Help with a lack of inspiration in the kitchen

[mrsadm]

Feeling really down today about cooking. Yesterday I made mu shu pork and it just gagged me.

I've been trying to cook seriously and trying to get better for nearly 5 years now. I have 100 cookbooks and all the video's. I have taken 6 Saturday classes at the CIA.

I have learned a lot. I know how to broil, roast, saute, braise, and make some classic sauces. But I still have days when I make stuff that tastes just terrible and I don't know why.

Is it lack of practice? I do work long hours so I generally cook only on the weekends. Lack of a palate? Just plain lack of talent?

Or do even the great chefs have days when they produce something just barely edible?

I hardly ever experiment. I follow recipes. Maybe it's the recipes, and not me?

Should I make a dish over and over until I get it right?

Maybe it's time to sell the cookbooks on ebay and take up stamp collecting...

Maybe it's the winter blues.....

[helenjp]

A good cook needs a good eater, in my opinion! If you have a cooking buddy, or even an uncritical diner at hand, that helps.It also doesn't help to sit down to eat something you've been smelling in it's less glorious forms for the past couple of hours.

But even then, I've had two or three goes at some things, and never liked the result.

Just curious, were your disappointments with dishes that you'd eaten before, or with totally unfamiliar ingredients and styles of cooking?

[adey73]

mrsadm, c'mon y'know the better you get, the more judgmental you'll become.

It's the same with everything we do. Being too close we loose perspective.

Ever made a stock and thought it was terribly, so froze it, then when you come back to it, you think wow what a flavoursome beast!

Winter is a bad time for the addict.

And am sure you're being too hard on yourself.

(plus you've been an egulleter since '02, you're prob Jedi level)

[CKatCook]

Just keep cooking!

I have been up at the stove for as long as I can remember, I still cook things that make me gag.

Definately winter blues.

[pennylane]

I have that same problem. And it's become worse since I joined this site. Before that, I used to think I was a pretty good cook. All my friends and family, everyone who knows me, used to tell me what a great cook I am. But now I see the pictures posted here and they're just mind-boggling! I feel so worthless in comparison.

But you know, just keep cooking for the fun of it. Don't worry so much about learning complicated techniques and methods. Just make what you like, how you like it!

[DerekW]

Sounds like the blues alright. Show me someone who claims they never have a bad day, never turn out a plate of dog-food, and I'll show you someone suspected of being 'economical with the truth'.

Yesterday I made mu shu pork and it just gagged me.

In what way 'gagged you'? Disasters are learning experiences, eh? Analyze a bit [texture unpleasant? A matter of balance?]

Maybe it's the recipes, and not me?

Reading your post it sounds as though most of what you are cooking is turning out OK at least. There are certainly some recipes in print which make me wonder if the writer ever actually tested the outcomes, and there are many more which make assumptions which might not be the same ones you or I might make.

Should I make a dish over and over until I get it right?

Only if you like it

[sheetz]

I think it does help to make the same dish over and over until you get it right. Cooking is a skill and to do it well you have to practice.

[Sony]

But I still have days when I make stuff that tastes just terrible and I don't know why.

←

Hang in there mrsadm! Sometimes we can figure out why what we make is off,and we're all the better as cooks for it. And when we can't, it's what I call a "perspective day".....it puts into perspective all the delicious things that can come from your kitchen and how those odd misfires can stand out so much.

Sorry you're feeling crummy- I don't think you're alone. As others have mentioned, I think the better we get at cooking, the more critical we can become.

[Jay Francis]

Learning to cook (and to read a recipe) is just like learning a new language. If you've been at it for 5 years, I'll bet you've got the language down pretty well. When you look at a recipe, you can kind of tell how it is going to taste. I'll bet that when the dish doesn't turn out, it's because it was a bad recipe, and one that you didn't have a previous culinary map for, or maybe you have a cold and your taste buds are off.

I always follow a recipe religiously the first time, except that I leave out or reduce the salt, with the intention of adjusting the salt later.

I have found that the best source for new cooks, for recipes, is to recommend them to Fine Cooking magazine. The lay-out and instructions are better there than in many other cooking magazines.

