The new film Julie & Julia is inspiring a lot of people to get in the kitchen and learn how to cook. Personally, I have not seen the film because Jen, my ADD partner, hates going to the movies. I'll catch it when it comes on HBO.
Even though I haven't seen the movie, I've come to the realization that I'm not getting any younger, and I need to learn how to cook at least something. I've been relying on Jen's phenomenal cooking for my entire adult life. It's high time I got in the kitchen and actually cooked something myself.
As my family will tell you, I'm a disaster in the kitchen. Even when I follow a recipe, everything comes out either burned or undercooked, and completely devoid of taste. In fact, I'm lucky that Jen is such an excellent cook, otherwise I'd be eating cereal every night.
But this summer, I've been making an effort to cook more. So far I've made roast beef, steak, hamburgers, and chicken breasts. They haven't been the greatest meals of my life, but they were edible, and that's an achievement!
So just as Julie had Julia, I had hoped to have Jen to guide me on this journey. But as it turns out, she's no help at all.
People with ADD tend to have little to no interest in details. Jen is a big picture thinker, and she's a big picture cook. Her impressive repertoire has been established not by following recipes to the letter, but through creativity and gut instinct. So when I ask questions in the kitchen, I get vague, almost philosophical answers:
"Jen, when do I flip the steak?"
"You'll know by looking at it."
"Jen, how much seasoning should I use?"
"Taste it and see."
"Jen, what should the internal temperature of the meat be?"
"You'll know when it's done."
Because Jen cooks by instinct and by experience, she's incapable of giving me the details that I need in order to make a successful meal. It's very frustrating, but we laugh about it.
Maybe I should take a cue from Jen, not worry about the details so much, and learn to trust my gut. Or I could learn from Julia Child and drop everything on the floor!
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I'm laughing. Along these same lines, ADDers don't navigate the way you non-ADDers do. I have a very pushy navigation system in my car because I am absolutely freaked by trying to remember directions to anywhere, even places I've been 100 times before. I pay rapt attention as I drive, listening to the soothing "Brenda" gently guide me, turn by turn, to my destination.
A few weeks ago, I was about 75 miles from home, doing some work at a public relations event and I'd forgotten my business cards (so very ME!). I was at the event but I couldn't give people a way to remember me. So I called a friend and pleaded with her to get the cards out of my garage and bring them to me. Bless her heart, she did it. As she neared my location, she called to ask for directions to my location. I got quiet.
"I don't KNOW my address...I just went where the GPS lady sent me."
"Well, what off-ramp did you take?" she asks. She still doesn't "get" the full ADD reality.
"I dunno." I answer sheepishly.
"Well, what street are you one?"
"Uh...one of the major ones. It's got a shopping center across the street."
She gets exasperated. Finally, she says "How the hell can you travel 75 miles away and NOT KNOW WHERE YOU ARE OR HOW YOU GOT THERE?!?"
...I got my business cards, finally. She eventually forgave me for being so clueless. I eventually forgave her for not understanding what it's like to live the ADD life. We're still friends. And I still have absolutely no idea how to get to San Jose, beyond "1. Get on freeway, 2. Turn on GPS."
Posted by: Jennifer C | August 30, 2009 at 04:29 PM
Jennifer, that's hysterical! I hate to think how you got around before the miracle of GPS.
Posted by: Erin | August 31, 2009 at 04:26 PM
I think Jen's right about cooking and it has nothing to do with ADD... Cooking is an art, which is why I despise people like Rachael Ray who think a half hour is all that is needed to make a good meal. That's like saying you can make a painting in a half hour. Sure you can do it... but will it be a Monet? No way. And the same is true for cooking a meal.
Every piece of meat is different and it's just trial and error to know if it's done. Eventually you get it. Same with seasoning... unless you're weighing your meat, it's not an exact science. You follow the recipe the first time and taste it as you go, changing it according to your personal taste. When it tastes good, it's right. I, personally, don't like my food to be salty so I compensate for the missing flavor by adding more of something else and most people don't even notice it's missing.
But I do use a meat thermometer when I make chicken or turkey. Just to make sure I don't inadvertently kill someone.
If you want some easy recipes that won't be ruined if you play around with them, let me know! I have tons.
(I love cooking!)
Posted by: Mel | September 01, 2009 at 01:20 AM
Ok, I know this is an old blog post, but oh my gosh, this is exactly how I cook!!! My husband thinks it's awesome, and calls me the "happy little chef," but it's weird to try and explain it to him! "Just coat it with the worchestershire sauce until it turns the right color." You know, *that* color. ;)
Posted by: Dotty | May 16, 2011 at 09:39 PM