Can you improvise in the kitchen?
        by: shawnscott  (shawnscott@Writing.Com)
A good cook can follow a recipe, shop for ingredients, and properly prepare a dish. A great chef doesn't need a recipe 95% of the time, uses whatever is in the kitchen, and creates a terrific meal every time. What kind of cook are you?
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1. Question 1:
 How often do you cook meals each week? (Please count only meals you prepare yourself. Heating up packaged foods does not count!)
      Never! I'll do almost anything to avoid cooking.        
      1-2 times a week, and I keep it simple.        
      1-2 times a week, but I like to get fancy.        
      3-5 times a week. I make a lot of sandwiches.        
      3-5 times a week, and I really get into it.        
      I cook almost every day.        
      I cook whenever I get the chance, and I love cooking for company!        
 
2. Question 2:
 When you decide to cook, how often do you have to make special trips to the grocery stores to buy supplies?
      Almost always. Recipes usually call for something I don't have at home.        
      Usually. I'd say two out of three times I cook I have to make a special trip to the supermarket.        
      Sometimes. About half the time I have everything I need at home        
      I have what I need at home about three-quarters of the time.        
      I almost always have what I need at home.        
 
3. Question 6:
 What's in your refrigerator right now?
      I think there's some leftover Chinese food from last week. And some ketchup.        
      Basics and packaged food. Mostly things I can take out and eat without much preparation.        
      My refrigerator is full of good stuff, including fresh fruits, vegetables and/or meat.        
      Everything but the kitchen sink. A wide variety of food, condiments and a few gourmet ingredients.        
      I have so much in my refrigerator I can't list it all. Things are often lost or forgotten.        
 
4. Question 4:
 How many different spices do you have in your cupboard?
      I have salt and pepper somewhere, I think.        
      3-5 different spices.        
      6-9 different spices.        
      10-15 different spices        
      You want me to count the spices? It'll take me an hour!        
 
5. Question 5:
 How many different dishes can you easily cook without a recipe? (Hard-boiled eggs, breakfast cereal, packaged foods and sandwiches don't count.)
      I wouldn't dream of cooking without a recipe.        
      I have one or two favorite dishes I can make without a recipe.        
      I can make 3-8 dishes without a recipe.        
      I can make 9-20 dishes without a recipe.        
      I hardly ever use recipes when I cook.        
      Use a recipe? I WRITE recipes.        
 
6. Question 6:
 I know what spices go well together to flavor different ethnic cuisines.
      Not me. I'm into meat and potatoes. Or just potatoes.        
      I can make one or two ethnic dishes, like nachos or Greek salad.        
      I am a real fan of one kind of ethnic food (for example, Mexican or Thai) and I know exactly how to flavor it.        
      I can properly spice 2-3 different kinds of ethnic food.        
      I am comfortable cooking 4-6 different cuisines.        
      You name it, I can flavor it!        
 
7. Question 7:
 How many different kinds of cooking methods do you use? Select from this list: boil, fry, saute, broil, steam, grill, bake, roast, marinate.
      I can boil water.        
      I primarily use only 1-2 of the methods on the list.        
      I am comfortable using 3-5 of the methods.        
      I use 6-8 of these methods.        
      I can do all of those and more!        
 
8. Question 8:
 When people ask you for a recipe what do you usually say?
      I tell them I just opened the package and heated the food. Or that my roommate made it.        
      I offer to xerox the recipe from my cookbook.        
      I explain it's an old family recipe and promise to write it down for them.        
      I say that I don't have a recipe and I just made it up. Usually I can't remember how I did it.        
      I tell them it's my own invention and promptly write out a recipe.        
 
9. Question 9:
 How much do you experiment when you're baking?
      I don't bake. Or if I do, I use packaged products.        
      I bake simple things, using a recipe.        
      I bake complicated things using a recipe.        
      I occasionally experiment and it usually turns out okay.        
      I occasionally experiment and it's usually a disaster.        
      I understand the proportions of ingredients and often make up recipes.        
 
10. Question 10:
 Speaking of disasters... what percent of your experiments crash and burn?
      Every time I experiment the food is inedible.        
      Maybe one in five experiments works out right.        
      About half the time my experiments go well.        
      My experiments are tasty about three-quarters of the time.        
      My experiments rarely fail.        
      Experiments? Even without a recipe I always know what I'm doing!        
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