Over the years, I have built up some reputation as a competent chef and I frequently find myself being complemented on my culinary skills. Plenty of people have asked me for cooking tips in the past, and I've never really spent much time giving a decent enough answer. In particular, those with kids have showed some interest so this will be largely tailored for people with little cooking experience but wish to start cooking more for their kids.
(No particular order)
For pork and poultry, I'm a huge advocate for brining. It does require a bit more forethought but it gives you waaaay more leeway in your cooking time because if you overcook things, they are less likely to dry out. Also a great way of flavoring the meat.
Find one or 2 basic cookbooks (Joy of Cooking and the Betty Crocker are both good) and write notes right in the book.
Use a meat thermometer.
Most folks "build" their meals starting with protein and then pick starches and veggies that go well with it. Occasionally try going the other direction. Pick a side you're excited about and end with decisions about what protein goes well with them.
Get your kid helping as early and often as possible. Nothing counteracts a picky eater better than the kid feeling pride in having made the food themselves.
if you can afford it, invest in a slow cooker and a pressure cooker (if you have a lot of cabinet space) or an insta pot (if you don't have a lot of cabinet space). And if you can afford it, sous vide cooking is incredibly forgiving and delicious as well.
If your kids have a favorite meal, and it's even remotely healthy, don't feel guilty about making it "too often". Food is meant to be enjoyed and if they enjoy it, you're doing a good job.
This can go both ways (because you don't want to add more work for yourself) but always remember that there's no actual moral prohibition about different people in the family eating different foods in a meal. It's only a problem if you find it to be a problem.
There's no such thing as cheating. If part of your meal is lovingly created from scratch, and another part comes straight from a box and then microwaved, that's all still cooking. The line between convenience food and home-cooking is arbitrary and made up. (I once made an incredible turkey dinner for Thanksgiving with 7 or 8 different dishes using both ovens, my stove, and my barbecue, but then sent someone to go buy a big ass KFC gravy because I didn't feel like fucking around with making gravy while the turkey was resting. That wasn't cheating - that was just delicious.)
If using an online recipe, screen shot the ingredient list and the actual instructions, rather than reading it from the actual website while cooking. That way you don't have to go searching through 12 pages of descriptions about the author's summer in Tuscany when you're trying to find the temperature you're supposed to pre-heat the oven to.
Bonus:
- Variants of fried dough with a little (or a lot of) sugar, salt, or both exist in almost every culture on earth. That shit's delicious.
Solid tips. The number of competent home cooks here in North America is getting embarrassing from where I'm sitting... but it's not nearly as difficult as people think! I don't get into sous-vide or anything like that, but I enjoy the kitchen (and I'm working on my daughter). Thanks for posting these thoughts, and for having a sense of humour. Props! ;)
It is embarrassing right?! A lot of my peers say they can't even remember the last time they cooked? What is going on with the world, and where is the survivor mentality!
Your daughter will have fond things to say about you when she grows up!
The painful irony is that it seems the more they watch the Food Network, the less they actually feel like discovering their own kitchens! I've gotten more careful in conversations with my scorn for things like Wonder Bread, microwave cookbooks and Kraft Dinner... 'cause people seem to love that shit. :/
Thanks so much... that's awfully nice of you to say. I do hope I leave an overall positive impression on her. She's the best thing in my life. :)