they tried my recipe and it didn't work.
#16
Putting the noodles into the water before it's boiled, like legit the water is straight out of the tap and the stove's not on yet. Read the goddamn instructions, boiling water takes longer than 3 minutes and thats why your ramen is fucking mushy.
#17
When people press down hard on everything they’re cooking...I am thinking of one person in particular that is an absolute dumpster fire in the kitchen. Making pancakes? She flips them and then mashes them down with the spatula! Fried eggs? Smash em!
Also when people don’t let meat rest after it’s cooked. Or cut with the grain.
Al Christensen 2 years ago
For me, heat is part of the joy of eating meat. So what if some juices run from the meat when it's cut. The juices mix with other food on the plate anyway, so it all gets consumed.
#18
My mother uses metal utensils when cooking in our Teflon pans, then complains that they wear so easily. Even AFTER I've explained you never use metal in the pans, she does it anyway and says she forgot.
We have gone through 3 non-stick pans so far.
#19
Plating food, then moving a screaming hot pan to the sink and dumping cold water all over it. Had to explain to a friend why she couldn't do this to her roommate's brand new Le Creuset braiser.
#20
Cross contamination. Whether it’s products or utensils with raw to cooked foods. Washing hands in there too... these things get on my nerves for real.
#21
Margarine. It is NOT the same as butter. Got into a fight with my mom last Christmas over her wanting me to use margarine in the macaroni and the mashed potatoes.
Then she tried to cook asparagus in the microwave (with margarine) but I'm hoping that was just a her thing.
Jon Steensen 2 years ago
I can't even think of a single place where I think the use of margarine is justified, exept for, perhaps, if you are cooking for a lactose intollerant person. Especially if you are making Danish pastry, you MUST use butter. Those substituting it width margarine, make a product where the fat just coats the upper part of your mouth in a thin film, that will not dissolve as you eat it.
#22
When people f**k with the timer/burner when I’m cooking. I had some tomato sauce going at a nice even simmer, but apparently someone else in my household thought it should be boiling like pasta water, so they jacked up the temp to high and added more time to the timer...
Kainaath Khan 2 years ago
Same thing happened to me, difference they reduce the flames when I wanted to boil something. I kept wondering why on earth won't this water boil realised it 10 mins later.
#23
Starting a big cooking project with dirty dishes in the sink. Not cleaning while you go.
Final score:
142points
Kainaath Khan 2 years ago
I will wipe down the kitchen table and stove before and after cooking.
#24
Refusing to use salt when seasoning a dish. My friend thinks that she has "discovered" how to season food with herbs and spices and that she doesn't need to use boring old salt. It is kind of pretentious and her food is very bland.
#25
When you make the effort to do a BEAUTIFUL roast dinner for someone for the first time and they immediately drown it in cheap sh*tty tomato sauce. Happened to me last week. It cut a little bit, I’ll admit.
Huddo's sister 2 years ago
If that's the way they are used to and they enjoy it, why is it a problem. It's not a reflection on your cooking, it's just about different tastes. Wouldn't it be worse if they turned their nose up at it and refused to eat it because they didn't like it plain?
#26
Nonstick pans don’t hold heat well. So if you’re trying to get a sear on meat, as soon as you put the meat in the nonstick, the heat transfers and the pan temp goes down. So getting consistent browning and crust is impossible.
I’ve had really expensive pans of all kinds, and nothing has outperformed my $18 cast iron skillet. Everything from searing meat, to browning veggies, to baking pizzas and breads. Nothing compares. If it’s the Maillard Reaction you’re trying to achieve, it’s the best option in my opinion. If you prefer carbon steel or stainless steel, I won’t argue with you because the differences aren’t super noticeable. But from my taste buds and experiences, it’s cast iron.
NotTodaySatan!! 2 years ago
I have all 3. Have never had issues getting a sear in a nonstick pan though.
#27
This is burned into my memory: I was at a friend's house and she was making guacamole. Her idea of pitting the avocado was wielding the chef knife in a stabbing motion directed point first at the pit, while she was holding the avocado half in her other hand. I thought I was watching a slasher film. I was TERRIFIED.
Nikki Sevven 2 years ago
You don't need to use the knife at all. Just quarter the avocado from top to bottom, and you can pop the pit right out of the one quarter it sticks to. Without the knife.
#28
Not seasoning food. Unless for health reasons. Also, salting a plate before tasting.
Kainaath Khan 2 years ago
I hate it. Why add something to a plate without tasting. To get my revenge I added a tad extra salt before serving and my family member added salt without tasting. You knw what happened.
#29
Pots on the stove with the handles sticking out. It’s so easy to elbow-bump one and have boiling water on your knees. Don’t cook barefoot!
