Chicks that can't cook?!?

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Kevin

Puritan Board Doctor
As a man who loves to cook & who shares kitchen duties with my wife, I have been surprised to find several young women recently who do not know how to cook!

A couple of girls that I know from work do not cook AT ALL! They buy pre-prep'ed frozen meals, or they buy take-out.

One very nice young girl recently hired who knows how to prepare zero meals at home (!) told me last week she hopes to get married & stay home full-time...does not know how to cook?!?! AT ALL!!

Myself & the other office fooodie (both of us are guys BTW!) have been teaching her simple things to make & she loves it. When I asked her what she would most like to learn how to cook she said, Sunday lunch for her (extended) family.

WHAT IS UP??

Have other people met young, marriagable, educated, ladies who do not know how to cook? What happpened here?

Is this a sign of the appocalypse?
 
We're too busy trying to stay focused on getting our careers rather than learn worthless skills like cooking. How can you expect us to obtain our dream jobs working 40 to 60 hours a week if we had to cook and heaven forbid clean and take care of children too! :book2:
 
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I didn't really know how to cook meals when I got married (I had always enjoyed baking growing up but had never been taught to actually make a dinner). Most women today are not taught these basic skills in the home. I had to call my mom after I got married to ask her for recipes. That and "Better Home and Garden Cook Book" saved me. I still can't believe how clueless I was or why I didn't make the effort to learn when I was living at home. My son and daughter will definitely be learning these skills as they grow!
 
As a man who loves to cook & who shares kitchen duties with my wife, I have been surprised to find several young women recently who do not know how to cook!

A couple of girls that I know from work do not cook AT ALL! They buy pre-prep'ed frozen meals, or they buy take-out.

One very nice young girl recently hired who knows how to prepare zero meals at home (!) told me last week she hopes to get married & stay home full-time...does not know how to cook?!?! AT ALL!!

Myself & the other office fooodie (both of us are guys BTW!) have been teaching her simple things to make & she loves it. When I asked her what she would most like to learn how to cook she said, Sunday lunch for her (extended) family.

WHAT IS UP??

Have other people met young, marriagable, educated, ladies who do not know how to cook? What happpened here?

Is this a sign of the appocalypse?

Nikki's on point.

One of the important factors in choosing my wonderful wife was her uncanny ability to make delicious meals. I gained something like 60 pounds within two months of being married to her (I was at about 135 lbs. from the time I was about 13 until I got married at 27). Of course, her mom was a stay-at-home with twelve children, and she taught ALL of them to cook, but particularly focused on her four girls. All of her daughters are great cooks, and I am a beneficiary of her hard work. Good moms make the best cooking instructors. The hand that rocks the cradle...

Adam
 
I still remember getting married without having any cooking skills at all! I'd been learning nursing skills!! I so wanted to please him and made biscuits one evening as a great surprise! He asked jokingly, 'where'd these rocks come from'. I was so horrified and determined then I would focus on learning ASAP and with the help of family, friends and Betty Crocker began to improve on acceptable meals! Of course one learns more quickly when having to feed six kids and a spouse!!
 
I didn't really know how to cook meals when I got married (I had always enjoyed baking growing up but had never been taught to actually make a dinner). Most women today are not taught these basic skills in the home. I had to call my mom after I got married to ask her for recipes. That and "Better Home and Garden Cook Book" saved me. I still can't believe how clueless I was or why I didn't make the effort to learn when I was living at home. My son and daughter will definitely be learning these skills as they grow!

My wife was/is in the same boat. Unfortunately her Mom does not know either and is not interested in teaching her daughter anything (this creates other problems as well but that is for another thread). She is quite intimidated by other women who do know how to do these things and feels quite inadequate around them.

Any advice from the women on how to help?

Creating new thread...
 
I started helping my mom when I was 7 or 8 years old, and she gradually added responsibilities until I was able to cook meals for the entire family by the time I was 12 or 13 year old. My daughter, 13, often cooks for us.

Nikki is right. Most women today are focused on getting their careers, and they can't be bothered with cooking. My sister, a professional seamstress/dressmaker and clothing shop owner, is often shocked at the women who come into her shop who can't sew on a button or hem a skirt. These same women fess up that they don't know how to clean or cook either. They figured once they had their careers and married into some money, they could hire out help.

