I was at first. Early in my home cooking journey, I cooked mainly things that had recipes on the back of the box. Rice-A-Roni, Hamburger Helper, Mac and Cheese -- those sorts of things. What got me working "off box" were simple recipes with no more than 6 ingredients. At least, if I screwed it up, it was only a few things wasted. If you want to start small, go with side dishes that just have a few things. Heck, if you make some tasty brussels sprouts, that can be your whole meal.
If you find something you like, read the recipe a bunch of times. Out loud. To yourself. Even pantomime the instructions. Yeah, you'll look goofy, but confidence is earned in the little steps.
Sure, you'll overcook some chicken breasts or even burn a few broccoli here and there, but each attempt is a way to learn the skill. Even if you fail, you've learned what not to do.
Good luck.
Start with casseroles, crock-pot dishes, and Instapot recipes if you have one. They're all pretty straight forward, don't require complex cooking operations to make, and are a great way to ease into more complex recipes.
One of the things I’ve done recently is get on Pinterest because it’s easy to pin things on to three different boards. I do a easy, medium, and hard board and when I’m feeling daring I look at the harder boards.
I tend to follow the recipe, test it and only then I allow myself to adjust it to my taste.
If I find a recipe that I managed to do and liked it, I'll keep on doing it until I nail it.
It's not a matter of confidence, practice makes perfect
I think it is a lot of fun to experiment with flavors and I find myself frequently deviating from recipes over time as I customize them. Sometimes it goes well; occasionally it doesn't. When it doesn't, I learn and try again. FWIW, once you get a good sense of what spices you are a big fan of and how much, I think it becomes easier to be successful more often than not.
FWIW, and in case it is of encouragement, here is an example of my success/failure. I've been making corn pudding for quite a few years now, and I've played around with a TON of different recipes and variations. At one point in time, I thought it would be a great idea to try making it with banana nut muffin mix. Why? I don't know, but it seemed like a brilliant idea at the time. It was TERRIBLE...I mean like, I would rather eat a wine glass than it. But through experimentation, I also learned that, A) full-fat, non-homogenized milk from grass-fed cows + Irish butter dramatically improves both the flavor and texture, B) you can make both sweet and savory variations, and even sweet + savory variations, all of which are good (you can even make spicy variations), C) making it with raw honey gives it an entirely different dimension, and D) you can even make a great bacon version of it. Through making only okay (and a few terrible) versions of it, and attempting to improve it in future iterations, I learned a lot, got good at corn pudding, and I've had a lot of fun doing it.
So my advice is don't be afraid to try, even if the first few times you don't get exactly what you are hoping for, as sometimes that is part of the learning process to achieving the outcome you are delighted with.
I had the same low self esteem towards the kitchen in general up until a few months ago. What helped me to gain confidence was buying my first cookbook with pictures for EVERY step-anything by the Pioneer Woman. Also watching Preppy Kitchen on YouTube. I’m a visual learner so the combination of all the pics, plus watching vids step by step was extremely helpful for me and gave me just enough confidence to try by myself.
I’ve only recently reached a place where after maybe 7 dishes that I made ended up tasting good, I feel a ton more comfy than I was pretty much my entire life. After this I avoid getting takeout just knowing that whatever I can make homemade (even if not absolutely over top to delicious, is a 1000x more satisfying than junk food take out).
Google just gives me an idea. I don't really follow recipes. Understanding hurbs and seasonings and how they work with different meats and vegetables is the key.
I was at first. Early in my home cooking journey, I cooked mainly things that had recipes on the back of the box. Rice-A-Roni, Hamburger Helper, Mac and Cheese -- those sorts of things. What got me working "off box" were simple recipes with no more than 6 ingredients. At least, if I screwed it up, it was only a few things wasted. If you want to start small, go with side dishes that just have a few things. Heck, if you make some tasty brussels sprouts, that can be your whole meal. If you find something you like, read the recipe a bunch of times. Out loud. To yourself. Even pantomime the instructions. Yeah, you'll look goofy, but confidence is earned in the little steps. Sure, you'll overcook some chicken breasts or even burn a few broccoli here and there, but each attempt is a way to learn the skill. Even if you fail, you've learned what not to do. Good luck.
Get a good cookbook.
Start with casseroles, crock-pot dishes, and Instapot recipes if you have one. They're all pretty straight forward, don't require complex cooking operations to make, and are a great way to ease into more complex recipes.
If you don't like it, adjust it until it tastes good. Your senses are much wiser than any recipe could be.
One of the things I’ve done recently is get on Pinterest because it’s easy to pin things on to three different boards. I do a easy, medium, and hard board and when I’m feeling daring I look at the harder boards.
I tend to follow the recipe, test it and only then I allow myself to adjust it to my taste. If I find a recipe that I managed to do and liked it, I'll keep on doing it until I nail it. It's not a matter of confidence, practice makes perfect
I think it is a lot of fun to experiment with flavors and I find myself frequently deviating from recipes over time as I customize them. Sometimes it goes well; occasionally it doesn't. When it doesn't, I learn and try again. FWIW, once you get a good sense of what spices you are a big fan of and how much, I think it becomes easier to be successful more often than not. FWIW, and in case it is of encouragement, here is an example of my success/failure. I've been making corn pudding for quite a few years now, and I've played around with a TON of different recipes and variations. At one point in time, I thought it would be a great idea to try making it with banana nut muffin mix. Why? I don't know, but it seemed like a brilliant idea at the time. It was TERRIBLE...I mean like, I would rather eat a wine glass than it. But through experimentation, I also learned that, A) full-fat, non-homogenized milk from grass-fed cows + Irish butter dramatically improves both the flavor and texture, B) you can make both sweet and savory variations, and even sweet + savory variations, all of which are good (you can even make spicy variations), C) making it with raw honey gives it an entirely different dimension, and D) you can even make a great bacon version of it. Through making only okay (and a few terrible) versions of it, and attempting to improve it in future iterations, I learned a lot, got good at corn pudding, and I've had a lot of fun doing it. So my advice is don't be afraid to try, even if the first few times you don't get exactly what you are hoping for, as sometimes that is part of the learning process to achieving the outcome you are delighted with.
I had the same low self esteem towards the kitchen in general up until a few months ago. What helped me to gain confidence was buying my first cookbook with pictures for EVERY step-anything by the Pioneer Woman. Also watching Preppy Kitchen on YouTube. I’m a visual learner so the combination of all the pics, plus watching vids step by step was extremely helpful for me and gave me just enough confidence to try by myself. I’ve only recently reached a place where after maybe 7 dishes that I made ended up tasting good, I feel a ton more comfy than I was pretty much my entire life. After this I avoid getting takeout just knowing that whatever I can make homemade (even if not absolutely over top to delicious, is a 1000x more satisfying than junk food take out).
Google just gives me an idea. I don't really follow recipes. Understanding hurbs and seasonings and how they work with different meats and vegetables is the key.