Also, I have over the years tried a lot of recipes from America's Test Kitchen, Cooks Illustrated, or their Best Recipes publication. Even though they seem to do a lot of testing, I've run into problems trying them. Maybe their taste buds are New England/East Coast, I don't know, but I've had more problems with these supposed "experts" than I've ever had elsewhere. Again, grab yourself some back copies of Fine Cooking magazine and go crazy.

[prasantrin]

Sometimes I cook something that I think will be amazing, and then it makes me gag. I made a much touted pot roast recipe recently, which I could barely keep down. But having spent $15 on the beef used to make it, I couldn't just throw it away, so I stuck itin the freezer.

Two months later, my mother came to visit, so I asked her to try the pot roast. She loved it. She said it was one of the tastiest pot roasts she had ever had! And it still made me gag.

Sometimes, foods will just make you gag. I noticed the more tired I am, the less I want to eat (or the more I think whatever I cooked sucks), so maybe that's what happened to you, too.

Plus in my case, I've since realized that I have trouble digesting beef, so perhaps that is another reason it made me feel like gagging. Maybe you have a sensitivity to one of the ingredients that was in your mu shu.

[Anna N]

Take this to heart:

"Food has the tact to disappear, leaving room and opportunity for masterpieces to come. The mistakes don't hang on the walls or stand on the shelves to reproach you forever." Jane Grigson

and know that we have all made dishes that even the dog refuses to eat even if some of us won't admit it.

[C. sapidus]

Feeling really down today about cooking.

Sorry to hear that you are feeling down mrsadm, but it does sound like it could be the winter blues. Perhaps a vacation in the tropics would help?

I have learned a lot.  I know how to broil, roast, saute, braise, and make some classic sauces.  But I still have days when I make stuff that tastes just terrible and I don't know why.

Failures can be more instructive (if less fun) than successes, if you can figure and correct out the cause.

Is it lack of practice?  I do work long hours so I generally cook only on the weekends.  Lack of a palate?  Just plain lack of talent?

All else equal, the more you cook the better you get. Despite limited time available for cooking, you said yourself that you have learned a lot. Perhaps your expectations have temporarily outrun your progress? If that is the case, all you need is time.

I hardly ever experiment.  I follow recipes.  Maybe it's the recipes, and not me?

When you make a recipe that doesn’t turn out, is it by an author that you trust or is it from an untested cookbook? If the latter, a dish that doesn’t taste good could just be a bad recipe. If you find a cookbook with recipes that turn out well for you, consider exploring that cookbook further rather than jumping to an untested cookbook. I like to learn an author’s quirks so I can adapt the recipes to our tastes. For example, I love cooking from All About Braising but have learned to increase the spicing and reduce the braising temperature.

Should I make a dish over and over until I get it right?

←

Making the same recipe repeatedly would drive me nuts, but you would certainly become proficient at it. If you decide to make a favorite dish over and over again, what about trying different recipes for it? That way, you would be able to compare and contrast different approaches.

Good luck!

[Milt]

Persevere. Keep cooking, observing, questioning, and asking for help - here, or with friends or co-workers, or relatives. It just depends on who is available and whose judgments you trust.

I am 65 years old and dreamed of being an excellent cook the way many children dream of being a great athlete or movie star. This dream began when I was probably thirty years old. I gradually began getting a little experience, but it was infrequent. A few years ago, I began cooking a couple of meals a week on a regular basis. That helped. When I retired and closed my retail store, I began cooking all of the meals at home. My wife still works and although she is an excellent cook, she doesn't get excited about cooking.

My cooking successes have increased considerably during the past couple of years. As has been stated several times above - experience counts. I have only thrown out a couple of meals. Most are decent enough to eat - even when they aren't thrilling to eat.

Several cookbooks and recipe sites are proving more successful for me than others. My greater successes come from preparing familiar foods, because I can tell when it is too dry, too moist, too sweet, bland, or whatever. Now, I am getting familiar with ways to adjust recipes for our tastes. I don't always include all of the red pepper flakes or all of the chili powder called for in the recipe. Similarly, I have been able to add seasonings to soups and stews or have recognized the need to cook something beyond what the recipe called for - sometimes adding considerably to the cooking time.

