The Stupid Food Memes for Stupid People Facebook group has been around since 2016 and has amassed over 3.6K members. Here, you can find stomach-churning photos of cursed foods, hilarious products that probably shouldn’t exist and memes about what it’s like to struggle in the kitchen when you have absolutely no culinary skills.
This community is quite active, as the page has seen over 50 new posts in the past month and continues gaining members every single week. So whether you’re a professional chef or you tend to burn your oatmeal, we’re sure that you’ll find something that makes you chuckle in this list!
On a scale of broke college student to Carmen Berzatto, where do your cooking skills lie? Are you more of an instant noodles for dinner type person, or do you plan your entire week around the Michelin-level meals you plan to prepare? According to a survey from YouGov, only one third of Brits actually feel confident cooking a meal from scratch without a recipe.
However, nearly half say that they’re “fairly good” in the kitchen. And only 12% consider their culinary skills to be “fairly bad” or “very bad.” Unsurprisingly, women tend to be more confident in the kitchen, while men are more likely to be hopeless when it comes to whipping up dinner. And older adults are typically more capable when it comes to cooking than younger adults.
The vast majority of Brits aren’t intimidated by preparing ready meals, cooking from scratch (if they get to follow a recipe) and cooking with prepared ingredients, such as jarred sauces and frozen foods. But apparently, only half of the adults in the UK regularly cook meals from scratch, and 8% admit that they never do. As far as how many dishes Brits feel confident making without help, 35% say they could whip up between one and five meals without consulting a recipe. Meanwhile, nearly a quarter of Brits say they could confidently make between six and ten dishes without any assistance.
Not everyone dreams of whipping up gourmet meals for their partner or impressing dinner party guests. But if you’re looking to improve your cooking skills from the comfort of your own home, Leith’s Online Cookery School has some tips. First, they note that it’s best to collect skills, rather than recipes. Learn how to properly use a knife, how to make a simple gravy, how to create the perfect pie crust, etc. Once you’ve got a handle on the basics, you’ll be able to tackle any recipe without breaking a sweat.
Even if you have no plans of ever working in a restaurant, it’s still a good idea to follow the best practices of professionals. One of which is mise-en-place, which essentially means having all of your ingredients prepped and ready to go before you even start cooking. Everything should be organized and in place to prevent chaos while you’re actually working.
Leith’s also recommends tasting your food throughout every step of the process. Not only does this ensure that the final product is delicious, but it also helps you understand how each step affects the recipe. Lacking depth of flavor? You might need some zing from a squeeze of lemon. Too bitter? Try adding a pinch of sugar or maple syrup. At the end of the day, salt, sugar, fat and acid will make a recipe taste divine, so make sure you’ve included all necessary components.
