It’s bizarre to think that if you’re, hypothetically speaking, forced to do something for all eternity, you’d wager it would be something that is also eternally painful or dull or, simply put, anything but pleasant. Well, eating is one thing we’re “doomed” to do for all eternity and so far most of us quite like it.
So much, in fact, that some even form very strong opinions about food, cuisine, and everything in between. And there’s been an AskReddit post about it, with thousands of people sharing their culinary hills they’d die on.
Bored Panda has collected some of the best opinions from the now-viral post, which currently clocks in at nearly 27,000 upvotes, 29,000 comments and 60 Reddit awards. Scroll down to check them out, and while you’re at it, vote on the ones you like and comment your strong opinions in the comment section below!
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When you're baking from an online recipe, don't change three or four ingredients "to make it healthy" and then leave a one star review about how bad it is.
Only edible items should be plated. Garnishes should be edible, Hate it when I see rocks and sticks on a plate. Fight Me.
Being poor isn’t a culinary crime. It takes talent to make cheap food taste as good as my mom did.
Life is too short to not use butter.
COOKING AND BAKING ARE DIFFERENT.
Cooking allows you to experiment and be imprecise. Baking requires precision
Someone said it nicely: "cooking is an art, baking is a science"
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Very very different!!! And I'm still better in baking than cooking but who cares! As long as there are cookies!!!
This is the Cookie police, I need to confiscate those cookies, for umm.. quality.. yes quality test... :-D
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Yes, although cooking is also science, e.g., béarnaise sauce requires quite specific ingredient measurements and a quite precise technique. In general, cooking is a much more forgiving science than baking.
If you know what your doing you don't have to be precise when baking. I've created some of my best recipes that way. But, if you don't know what your doing, follow the Recipes
You have to be willing to experiment and not beat yourself up if it goes in the trash inedible
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No, absolutely false, and that's the hill I'm going to die on.
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I can cook. My wife can bake. I feel this says something about our personalities on a deep and profound level.
Yes, especially in that, given the correct instructions to follow, any damn fool can bake or titrate. Cooking requires a broader skill set developed over time and intuition tempered with discipline.
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Is this a controversial opinion? I thought everyone knew that. Baking requires specific measurements in order to carry out specific chemical reactions in a specific way. Cooking doesn't need that. That's basically the definitive difference between the two.
sometimes cooking needs that, too. E.g. making a quick tomato sauce, but it's too sour (I use chopped or sieved tomatoes). then I use baking soda to weaken the sourness. but you have to be very careful. just a bit too much baking soda and it's kinda ruined. tricky one
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Well duh. I suck and hate cooking but I love to bake and am much better at it!
Everyone says baking requires precision, and yet - how many different recipes are there out there for rolls, scones, cakes... and if you fudge it a little it often still works or works better. For example - I have a carrot cake recipe that calls for 2 tsp each baking soda and baking powder - I use one each. 2 cups of carrots - I use 5. 1 cup raisins - I use 1/2 cup currents. Thoroughly drained pineapple tidbits - I use slightly drained crushed pineapple. I up the flour by a half a cup - we're at altitude. I changed the frosting recipe to make it have a little flavor and because it was too much sugar and not enough butter. I have been asked for the recipe every time I've made it. I give out the recipe I have - just not my modifications. So - yeah - recipes in baking are also a guideline IMO.
You can do a whole lot of substitution in a stew, not so much in a cake- oil instead of butter maybe, but butter's better...
What on Earth do you people here mean by 'baking'. Bread making "using yeast"? In which case it is bread-making -- you do need to bake the bread after it has risen. We can also bake cakes, biscuits (crisp 'twice-cooked), scones and even dinners -- though people nowadays tend to call them roasts.
HaHa. When you bake you cook! When you fry you cook! When you steam you cook, When you barbecue you cook. Cooking alters the compounds in the food, using heat.
Both cooking and baking require focus to produce a quality product. I think baking is less forgiving than cooking in that regard. I think cooking gives more opportunities to adjust for mistakes as you go, but not so with baking which typically relies heavily on proper temperature, ingredient timing, measuring precision, sometimes humidity, etc. So I say yes, they are different.
