By Greg Doering, Kansas Farm Bureau
Much of what I learned about cooking came from watching my mom and grandmother prepare meals on a daily basis. It was a matter of necessity in those days. There weren’t enough restaurants in my small town to go for more than a couple of days without having to eat at the same place.
The menu at home was only slightly more varied and consisted of the standard meat, potatoes and a vegetable of some kind. Of all the meal prep, watching my mom and grandmother peel potatoes is probably the one most anchored in my mind.
A feature of nearly every dinner, each of them had plenty of practice sliding a paring knife just under the peel, removing only a small sliver of the skin. It’s a skill I’ve never learned. I still have to use a peeler to avoid taking thick hunks out of the spud.
I also have never been able to recreate the steak gravy the way my grandmother made it. She had some technique that didn’t get passed on to keep some small lumps of toasted flour in the thick concoction that was ladled over pan-fried minute steaks and mounds of mashed potatoes.
I can make a roux and get close to the taste of her gravy, but the flour is always well incorporated by the time I’m done whisking everything together. I also manage to dirty just about every dish in the kitchen when making a gravy, which is one reason it’s usually reserved for a weekend meal.
One of the biggest realizations of being an adult is just how much time and effort went into keeping me fed throughout my childhood. I’m competent in the kitchen today but sometimes I’m too willing to delegate the work to someone else.
Planning, purchasing, preparing and then cleaning up afterward are all big reasons going to a restaurant sounds good. Getting all that plus food delivered to your table is much more appealing after a day at work.
Outsourcing all the work also carries a cost, which I was reminded of recently when I looked over the menu at one of my favorite establishments to see most of the burgers were listed just under $20, meaning that with tip they’d crossed the line from budget-friendly to expensive entrée.
It’s still tasty enough to be worth it, but costly enough it’s not at the top of the list when considering whether or not to cook. I can’t make a better burger at home, but I can certainly make one cheaper when the rent, prep and cleaning are already accounted for and available.
The bigger issue isn’t the time involved in cooking, rather it’s the motivation to add yet another task at the end of the day. It’s especially trying this time of year with my wife returning to teaching, altering our normal routine.
Once again, I lean on my mother and grandmother for some time-saving advice. I can’t wield the paring knife to peel potatoes like they could, but I can make enough to have for lunch the next day. Turns out the secret is to cook more and learn to love leftovers.
“Insight” is a weekly column published by Kansas Farm Bureau, the state’s largest farm organization whose mission is to strengthen agriculture and the lives of Kansans through advocacy, education and service.
