The American Home Cook
When I was a kid, my mom would typically cook for us every night. Dinner time for us was more about the routine and the healthy practice of spending quality time with family than it was about the food. The dinner table was a place where we received or shared announcements, talked about our day, or simply discussed the minor changes my mom made in the spaghetti sauce this time around. She would actually act offended if, God Forbid, a phone call came in sometime between 5:30-6:00pm; the nerve of the son-of-a-bitch who called to ask if we were happy with our cable service during our treasured family time was ruining the fabric of the traditional American family.
The food was very good, though. Maybe not by the standards of your friendly neighborhood yelp reviewer, but she did know a lot of the basics. The goal was to feed us all on a few bucks and to get a plea for seconds from somebody at the table. Dishes like Spaghetti Bolognese, Pot Roast, Beef Stroganoff, and Chicken Pot Pie were common, usually served up hot with a side of frozen microwaveable veggies and untoasted sliced bread with room temp butter. By basics, I mean, my mom knew how to sear off a chuck roast before tossing it in the crockpot for 8 hours on low until fork tender. She knew to get the water salted heavily and up to a rolling boil before tossing in boxed pasta until al dente, then shocking cold until ready for use. Maybe it was instinct or maybe it was passed down from generations before her; either way, I think my mom was one of the last of an endangered group: "American Home Cooks".
The reality is, there is nothing wrong with breaking out boxed pasta for your family of 6 on pasta night. Nobody is asking you to assemble your pasta roller and flour down your kitchen island (though it takes marginally longer and is totally worth it). Sadly, though, before the pandemic, even that wasn't as common as it once was. We saw a ton of cop-outs when it came to dinner. Families plopped in front of the TV or whipped out their individual phones, robbing themselves of thoughtful conversation.
One thing I noticed a lot of as a result of the pandemic was a boost in interest for cooking at home. TikTok and other social media platforms filled up with "one pot pasta recipe that your kids can make" type videos. It was like a new age Julia Child phenomenon. Parents working from home, were suddenly breaking out the instant pots and sous vides to start their proteins early in the day. We even saw birthday parties spent at home with homemade cakes and appetizers, rather than Chuck-E-Cheese pizza and greasy arcade games.
I feel like America Jump Started the old car in the garage, and I see a real opportunity to bring back the family dinner table dynamic. As you start cooking at home, I have some tips, tricks, and worthwhile challenges for you:
1. Use fresh - not dried or frozen. Fresh Garlic, Fresh Herbs, fresh veggies (garlic lasts a long time in oil).
2. Ditch the Iodized (table) Salt. Kosher, Himalayan Pink, smoked sea salt, etc. Trust me.
3. Search your neighborhood for farmers markets. 20 bucks will go far, and nothing sticks it to the man more than a cash deal with no middleman.
4. Less is more. Recipes with 27 ingredients are easy to screw up and probably aren't good anyway.
5. Get good cast iron or carbon steel and ditch the non-stick crap. Keep it seasoned, and it will be nonstick.
6. Plan a little more. 10 minutes on Sunday night will help you reduce waste and take the guesswork out.
7. Take risks and keep pizza delivery as a backup plan. There's no shame in that. I still do this all the time!
8. Search for cooking classes. We will come over or hop on zoom to teach you some of the basics and simple recipes even.
9. Clean as you go. Clean cooks are sexy and clean kitchens are too.
10. Cookbooks > Web Recipes especially the old ones. 20 dollars will get you 3-5 secondhand cookbooks.
It really is time to take back our health by cooking for ourselves. We have a better idea abut what we are eating when we make it ourselves. It isn't too late to start and I would love to see our children learn the good habits now. That includes your sons. Young men should grow up knowing how to throw down in the kitchen like their mama did. If you need help getting started, please shoot me an email and I will quite literally donate my time to send you more pointers and recipes: tyler@tastifyfood.com.
As a side note, if you are enjoying my blog posts, drop me a comment with your thoughts, questions, or ideas for future posts. I love to address anything about cooking, business, and life. Thanks so much for reading!