Absolutely. My late hubby could cook like a Cordon Bleu trained chef, but couldn't bake to save his life and it pissed him off that I can bake a decent cake or cookies.
Baking is literally a type of cooking. Cooking is just using heat to make food.
True, I nearly fought a guy over calling cinnamon rolls doughnuts. One is baked the other is fried. Completely different.
Yes! Cooking a meal allows experimentation that baking does not. It's all based on chemistry.
Yep. People who do neither are always shocked that people can be good at one and dislike the other. I find baking stressful ASI have to get it right and cooking is fun and intuitive
Absolutely! I'm a decent cook and an awful baker! My husband is an excellent baker and not a good cook. Know your strengths!
Baking is chemistry, cooking isn't. Understanding how raising agents work when combined for example is important.
No, baking is one of the cooking methods. Don't make stuff up to fit your agenda.
Baking can be imprecise for cookies. Throw things together to a cookie dough consistency.
Cooking, baking, candies, and chocolates are all completely separate disciplines.
I'm educated in the sciences and spent most of university running experiments. I'm an AWESOME baker because it's like following the method portion of an experiment. I'm a lousy cook (unless I have a recipe) because I have no guardrails and am not nearly creative enough.
I am a horrible baker because I can never find the measuring spoons and cups and just wing it. Can't wing baking...
I wing baking all the time. What do you think people did throughout history before standardized measurements and ovens with thermometers?
Load More Replies... They are different, but one is not inherently harder than the other. Both take understanding what you're doing, and both require practice so you know what the ingredients and methods achieve. But this whole "cooking is an art baking is a science" crap is a) CRAP, not true, and b) responsible for scaring a whole generation of people to the point that they won't even try baking, particularly bread, because people have said how exact you have to be. YOU DON'T. Yes, learn first; yes, follow recipes closely if you've not made them before - that goes for cooking AND baking - yes, wait to experiment before you know a little more. But people have been both cooking and baking for MILLENNIA and you can do either if you want to. Don't let people's stupid sayings put you off.
Why are you making the stupid assumption that everyone considers science more difficult than art?? Those people who find baking easier/more fun than cooking are also more likely to be people who favor the discipline of science over art, and yes, there are plenty of people out there like that. Why not make this a case of having scientifically-minded people be attracted to baking and naturally gifted bakers getting attracted to science?
Load More Replies... Very different! You'll know this for certain if you've ever seen a baker/pastry chef try to cook; they're usually c*** at it.
I’ve always said, “Baking follows the script, cooking is more improv.!” 😉
A burger should fit in your mouth and shouldn’t require a stick to hold it together or cutlery to eat it.
If you think it's enough garlic, it's probably not enough garlic.
Being snobby about food to the point where you're hindering someone else's enjoyment is not a positive personality trait.
if you are writing a recipe, write a recipe. Not an autobiography
It's about some weird copyright laws in some countries. Very annoying, most people probably skip the 'biography' part, so apart from the copyright purpose this was wasted time. Ps. yesterday when looking for lasagne recipe I had to skip over world history of lasagne, a personal history of lasagne and author's philosophical exasperations - on lasagne, of course...
Homemade chili is almost always better the next day.
And lasagne...and tiramisù.. the next day they are always better...
Grilling on charcoal taste way better than propane, Hank Hill is an idiot
That cheap bag of frozen peas and diced carrots you get at the grocery store is an outstandingly versatile source of nutrition. And tasty too.
Cereal first and then milk
My daughter puts the milk in first, then the cereal. She says it keeps the cereal from getting soggy while she eats it. Or she may just be a monster. 🤷♀️
This is actually something I'm willing to pass on
YOU DON'T NEED TO WASH YOUR GOD DAMN MEAT!
If you cook it right, you kill all the bacteria you're "washing". All you're doing is spreading the germs all over your kitchen sink.