On occasion now, a family member will ask me to fix something again. That suggests that my skills and abilities are improving. Don't give up! Just keep working at it.

[heidih]

Don't give up! When I first married at 20 I knew how to bake, but not how to cook. The first meal I tried was turkey legs that I sprinkled with onion soup mix and slow roasted with a touch of red wine in a covered dish all day while I was at work (actually I worked a block away so I think I started it on my lunch hour) My husband was astounded and I liked it too. That gave me the courage to branch out.

The only cookbook in the house was Julia's Mastering the Art of French Cooking Vol one. I don't think I ever had a disaster though I had a number of dishes that were on the "please do not repeat" list.

The successes were enough to inspire me to start trying to replicate favorite restaurant dishes especially after an "eating vacation" in Vancouver.

I also learned how to shop at farmers markets, specialty butchers and even to befriend the people at the big chain grocery in the meat and produce sections. I was in tears when we moved and I had to say good bye to the butcher at my local big chain grocery. He encouraged me when I bought unusual cuts and asked me what I was making and later how it turned out (things like stuffed breast of veal for example).

Today people are generally excited to see what the menu is and I feel comfortable, but every once in a while it goes straight into the trash. Perhaps keep it simple until your successes give you the courage to branch out. Also- taste as you go along- many dishes can be rescued during the cooking process if your instincts tell you something is just not right. Also cooking with someone whose food you like can be a great learning experience.

Edited to correct spelling

Edited January 21, 2008 by heidih (log)

[Lilija]

I don't have much to offer on top of all this great advice and commiseration, but maybe make a few of your old favorites, your "knock'em dead, couldn't screw this up if I did it with my toes" recipes, to get your confidence where it should be. That's what I normally do, after a failed dish, and yeah we all have'em.

Me? I can't make a stir-fry to save my ass. I can make elaborate Thai curries from scratch, but combine chicken, some veggies, and some sort of seasoning sauce as a stir fry, comes out like glop. I know it's a similar technique, it blows my mind.

[purplewiz]

I'm with everyone else - it's the blues. Every so often I still make something where I taste it, then say to my husband: "Honey, we're eating out tonight."

One thing I wanted to ask is if you're making the dishes that sound really good to you right now. I've found that if I force myself to cook stuff that doesn't already appeal, the chances of it turning out not so go rises dramatically. (This is why we had meatloaf tonight instead of another Asian soup - I've been on an Asian soup kick, but tonight I wanted MEATLOAF. And it was good.)

And on days when I just don't feel like cooking I pull out one of my old, uninspired, but tried and true dishes - it may not be spectacular, but it'll be filling and good and sometimes that's all you need.

Keep on keepin' on!

Marcia.

[djyee100]

A friend who is a line cook told me how the famous chef-owner of a SF restaurant once broke the sauce before the evening service...

Some days that's what happens. I can cook up something mediocre if I'm preoccupied with other matters. I suggest that you get back into the saddle and cook something else.

[Ndy]

As long as you enjoy cooking, don't give it up. Just continue to make what you know, and learn about what you don't. I'm not a great cook, but I enjoy the process of cooking and never set my expectations higher than my capabilities. Don't worry about a few crappy dishes, sometimes they just don't come together the way you envisioned.

[maggiethecat]

May I gently suggest that you're depressed-- post holiday let down and a long winter ahead.? Here is my chronicle of many of your symptoms: I Hate to Cook.

Your food is good -- it just tastes like ashes right now. Failing the beach, the Mai Tais and Raoul the pool guy, I suggest you buy a cookbook from a style or cuisine you've never tried. Thai, English, Latvian. Just trying the new will make you appreciate what you can do.

[Fugu]

One tip you will seldom see in cookbooks is using soya sauce or fish sauce or both to replace plain salt. One celebrity Chef, whose restaurant has been voted best restaurant in the world in 2004(?) uses soya sauce and fish sauce in his bolognese sauce. These salty condiments/sauces add umami to your dishes. Another underutilized ingredient is MSG, just add a pinch or two to add Umami.

