Cooking Without Recipes 👨‍🍳⚡️🍳

(aka Cooking Level 1)

Learning to cook shouldn't take decades. We broke down the core cooking skills into component parts so that you can get up to speed as efficiently as possible. The goal is to cook without recipes. Good luck! 🧑‍🍳

Symbol guide: 🎬 = video | 📓 = reference guide |⚡️ = hack | 🌟 = guest star

🎬 To watch a video introduction to this course, click here.

Table of Contents:

• 🥚 How to Boil Water (Boiling, Simmering, Steaming & Poaching)

• 🥔 How to Cook with Air (Roasting & Baking)

• 🍳 How to Play with Fire (Sauté, Scramble, Sear & Stir Fry)

• 🔪 How to Wield a Knife

• 🥗 The Balanced Salad

• 🧊 How to Hack Your Freezer

• 🥪 Lunch 2.0

• ⏲ How to Stride Ahead (Meal Prep & Grocery Shopping)

🥚 How to Boil Water (Boiling, Simmering, Steaming & Poaching)

Level 1:

• Introduction

• How to Boil Water

• How to Make Tea 🎬

• How to Make Drip Coffee

• How to Season Water

• Pasta Al Dente

• How to Boil Vegetables

• Creamy Cauliflower 

• Boiled & Mashed Sweet Potato

• Seasonal Vegetables You Can Boil 📓

• How to Blanch & Shock

• Shock the Broc (Practice) 

• Medium-Boiled Eggs

• Cooking Continuously ⚡️📓🎬

Level 2

• Hot Cocoa & Hot Chocolate 🎬

• How to Poach an Egg 🎬

• How to Cook Grains 📓

• Oatmeal Delight 📓

• Grain Bowls 📓

• How to Steam Vegetables 📓

• How to Make Rice

🥔 How to Cook with Air (Roasting & Baking)

• How to Cook with Air

• Temperatures for Roasting 📓

• Products & Gear for Roasting 

• Roasting Vegetables 📓

• Baked Potato

• Crispy Roasted Brussels

• Kale Chips 🎬

• Food Safety (Poultry)

• Roasted Whole Chicken

• Sheet Pan Dinners⚡️

• Spaghetti Squash 🎬

🍳 How to Play with Fire - Sear, Sauté, Scramble

• Introduction to Pan Cooking 

• Teaching Food to Fly (aka How to Sauté Vegetables) - video 🎬

• How to Scramble Eggs  - video 🎬

• How to Fry an Egg - video 🎬

• French Toast 🎬

• Pan-Seared Fish - video 🎬

• How to Cook a Steak - video 🎬

🔪 How to Wield a Knife

• Knife Sharpening Basics

• Sharpen & Test Your Knife 🎬

• Basic Knife Skills 🎬

• How to Slice & Dice an Onion (w/ Chef April Word) 🎬

• How to Prep Lemon Slices ⚡️🎬

🥗🗝 The Balanced Salad

• Introduction: The Balanced Salad 🗝

• Recommended Gear 🗝

• Lettuce & Greens: Selection & Care 🎬🗝

• Crudité 📓🗝

• Summer Slaw 🎬🗝

• Vinaigrette & Dressing 📓🗝

• House Salad 🎬🗝

• Building a Balanced Salad 🗝

• Salad Toppings Reference Guide 📓🗝

• Toasted Nuts & Seeds 🗝

• Pickled Red Onions ⚡️🗝

🧊 How to Hack Your Freezer

• Hellooo Freezer!

• Gear for Freezing

• Freezer Organization & Care

• Freezer Stocking Reference Guide 📓

• Flavor Cubes 📓⚡️

• Homemade Sparkling Citrus Soda 🎬⚡️

• Pesto Cubes ⚡️

• Freezing Meat, Poultry & Fish

• Freezing Dairy & Eggs

• Homemade Ice Cream - Vanilla & Beyond 🎬

• Ice Cream Flavors & Add-Ins Reference Guide 📓

• Smoothies

• Freezer Storage Times Reference Guide 📓

🥪 Lunch 2.0

• Avocado Toast 📓🎬

• Tuna Salad📓🎬

• Building a Balanced Sandwich 📓

• Sprucing up Leftovers 📓⚡️

• Roasted Turkey Breast 🎬

• Bread & Butter Pickles 🎬

• Cheese & Nosh Plate 📓⚡️

• Taco Everyday 📓

• Chicken Salad 📓

🛒 How to Stride Ahead (Meal Prep & Grocery Shopping)