I believe that mothers should send ALL their children (girls and boys) out into the world with basic survival skills including cooking, sewing, cleaning and doing laundry.
 
Benjamin, as far as helping your wife learn to cook, there are some good books that teach cooking. I am sure with a lot of moral support from you, she can learn. I would be happy to help if she has any questions.
 
My wife thought the big white appliance (stove) in the corner of the kitchen was just an alternative source for heat when we first got mariied 13 years ago.

She claimed, she couldn't cook at all! I married her anyway.

Of course, if the man can cook like Emeril Lagasse or Bobby Flay, it doesn't matter if his wife can burn water!
 
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This seems to be the case quite a lot in my experience. Ditto Nikki's response. And if so many convenience foods are out there, why spend the time learning to cook? Now that frugality is becoming fashionable/necessary even for two-income households, it seems like more people (men and women) are learning how to make some things on their own.
 
I didn't really know how to cook meals when I got married (I had always enjoyed baking growing up but had never been taught to actually make a dinner). Most women today are not taught these basic skills in the home. I had to call my mom after I got married to ask her for recipes. That and "Better Home and Garden Cook Book" saved me. I still can't believe how clueless I was or why I didn't make the effort to learn when I was living at home. My son and daughter will definitely be learning these skills as they grow!

:ditto:
 
We're too busy trying to stay focused on getting our careers rather than learn worthless skills like cooking. How can you expect us to obtain our dream jobs working 40 to 60 hours a week if we had to cook and heaven forbid clean and take care of children too! :book2:

You are dead on. I think that this is an area that you ladies could help out some of the younger girls at church.

My wife and I have cooked many dozens of church suppers, wedding receptions, etc and we always involve as many of the teens as possible. We make sure that they know how to set the tables, how to cook a 30 lb roast, how to make 50 lbs of mashed potatos, and how to serve it.

The kids always have a great time, even doing the washing up! And they take pride in their new skills (esp the guys).
 
I think young women not knowing how to cook is more the norm than the exception -- I don't know why you're surprised! I think Nikki is right. We've all been so busy with education, and with so much fast food, microwave food, and Bertolli bags, it just hasn't been necessary.

I do think it is important, though, I intend to learn. I'm not totally devoid of cooking skills, but I wish I had more time to practice. I also wish I were more patient. Perhaps this is part of the problem, too -- it's hard to take the time to cook when there are so many entertaining books to read instead.
 
My neighbor's daughter got accepted at Penn State this semester. My neighbor commented that she will let her daughter go to Brooklyn College for a year whilst she teaches her how to cook, do laundry etc :)


It is my experience that country gals always know how to cook whilst the city and the suburban girls are more into the malls.
 
My neighbor's daughter got accepted at Penn State this semester. My neighbor commented that she will let her daughter go to Brooklyn College for a year whilst she teaches her how to cook, do laundry etc :)


It is my experience that country gals always know how to cook whilst the city and the suburban girls are more into the malls.

If only this were universally true...
 
I think young women not knowing how to cook is more the norm than the exception -- I don't know why you're surprised! I think Nikki is right. We've all been so busy with education, and with so much fast food, microwave food, and Bertolli bags, it just hasn't been necessary.

I do think it is important, though, I intend to learn. I'm not totally devoid of cooking skills, but I wish I had more time to practice. I also wish I were more patient. Perhaps this is part of the problem, too -- it's hard to take the time to cook when there are so many entertaining books to read instead.

Try to practice cooking with wine.

First, pour yourself a glass of wine, then practice cooking.:cheers:

BTW I also enjoy cooking with beer.;)
 
Just to be clear

From reading the spin off thread and some responses to this one, I wanted to be clear that I am NOT saying that any woman who doesn't know how to cook is self absorbed and into careerism; I'm just saying that society has taught many women (thanks to feminism) that homemaking skills are beneath women, that it is, in itself, oppressive and holds a woman back from her full potential to be the domineering workaholic goddess she could be. Obviously not all women are going to be these iron chef mamas with creativity and resourcefulness like Martha Stewart, but we should acknowledge skills like these as being worthy of honor, as they too provide a priceless benefit to the household and family.
 