Final score:
110points
#30
When they put 5 grains of salt instead of a good pinch.
Awsomemom52 2 years ago
A friend puts a tiny pinch of salt in his pasta water (and oil😖)... and then complains, that the pasta tastes so bland, when he cooks a pasta dish.
#31
I have many but adding garlic on the pan too early and burning it to bitter. Looking at you, Facebook videos I end up watching even when I haven't subscribed.
#32
People cutting up things one at a time. Example: celery stalks. Grab a few at a time!!!
What do you think ?
Hoppinger 2 years ago
My parents grew up in very rural areas during the Great Depression where they would overcook the food to kill anything that would make you sick. They didn't learn to cook any differently when they got older so I grew up with bland, mushy vegetables, hockey puck steaks, and tough dry chicken. Never liked beef or veggies much until I got out on my own and learned how to properly cook them. They were only cooking how they knew, but overcooking is my big pet peeve.
Klaatu Verrata (Cough) 2 years ago (edited)
I still remember my depression-era grandfather, who was born in 1910, saving EVERYTHING and eating it months later. He would try to eat meat that'd been in the fridge for weeks. He also never rinsed dishes when he washed them "to preserve water". Going over to see him was a gastric nightmare if he ever tried to cook for you. And, to this day, my father (who was born in '45 and is a multi-millionaire) makes fresh coffee on Monday, leaves the grounds in the maker all week, and just tops it off with a sprinkling more of new coffee each morning. I live far away from them and didn't know this until all three of my siblings approached me at once after my dad handed me a cup of coffee on a visit and said, "You do NOT want to drink THAT!"
Load More Replies...
Jo Choto 2 years ago
Some of these things really don't matter at all. I also find all the knife comments annoying. If your knife cuts your food to your satisfaction, then why does it matter? Not everyone needs to have some professional set of expensive knives to make good food.
Cartesia Formulae 2 years ago
I mean, I get having cheap knives. I do. I've lived with them most of my life, and I turned out alright. But you need👏 to👏 sharpen👏 them! 👏👏 I don't care if you use one of those cheap handheld drag-it-through things or a whetstone, just sharpen your damn knives! It's safer, easier to use, and faster! And no, the honing stick doesn't count, but use that too.
Load More Replies...
Customer1234 Doe098765 2 years ago
I just love all these bored panda lists that have the same thing repeated in it multiple times and they'll title it something like 30 great tips and it's really 22 different tips and 1 tip repeated 8 times
Klaatu Verrata (Cough) 2 years ago (edited)
And, actually, as it turns out, like1actual tip and 40 entries where people are just bïtching to feel superior.
Load More Replies...
Hoppinger 2 years ago
My parents grew up in very rural areas during the Great Depression where they would overcook the food to kill anything that would make you sick. They didn't learn to cook any differently when they got older so I grew up with bland, mushy vegetables, hockey puck steaks, and tough dry chicken. Never liked beef or veggies much until I got out on my own and learned how to properly cook them. They were only cooking how they knew, but overcooking is my big pet peeve.
Klaatu Verrata (Cough) 2 years ago (edited)
I still remember my depression-era grandfather, who was born in 1910, saving EVERYTHING and eating it months later. He would try to eat meat that'd been in the fridge for weeks. He also never rinsed dishes when he washed them "to preserve water". Going over to see him was a gastric nightmare if he ever tried to cook for you. And, to this day, my father (who was born in '45 and is a multi-millionaire) makes fresh coffee on Monday, leaves the grounds in the maker all week, and just tops it off with a sprinkling more of new coffee each morning. I live far away from them and didn't know this until all three of my siblings approached me at once after my dad handed me a cup of coffee on a visit and said, "You do NOT want to drink THAT!"
Load More Replies... Jo Choto 2 years ago
Some of these things really don't matter at all. I also find all the knife comments annoying. If your knife cuts your food to your satisfaction, then why does it matter? Not everyone needs to have some professional set of expensive knives to make good food.
Cartesia Formulae 2 years ago
I mean, I get having cheap knives. I do. I've lived with them most of my life, and I turned out alright. But you need👏 to👏 sharpen👏 them! 👏👏 I don't care if you use one of those cheap handheld drag-it-through things or a whetstone, just sharpen your damn knives! It's safer, easier to use, and faster! And no, the honing stick doesn't count, but use that too.
Load More Replies... Customer1234 Doe098765 2 years ago
I just love all these bored panda lists that have the same thing repeated in it multiple times and they'll title it something like 30 great tips and it's really 22 different tips and 1 tip repeated 8 times
Klaatu Verrata (Cough) 2 years ago (edited)
And, actually, as it turns out, like1actual tip and 40 entries where people are just bïtching to feel superior.
Load More Replies...
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