The Chef that I mentioned above is Heston Blumenthal and his book, In Search Of Perfection.

Now that you know some cooking techniques, just add new ingredient and be creative until it tastes good.

Edited January 21, 2008 by Fugu (log)

[jumanggy]

I'm with the others, mrsadm-- hang in there!

Rule of thumb(s) (I'm just making this up as I go along):

1. If you also don't enjoy other people's food, you are depressed/dysthymic.

2. If other people enjoy your food, you are too hard on yourself.

3. If you acknowledge you have great cooking days, you're just having bad luck.

4. If you cook better elsewhere, there's something in the water.

5. If no one has ever enjoyed your food, burn all your cookbooks and get whatever is popular in these forums

(I am just trying to cheer you up)

Seriously, I believe in what they said in "Ratatouille": "Anyone can cook!" Okay, I am a child.

[sadie4232]

mrsadm: Believe me, you're not the only one who has gone through this. Like yourself, I've been cooking steadily for the last five years, improving my skills, and taking on bigger and more complex cooking challenges.

However, every once in awhile I seem to get out of the groove -- meals that should taste great just don't come out. Not that they are totally inedible, but absolutely a far cry from what I know I can do. When this happens, I usually go into hypercritque mode and over analyze what I could be doing wrong (and driving my husband crazy because he has to listen to all of my "what if" scenarios ).

As maggiethecat suggested, it may be a case of the blues and wholeheartedly agree that sometimes it does some good to just take a bit of a break. Cook some recipes that are tried and true to get your confidence back. Certainly ordering take-out isn't or turning the cooking over to someone else for a bit in any way sins when these episodes occur.

Hang in there and before you know it, you'll be in the groove and turning out more winners.

[Shalmanese]

I'm lying in bed after just having finished reading jayrayner's book "The man who ate the world" when it strikes me that I'm bored with food.

I ate at a couple of fancy restaurants a few weeks ago. Everything was competently prepared, pleasant flavors, unmemorable. I've cooked at least 3 multi-course dinner for my friends over the few months. The food was well executed, the flavors were on point, everyone raved about it, even I couldn't find much fault with some of the dishes but they were ultimately unmemorable. I've been trying some new authentic, down scale, home style eateries. The flavors are bold, pronounced, confident and dull.

It didn't used to be this way, I used to get excited about food. I used to cook something and put it in my mouth and it would be a revelation. Worlds of new flavor would open up, I would get something on point and I would finally see what everyone else was raving about. I remember when I used to take photographs of my food so that I could document what I had been making and keep a record of my progress. I've never been much of a restaurant person but back then, restaurants still had the capability of satisfying me profoundly.

In fact, I can still remember the exact last meal that truly captivated me. It was a broth of pork neck bones, first rubbed with miso and roasted in the oven, then subtly infused with ginger, garlic, chillis, szechuan peppercorns and spring onions. Some quickly cooked noodles and a few garnishes of cilantro. The entire dish was improvised on the spot and deeply, soulfully satisfying.

But that was over 6 months ago. Since then, not a single thing strikes me as memorable. Beef tastes like beef, lamb tastes like lamb, every flavor I eat is one I've eaten before a thousand times. Even the new is new in the same old way all new things are new, not the new newness I knew before.

The distressing thing is, I'm only 24, I still have entire vistas of food lying in front of me. I feel like I'm in this rut and I have no idea how to get out of it, whether I'm even capable of getting out of it. I'm hoping that some of you can tell me some personal stories of something similar happening to you and what you did to fix it. None of the obvious things seem to be working.

[prasantrin]

I do one of two things: travel or cleanse.

Travel--does it really need explanation? Seeing things with a new frame of reference helps rejuvenate all your senses.

Cleansing--I don't do anything like only fruit for three days, but I keep my food light and simple for however long it takes.

[Peter the eater]

Can you fast for a while? Do the bread and water thing for a few days, don't cook or serve anybody. Avoid all culinary media, log off eGullet, go camping by yourself, hit the reset button. That's what I'd do.