• The Philosophy of MaxF (w/ Claire Conly, VP Analytics @ Thumbtack) 🎬🌟

• How to Write a Grocery List 📓

• Pantry & Fridge Stocking 📓

• The Sunday Meal Prep System 📓

• Economical Cooking 📓

About Cooking Without Recipes:

👩‍🍳 Cooking Level 2

Foundations

• The Five Levels of Cooking

• Goals for Level 2

• Bone Broth ⚡️

Roasting/Baking - Level 2

• Baked/Roasted Fish 📓

• Shakshouka

• Roasted Leeks

• Roasted Potatoes

• Garlic Bread

• Spanish Omelette

• Quiche 📓

• Frittata 📓

• Pizza 📓

• Chicken & Rice 📓

• Roasted Chickpeas

• Chicken Pot Pie

• Meatballs

• Casserole (e.g., kugel, mac & cheese)

Lunch 3.0

• Pesto Pasta Salad

• Green Smoothie

• 8 min Toast & Eggs

• Dressing Up Canned Soup

• The Open Faced Tortilla

• Udon/Ramen 📓

• Grilled Cheese

• Egg Salad Sandwich

• Gravlax

• Smorgasbord (e.g., herring & pickles)

• Sausage & Spinach

• Homemade Hummus

Boiling - Level 3

• Chicken & Vegetable Soup 📓

• Puréed Vegetable Soup ⚡️📓

• Lentils & Beans

• Basic Curry

• French Onion Soup

• Poached/Sous Vide Chicken

• Amazing Bolognese

Knife Skills - Level 2

• How to Slice a Melon - video 🎬

• How to Mince Garlic

• How to Peel a Kiwi

• How to Prepare Strawberries

• Butchering Butternut Squash

The Elevated Salad

• Salad with Fruit, Nuts & Cheese 📓

• Arugula & Parm

• California Kale Ceasar

• Kale & Root Vegetable Salad

• Anna’s Salad Nicoise

• Bitter Lettuce Salads (Radicchio, Fennel, Endives, Frisée)

• Rotisserie Chicken & Veg Salad

• Steak Salad

• Homemade Croutons

• Homemade Aioli/Mayonnaise

Pan Cooking - Level 2:

• How to Sauté Greens 📓

• How to Caramelize Onions 

• Pan-Seared Chicken (Chef Dennis Mabasa) 📓

• How to Pan Cook Bacon

• Stir Fry 📓

• Fried Rice 📓

• Burgers 📓

• Chicken Lettuce Wraps

• Omelette 📓

• Pan-Fried Tofu

• Garlic Eggplant & Shrimp

• Chicken Schnitzel

Striding Ahead (Meal Prep & Shopping) - Level 2

• Selecting & Storing Produce 📓

• Trader Joe’s Best Of 📓

• Costco Best Of 📓

• Sauces for the Week 📓

• Spreads & Dips for the Week 📓

• Healing Soups

“Non-Recipe Guides”

• Beef Stew (aka Brisket/Cholent/Goulash/Boeuf Bourginon)

• Braised Chicken (aka Coq au Vin)

• Chili 📓

• Lasagna 📓

• Pasta Salads 📓

• Risotto 📓

• Sausage Soup

• Stuffed Cabbage

• Carnitas

• Short Ribs

• Creamy Potato (& Leek) Soup

• Nachos

• Toasts

DIY/Projects

• Homemade Applesauce - video 🎬

• Homemade Jam ⚡️

• Homemade Butter in a Jar

• Compound Butter

• Whipped Cream

• Challah Bread

• Popovers

• Rugelach

• Gluten-Free Sandwich Bread

• Matzo Balls

• Chopped Liver

• Gravlax

• Hummus

• Guacamole

———

👆 Symbol guide: 🎬 = video, 📓 = reference guide, ⚡️ = hack, 🌟 = guest star

👋 About Us

🗂 To see lessons organized by category, see Collections.