Not knowing how to cook basic food items isnt cute and people should be deeply embarrassed about it, amirite?

I had a friend in school that used to think it was cute she couldn't cook. I remember she struggled to even understand the stove knobs at 21. Then one time I went to her house for dinner (she lived with her parents) and her mom served Mr.Noodles with rice and peas mixed in. It all started to make sense.

by Unlucky_Bedroom_4801 1 month ago

Mostly weaponized incompetence.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

Nah. I never had anyone show me how to cook anything, and I spent most of my 20s woefully inept at cooking. I've learned over the years, but it takes time. A lot of what seems like common sense is only that way because you spent your entire life watching someone else do it.

by Quirky_Walk_842 1 month ago

Our ancestors learned to cook out of necessity over a fire out in the wild, I'm sure you can learn to use an oven.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

This isn't a personal attack on you, man. But you missed the word "mostly" indicating a large part; usually, or generally. Not always A LOT of folks would rather let someone else do it for them, instead of learning to do it themselves, and actively surround themselves with people that will do so. (Enablers) I had to teach myself how to cook too. Growing up on mommas hungry man special just wasn't cutting it.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

Growing up, my mom's idea of cooking and making an actual meal was nachos with more than 3 ingredients. I never learned how to cook from her, I was taught to use the microwave, putting soup in a pan on the stove was about as advanced as we got. Insert years of mental health struggles, learning to cook was never a priority. It's only been in the last 10 years or so that I've started to learn how to make food that isn't mac & cheese or a frozen dinner.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

It is embarrassing. A good friend of mine helped me a ton with learning to cook. I was in my late 20's and over her house one day when she asked me to chop veggies. She realized I had no idea what I was doing because I kept asking how small the pieces needed to be and I didn't know how to safely chop. She's amazing though and had no judgement and has taught me a lot.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

How is this unpopular?

by Anonymous 1 month ago

It's not but only popular opinions get opdoots

by PollutionShot9364 1 month ago

Where unpopular opinion

by hluettgen 1 month ago

Is the unpopular opinion in the room with us?

by Anonymous 1 month ago

This isn't an unpopular opinion.

by chris11 1 month ago

Right. Basic and important life skills

by Fbogan 1 month ago

I think this is a popular opinion?

by Frequent-Principle 1 month ago

Yeah I don't really understand when an average capable person says they genuinely cannot cook- just follow a recipe! -maybe some people think thats cheating and being someone who "can cook" is someone who ratatouille style follows their heart to make delicacies.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

Recipes are easy for you because you already know the basics. I also think there's a big gap between people who enjoy the art of cooking and those who just can't stand it tbh.

by nicola12 1 month ago

I don't enjoy cooking either, I absolutely understand being afraid of trying to use a frying pan or controlling boiled water for the first time if nobody has ever taught you- but for a lot of recipes the needed basics really are just knowing how to turn on an oven. If you can defrost chicken nuggets you can make salmon, (non nugget) chicken, roast veggies and whatever else ur heart desires.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

Who cares if said person can afford going to restaurants or ordering takeout? Fed is best, doesn't matter how.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

That's all well and good when things are going well, but times change and just because you can afford it now, doesn't mean you'll always be able to in the future. Restaurants and takeout are also typically quite far from healthy food - the level of fats used in preparing the food is quite extreme. Poor diet has a huge impact at a societal level, so this is maybe a bit simplistic.

by Fit-Space 1 month ago

In an interesting cultural shift, I've found that most guys around my age (30s to 40s) can cook, and the women mostly Doordash. They don't seem to be able to cook anything and are constantly amazed at my culinary wizardry with things like sautéed broccoli and baked chicken 😄

by Anonymous 1 month ago

Interesting!

by Anonymous 1 month ago

Yeah I would say 1 out of 15 guys I know can cook decently.

by nicola12 1 month ago

I'm not fond of broccoli, but it's incredibly nutritious and my husband likes it, so I cook it. I've also learned to sautée it.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

My favorite thing I've learned about it since starting to stir fry it is that the florets will suck up any sauce I add to it at the end. Pork, onion, broccoli stir fried with teriyaki sauce is so good. I went 38 years hating broccoli until I learned this.

by Birdie83 1 month ago

Full agree except for one thing: Assuming the person is an adult, where they grew up or how they grew up isn't an excuse. They are adults and capable of learning simple tasks beyond their childhood experience unless there's some sort of underlying mental problem.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

Well I'm happy I don't know people like that

by Low_Entrepreneur 1 month ago

I just can't learn it, no matter how much effort I put in, I can follow a recipe to the letter, and will still mess it up 60% of the time, and don't even get me started on cooking anything from memory or taste. I think I lack the motor skills and sense of taste, lol. Not trying to use that as an excuse, everybody learns those, but I just don't get it at all. I still got a good 50 more years of cooking before me, so maybe it'll click at some point.

by Prestigious-Honey 1 month ago

10-12 minutes for hard boiled, 6-8 minutes for soft boiled depending on how soft you want your yolk. I will judge a 35+ year old pretty harshly for not knowing how to cook basic things, I will judge a 20 year old much less and a 25 year old a little bit less than the 35 year old. YouTube exists and you can very easily use it to learn to make any food you might want to cook.

by Birdie83 1 month ago

Yes exactly what im saying, not knowing doesn't make you a fool, but not trying to learn does make you one. A 18 year old who are just starting to live by themselves might not know and that is fair, but a 30+ who don't know that is not so fair.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

Open Google "How Cook egg" Know how cook egg

by Anonymous 1 month ago

In the case of cooking an egg, it IS that simple imho

by Anonymous 1 month ago

A surefire way to boil an egg is to add eggs to a pot of water so the water is a little bit over the eggs but not too much, bring to a boil which means turn the burner to high. Once the water is boiling cover the pot and remove from the heat and set a timer for 12 to 15 minutes, depending on if you want it soft boiled or hard boiled.. after the timer is up drain the eggs let cool for a little bit and peel. If you add baking soda to the water. Sometimes that makes the eggs peel better, just like a teaspoon, nothing crazy.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

They might be talking about you...

by BulkyGarlic 1 month ago

Who might be? OP? I do know how to cook, lots of different foods, steaks, spaghetti bolognese, curry, bread, pizza, calzone and so on, just never needed to cook an egg. I just think there are plenty of scenarios where you might not know how to cook.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

Not scared to cook one, just never wanted to, not a big fan of eggs, at least not by themselves, I use them in recipes, but never said I was scared to cook one. I mean yes I wouldn't survive, got no bunker or food preserved, but I don't think knowing how to cook eggs would change it all. Not sure why you think I can't cook at all, I cook everyday since I moved out, never been a problem.

by Anonymous 1 month ago

I think the biggest problem there would be finding food and figuring out how to cook it without electricity. Knowing how to cook wouldn't really matter.

by Anonymous 1 month ago