When I make my Sunday breakfast I do it like a robot. I give no thought to what I’m doing because I’ve done it so many times in the past. If I’m cooking bacon, I give no thought to the temperature setting on which I’m cooking. Nor do I think about when it’s time to turn it over. If I’m making scrambled eggs, I think nothing about how much milk I add to make them softer and creamer, how long do they need to cook and how often do I stir. When making toast, I never stop to ask myself “Do I butter the bread before cooking or after?” Why should I think about any of these things? I’ve done most of them since I was 6 and I’m now 58. That’s 52 years of cooking! But, I didn’t start cooking with all of this knowledge. I had to learn it.
When a young lady I know asked the question “when a recipe calls for egg yolks, can you use the whole egg?” I said no and explained why. When she asked the question “how do you separate eggs?” I told her, showed her how and gave her an egg separator. But when she asked the question “what part of the egg is the yolk?” I was floored.
We aren’t talking about a child here. We are talking about a young lady who is smart and intelligent in her own field. No her field is not cooking.
When talking to a friend about these questions I was assured that she is not alone. My friend told me about a young lady who was told to separate 2 eggs. She did. She placed them away from each other. Again, this was the reaction of an intelligent young lady.
Unless we have mothers, aunts, grandmothers or someone to teach us the basics of cooking, then how do we learn? As I said above, I cook like a robot that’s been programmed to make each step. And when I think about it, I have been programmed by the teachers of my past.
So, the next time you fry up bacon, scramble an egg or make toast, slow down and notice the steps you take. Then ask yourself. Have I passed these steps on to my children?