From reading the spin off thread and some responses to this one, I wanted to be clear that I am NOT saying that any woman who doesn't know how to cook is self absorbed and into careerism; I'm just saying that society has taught many women (thanks to feminism) that homemaking skills are beneath women, that it is, in itself, oppressive and holds a woman back from her full potential to be the domineering workaholic goddess she could be. Obviously not all women are going to be these iron chef mamas with creativity and resourcefulness like Martha Stewart, but we should acknowledge skills like these as being worthy of honor, as they too provide a priceless benefit to the household and family.

Well said.
 
I think young women not knowing how to cook is more the norm than the exception -- I don't know why you're surprised! I think Nikki is right. We've all been so busy with education, and with so much fast food, microwave food, and Bertolli bags, it just hasn't been necessary.

I do think it is important, though, I intend to learn. I'm not totally devoid of cooking skills, but I wish I had more time to practice. I also wish I were more patient. Perhaps this is part of the problem, too -- it's hard to take the time to cook when there are so many entertaining books to read instead.

Try to practice cooking with wine.

First, pour yourself a glass of wine, then practice cooking.:cheers:

BTW I also enjoy cooking with beer.;)

This sounds like an excellent idea!

Though last time I opened up a bottle of beer in my parents' kitchen, my poor Baptist dad looked quite shocked.
 
I think young women not knowing how to cook is more the norm than the exception -- I don't know why you're surprised! I think Nikki is right. We've all been so busy with education, and with so much fast food, microwave food, and Bertolli bags, it just hasn't been necessary.

I do think it is important, though, I intend to learn. I'm not totally devoid of cooking skills, but I wish I had more time to practice. I also wish I were more patient. Perhaps this is part of the problem, too -- it's hard to take the time to cook when there are so many entertaining books to read instead.

Try to practice cooking with wine.

First, pour yourself a glass of wine, then practice cooking.:cheers:

BTW I also enjoy cooking with beer.;)

LOL I once met this lady in the grocery store who told me she had a t-shirt that said "I enjoy cooking with wine, sometimes I use it in recipes too" :lol:
 
From reading the spin off thread and some responses to this one, I wanted to be clear that I am NOT saying that any woman who doesn't know how to cook is self absorbed and into careerism; I'm just saying that society has taught many women (thanks to feminism) that homemaking skills are beneath women, that it is, in itself, oppressive and holds a woman back from her full potential to be the domineering workaholic goddess she could be. Obviously not all women are going to be these iron chef mamas with creativity and resourcefulness like Martha Stewart, but we should acknowledge skills like these as being worthy of honor, as they too provide a priceless benefit to the household and family.

Very well put!
 
I think young women not knowing how to cook is more the norm than the exception -- I don't know why you're surprised! I think Nikki is right. We've all been so busy with education, and with so much fast food, microwave food, and Bertolli bags, it just hasn't been necessary.

I do think it is important, though, I intend to learn. I'm not totally devoid of cooking skills, but I wish I had more time to practice. I also wish I were more patient. Perhaps this is part of the problem, too -- it's hard to take the time to cook when there are so many entertaining books to read instead.

Try to practice cooking with wine.

First, pour yourself a glass of wine, then practice cooking.:cheers:

BTW I also enjoy cooking with beer.;)

This sounds like an excellent idea!

Though last time I opened up a bottle of beer in my parents' kitchen, my poor Baptist dad looked quite shocked.

:lol:
 
I think it comes down to parenting. My mother made us cook, all four of us. SHe cooked three days a week, and we had one day each where we had to feed the whole family.

Only my Father was excused. But he did occasionally cook, and was quite competent.
 
A friend of mine was newly married, and his dear wife brought him breakfast in bed. He said she put on quite a spread...it wasn't the best but it would do he thought. She came back in a few minutes and asked him what he thought. He said--and these were his exact words, "Well, it's not like my momma's." She promptly removed his tray and all that she had brought him and never cooked breakfast in bed again. So fellas, if your lady is a chick who can't cook...you'd better not tell her. :lol:
 
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