The Art Of Cooking

[-Serenity-]

Last Saturday, on account of my graduation, a friend of mine has decided to invite me to dinner and cook. Now, this might seem like a not-so-out-of-the-ordinary nice gesture but I’ve never known this friend to be a cook or the type that would go through the pain of getting hot over a stove to please anyone. Moreover, I’ve never considered preparing dinner for my friends/loved ones special… well, cooking at all never struck a cord with me. I’m the kind of girl who will recommend a good number of places to dine out and then take you out, never the thought of doing it myself entering my head. I’ve even suggested to the above-mentioned friend not to bother herself and just take me out to eat, but she insisted on cooking. So I went (secretly thinking nothing that great could come out of a home-cooked meal!)….

 

But my friend made a better meal than I could’ve ever had outside and the fact that she went through the trouble to make it made it all the more special. She also said there was something personally satisfying about making food and watching the people you’re making for enjoy it and appreciate. Having never had this feeling, I decided to start cooking for the family (after almost 2yrs of going nowhere near the kitchen), and I’ve to agree, there is something extremely gratifying about making a great home-made meal, chopped with affection, cooked with love and fried with sweat (erm.. not literally of course ).

 

Not to string this story along all day, but I’ve two questions to ask:

 

Do the nomads consider cooking a special meal personally satisfying?

 

And have you ever cooked for a special someone and what did you make?

[Viking]

Originally posted by Amelia:

Do the nomads consider cooking a special meal personally satisfying?

Quite satisfying. Most meals can be special, as long as you know how to get the best out of the ingredients you have.

 

Originally posted by Amelia:

And have you ever cooked for a special someone and what did you make?

Depends on the mood, season and/or ingredients available at the time.

 

- Grilled salmon, boiled potatoes, lobster sauce, veggies and a good sallad

 

- Trade-mark lasagne with a fusion of ingredients

 

- pancakes, using milk (instead of water) and a nice saucy side-dish

 

- Nasi Goreng (a type of bariis isku daxkaris) with chicken and prawns

 

...etc etc.

[sheherazade]

Cooking for a special occ. or when there's time is great, every day cooking for half the clan and their mates most certainly is not. Those were not the days.

 

I tried to make khamiir/mandazi/whatever-they-call-it-in-your-neck-of-the-woods a few days ago for a cousin. Last week, when I made some for myself, it turned out fabulous. In my eagerness to make it extra nice for her I said and I quote, 'Sonkorta ku badi. Ha nixin.' and proceeded to demonstrate with vigour.

 

I knew it was going to be bad from the consistency of the dough yet I persevered and built up the anticipation. We were both hungry and craving complex carbohydrate. The show had to go on.

 

When it came to frying, it swallowed the oil like nobody's business, when it came to eating it crumbled all over the couch. I apologised the rest of the night and the following day. By midnight there was grease floating back up my oesophagus. She said it was nice, she even had it for breakfast the following day- unbeknownst to be. Absolutely clueless, that's how I like 'em.

 

I find cooking satisfying but I'm mostly too lazy to be engaging in it.

 

If u're going to cook for someone however special, keep to something u know best. If u know nothing, u don't deserve someone special.

[sheherazade]

Originally posted by Viking:

- Grilled salmon, boiled potatoes, lobster sauce, veggies and a good sallad

Someone's being spoiled.

[JUSTICE]

I love to cook, cooking is my passion.

It's 100% true what your friend about the appreciation that she gets from family, I get the same feeling.

Have i cooked from someone special. Well not yet , but i consider my family to be so special.

[STOIC]

I’ ve seen more than my share of forgettable poor cooking skills of women I dated. Having lived in a farm in Kenya, I have learned how to cook traditional Somali food. I must admit that I am poor at cooking gourmet food. I can’t be as good as Lisa Ray in the kitchen, but I am trying my share. I once invited a woman in my life to come down my apartment with her friend to make some potluck; boy was I ashamed to even tell this Diaspora kids to cook. The whole apartment was about to be on fire had I not been around.The emblem of my motto now is “if you’ve got the cooking skills, Honey, I’ve got the kitchen :cool: .

 

EDIT: Congratulation Amelia for the graduation....

[winnie]

cant cook- dont have the intereset or the talent. there have been days where i spent my time fasting (w not ajar) cause i couldnt be bothered to make something.

[Socod_badne]

Originally posted by Amelia:

I decided to start cooking for the family

 

 

I don't know why but I have this image of Mr. Bean in your gorgeous visage cooking.

[-Serenity-]

^ SB, what can you cook?

 

Viking, you seem like a seasoned chef . Do you cook often for the wife?

 

I’m not a bad cook, I just don’t enjoy cooking…especially when it becomes a chore and you’re forced to do it day in and day out. One looses the will to make it good then. Wish we could just be content with one meal a week!

 

Today, I made vegetable rice, grilled salmon, chips, and salad for the family. I figured this is the longest I’ve been home with no obligations and I aught to make mummy happy. I could tell the girls enjoyed it too, although they would never show any appreciation for me… even if I put honey in their mouths, they would argue it wasn’t that sweet. Teens these days! :mad:

 

Am interested to know what was the last thing you guys cooked too .

 

p.s. Stoic. Thanks and you too!

[Socod_badne]

Amelia or curling waters, flowing waters, cascading waters, still waters, murky waters or whatever other monikers you call yourself. Listen up little girl: I don't cook. Nor do men of my stature.

[Zafir]

^^Don't you ever call amelia a little girl again, agteeda.

 

Oatmeal for break fast

 

Omelet (beaten with milk) with green papers and chopped up onions for lunch

 

Subway (eat fresh) for dinner. Healthy living!!

 

I wouldn’t want to change this routine for the world, barris and baasto with hilib and fish are overrated.

 

And what’s this salad business everyone is saying?? Offer me salad and I shall never to a guest in your house.

[ElPunto]

Originally posted by Zafir:

I wouldn’t want to change this routine for the world, barris and baasto with hilib and fish are overrated.

 

You would be surprised at how highly rated well made Somali barris and basto is by other people - even those have a well known cuisine like Indians and Chinese.

[-Serenity-]

I also take it you dont eat, SB? Caqli xumada halkeed ka keentey horta?

[J.Lee]

^Self-acquired weeye.

 

Forget cooking, I don't even remember the last time I ate a home cooked meal.

[Socod_badne]

Amelia,

 

Pretty tame comeback dear, what's holding you back. Bare your fangs, sharpen your claws and give me all you got Ms. Valedictorian!

 

 

I don't cook, others cook for me.