{"id":16619,"date":"2018-10-24T09:00:13","date_gmt":"2018-10-24T16:00:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.nexusnewspaper.com\/?p=16619"},"modified":"2018-10-21T21:44:54","modified_gmt":"2018-10-22T04:44:54","slug":"the-chopping-block-chronicles-why-are-we-afraid-to-cook","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nexusnewspaper.com\/newsite\/2018\/10\/24\/the-chopping-block-chronicles-why-are-we-afraid-to-cook\/","title":{"rendered":"The Chopping Block Chronicles<\/em>: Why are we afraid to cook?"},"content":{"rendered":"

The clash of pots and pans; the sound of a steak searing on a scorching hot skillet; the aromas of butter, rosemary, and sage filling the air. This to me is nothing short of divine, the organized chaos that fills my house on a regular basis. Cooking came out of necessity for me, but then it turned into passion. I often still catch myself in shock and awe when someone tells me they do not cook.<\/p>\n

Why is it that we\u2019re afraid to cook?<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
The Chopping Block Chronicles<\/em> is a column about food; it appears in every issue of Nexus<\/em>.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I was having a discussion with a co-worker when this topic arose. When she moved out of her parents\u2019 house, she felt pressure when it came time to cook for herself. The kitchen was an intimidating place, and most of the recipes she read included technical terms she did not understand. This person then married, and the pressure increased substantially. She had to cook not only for her own benefit now, but for another person as well. Now, if she failed, she would disappoint more than her own set of taste buds.<\/p>\n

Is it this fear of failure that stops people from trying? Is it the time that cooking takes? Or is it the lack of knowledge that keeps us out of the kitchen, opting for the ever-so-convenient take-out we as students all know and love so much?<\/p>\n

In its simplest form, cooking is survival. You don\u2019t have to be a gourmet chef to understand the basic principles of cooking. In my humble opinion, all a person needs to cook is a quality knife, a pot and pan, some salt and pepper, and some patience. Trial and error is key to building your skill. You can read a million recipes, but until you put knife to board, and food to heat, you will not get any better.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I would like to offer you this challenge: once a week, pick a day to practice a cooking skill. I believe that once you start to get a good feel for your knife, cooking becomes that much more enjoyable. Start with something simple: a protein, a starch, and a vegetable (and, if you\u2019re really feeling up to the challenge, an accompanying sauce).<\/p>\n

Cooking does not have to be scary, and neither does your kitchen. It is, however, a basic survival skill that I believe we should all be able to do.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The clash of pots and pans; the sound of a steak searing on a scorching hot skillet; the aromas of butter, rosemary, and sage filling the air. This to me is nothing short of divine, the organized chaos that fills my house on a regular basis. Cooking came out of necessity for me, but then […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":16620,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5,221],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-16619","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-columns","category-october-24-2018"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t