Lessons from cooking: I need to practice more of everything

It hit me today. I really am getting better at cooking. And this time I figured that out on my own.

My husband has told me a couple of times recently that I have improved (and he managed to say it in a way that seemed like a compliment). Though I take his opinion seriously – we are frequently brutally honest with one another – it usually takes awhile for my confidence to catch up.


The realization came as I was mixing up some venison meatloaf tonight. (Yes, venison meatloaf – I’ll tell you about how that turned out later…) It was after a long day, and I was exhausted. And yet instead of picking up a pizza, which sounded so good, I went with our original plan to try out our new meatloaf/loaf pan even though it meant waiting another hour to eat.

To stave off our hunger, I threw together a salad of mixed greens (bagged, of course), chopped-up string cheese (works great as an alternative if you’re out of shredded or block cheese) and pancetta (left over from the tasty zuppa toscana soup I made and will post about soon).

So why during all of this did it hit me that I was actually performing better in the kitchen? Because none of the above fazed me. Not throwing together a salad for which I had few ingredients, nor throwing together a meal I had never made before. If you’ve seen my past posts about cooking, you know a lot fazes me in the kitchen. Like the fear of over- or under-seasoning food. Or overcooking meat. Or just plain messing something up. But recently I’ve felt more confident than I ever have in the kitchen.

The reason? I believe it comes down to practice. I didn’t realize it, but I have actually been practicing cooking – a skill, really – on a regular basis, several times a week, for the past year. I just haven’t thought about it that way.

So if I weren’t getting better I should have just given up. But I am getting better, and it feels good.

Let’s take this to its logical conclusion. I have practiced cooking several times a week over the past year. As a result, I’m getting better.

I should take this lesson and apply it to the other skills I’m trying to improve – namely, golf, mountain biking and running. I mountain bike more than I golf. I’m better at mountain biking than golfing. I sense a pattern forming here.

As children, we practice. We practice our handwriting. We practice reading. We practice basketball after school. Why is it as adults we stop practicing? Sure, you should have fun. And sometimes practice doesn’t sound “fun.” I prefer to say I am going mountain biking, and not I am going to go practice mountain biking.

But the point stands. You get better because practice really does make perfect. More importantly, things are just more fun when you are always improving and reaching your next target.

So in the new year, I resolve to practice more. I resolve to continue challenging myself to improve – just as I’ve done in the kitchen. Lesson learned.