What do we do three times a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year?
Eat, of course.
And how much preparation did you get on how to accomplish the activity that precedes eating while you still lived at home?
How much preparation have you given to your child(ren) in that activity?
We eat daily. We can either eat out or eat in. I suppose it is possible to go through life and never cook, but we aren’t living in a Downton Abbey episode, and neither you nor I are a Crawley. So chances are strong that your child, whether male or female, will be required to prepare a meal for him or herself at some point in their adult life.
What are we going to do about that?
What can you do about that?
You can teach your child how to boil water and other simple meal prep tasks.
Do I literally mean boil water? Yes. If your child doesn’t know how to cook a pot of pasta, then yes, teach them how to boil water. Teach them what size pot they need depending on how much pasta they are cooking; when it doubt, go big. Teach them to read the pasta package because different pastas have different cooking times.
Show them how to drain the pasta without 1. Burning themselves, and 2. Spilling the noodles all over the sink.
If you have a special sauce, teach them to cook that. Yes, have them chop the onion and mince the garlic. Stand with them while the saute the vegetables and add in the tomatoes. Walk them through the process from start to finish.
Every child, at the very least, should know how to cook a spaghetti dinner before leaving home.
But wait, there’s more.
Teach your child how to make a salad.
A boy can’t life on noodles alone, although many-a-college student has tried with raman. Let’s round out that spaghetti dinner with a salad. Have your child watch the lettuce. Have them chop or tear the lettuce and allow them to determine how large or small they like their salad pieces. Have them chop a tomato, slice a cucumber. If they are so inspired, they can julienne a carrot or a radish.
Whatever you put on it, teach them how to make a salad.
Teach your child how to bake a potato.
It can be as easy as washing the skin, putting it on a baking sheet and setting it into a preheated oven at 350°. Depending on the size of the potato, it can be done as quick as 15 minutes or as long as an hour. Simple. Delicious. Nutritious. Teach your child how to bake a potato.
Teach your child how to chop an onion.
I’ve seen some folks in my life hack away in an attempt to chop an onion. It not pretty,
nor very effective. Save your child the embarrassment and teach them to chop an onion. Not sure how to do it yourself, learn together with this video.
Teach your child how to cook rice.
I’ll confess, I use a rice cooker. I have two actually; we eat a lot of rice. No harm in using a cooker, and especially great for easy dorm room meals. So whether on the stove or with a cooker, each your child how to make rice.
Teach your child to cook your signature dish.
What are you known for? Growing up, my mom was famous for her sausage bread. It was requested at every party, and never had leftovers. It was her signature dish. What is your signature dish? What are you known for? Teach your child to make that dish. It’s a part of you and a part of their childhood. Teach them how to make it.
Teach your child some go-to meals
Equip your child with some other cooking basics. Here are some suggestions; research your own, or better yet, have your child research what they want to learn to make.
Homemade Pizza
Homemade Hummus
Guacamole
Killer Pancakes
Stew
Soup