Is there even a case to be made for old fashioned, from scratch, healthy meals today?
With so many prepared and ready-made foods available to us, does it really matter if you don't know how to boil or burn those fresh from the garden beets or turnips?
I read last week that only 25 per cent of Canadian kids get to eat a "from-scratch" meal every day.
If you think that statistic represents a problem, what is equally troubling is the fact that nobody is even trying to teach them how to prepare and then actually cook a from-scratch meal.
I'm not suggesting that 13-year-olds should learn how to butcher a half-hog or steer or pluck and remove the entrails of a chicken or duck, although that certainly would be helpful and probably profitable. I'm sure some kids who like fishing learn how to fillet their catch, so removing gunk from chickens or ducks is just a natural next step isn't it?
Some people who believe they know all about domestic food preparation figure they've reached at least a B-level of competence if they know how to cook mac and cheese.
Sorry, that's an F.
I know at the Comp they teach commercial culinary skills and those kidlets seem to embrace the program while learning neat skills. I don't believe high schools teach home economics anymore though, do they? Some might offer bachelor survival courses or some such alternatives, like how to pop popcorn correctly, but I don't think we can take those things seriously. Commercial cooking is the real thing.
How many 15-year-olds can stuff and roast a chicken or turkey?
I've heard of some younger mothers who don't know, so how will they teach their kids? And did you note I said kids, not daughters? We're equal now guys. You get to learn how to cook rice and bake a Saskatoon pie, just like mom or grandma.
Barbecues don't count either guys, not unless you're roasting vegetables while you're burning the chicken or steak. And, of course, you didn't get those vegetables from the grocery store's prepared tray of mixed veggies did you? No, you got them raw from the produce counter or farmers' market then washed them and peeled them or prepared them in the traditional way, you know, that way you never learned. A potato peeler is not some kind of ancient Turkish torture device.
Pasta sauce? Jar or peeled tomatoes with spices and peppers added to a simmering pot?
Stir fry? Packaged or self-prepared?
So you get what I mean.
How important is it for today's young people to learn some basic food preparation and cooking skills? Maybe it's just as important as learning how to manipulate the latest Xbox game?
I know I'm an advocate of learning how to cook and bake, at least to some degree of proficiency simply because when I have to enter bachelor mode, I don't run in fear of stuffing and cooking a turkey or baking some fish or even a cake, if need be. I learned early and often to get away from canned beans, fried eggs and that ugly mac and cheese thingy. I fall flat on my face when it comes to adding the finer things though. I love East and West Indian meals but learned long ago that simply tossing curry powder on rice is just an ugly and unappetizing cover up that doesn't do the trick. So for now, samosa is out, toasted tomato sandwich is on.
Light up the barbecue man, here comes the steak and bottled barbecue sauce. I'm in!