We need to make burgers wider not taller
The most expensive food isn't always the "best" food. No, I'm not impressed by a $200 slice of pizza with it's price driven up with truffle and gold flake.
Bonus: cereal or crushed Oreos on a donut isn't revolutionary.
Worcestershire sauce can work magic.
So can fish sauce. Amazing how something that smells so vile can enhance so many flavors.
We need to stop letting people put raisins where they don't belong.... It's getting out of hand.
I like dipping my sushi rolls and sashimi in a soy sauce and wasabi mixture and I don’t care if it goes against proper sushi etiquette. It tastes good.
All food is fusion. No dish is above adoption or adaptation.
I don't want to hear that you're bad at cooking if you don't follow a recipe or measure your ingredients. You can get so far by just reading and actually do it what it says.
There’s no such thing as a “dry” brine. By definition, brines are liquid based. A salt-based dry rub is a cure. Brines are also a type of cure, but they are liquid based. All brines are cures, but not all cures are brines.
I live in the Midwest, I love the Midwest but just because you call something a salad does not mean it is healthy and an acceptable side dish to your main course. Snicker-marshmallow-mayo-whatever is not salad.
Peanut butter is a fantastic savoury ingredient with a shockingly enormous range of applications.
The moment something gets hyped as a superfood, I'm out.
To clarify, "superfood" is a buzzword that cues bulls**t incoming and rising prices. The author loses all credibility. It's the point where I stop reading and close the window. Might look up the stats for the food afterward from an actual resource such as a university's nutrition summary.
Season your tomatoes, especially for sandwiches.
Unless they're grown in your yard. Then eat them like an apple. Tomatoes you grow yourself are 1000 times better and don't need anything.
Baked donuts are not donuts. Donuts must be fried. Baked donuts are just small cakes, which are delicious but NOT DONUTS
to clarify the exact type of donut imposter I am raging against
Learning how to cut an onion is the first lesson in the cooking world
I can't. My eyes actually swell shut. I can't see after the first couple of slices
Often doing things “the right way” or “from scratch” just isn’t worth it. There are plenty of shortcuts that give you 90% of the result with 50% of the effort. I’ll take those shortcuts just about every time.
People who hate cooking with stainless steel don’t know how to cook with stainless steel.
MSG is amazing
The hate for msg is just based on anti asian racism. A doctor invented the idea that it produced headaches with 0 proof whatsoever. This was used as an excuse to attack asian restaurants while many other "western" products have msg. It is been proven since then that what he claimed was a lie.
If you can't drink it through a straw it's not a milkshake.
Note: this post originally had 43 images. It’s been shortened to the top 40 images based on user votes.
Here's one of mine- making exotic and foreign dishes is NOT cultural appropriation- everyone should be free to make whatever food they wish as no recipes should belong to any one race/group. Culinary gatekeeping needs to end. Allow your tastebuds to embark on a global trip via your kitchen, guilt-free!
Eat foods that are in season where you live to the greatest extent you can. It's cheaper, better tasting, and better for the environment.
Also. Buying in bulk is not a bad thing. Buying heat and eat food is not bad and investing in a vacuum sealer will pay for itself over and over again
Take the f*****g tails off shrimp unless they're meant to be eaten with your fingers!!!
I know the reason to leave them on is they are meant to give the dish more flavour, but I agree. I don't want to stop in between each mouthful to use my hands to remove the tail.
Load More Replies... Mine is when people bitch at others for cooking things the way they want too if you're going to be patient and do it from an educational standpoint fine, but if your going to have attitude and be all high and mighty about it than shove off, my dad was born in Italy and moved here in his late 20s my family has gone to Italy many times and I have gotten yelled at many times by my Italian relatives for this, fyi If I want to I will break the spaghetti, & I will put whatever I want on my pizza (especially pineapple), & I will use alfredo sauce (I rarely do but that's because I'm lactose intolerant), and finally I WILL EAT AT OLIVE GARDEN IF I WANT TOO, food belongs to everyone and if your excuse for why something shouldn't be done is because that's the way it's always been done then you can take several seats.
baked> deep fried Most stuff thats deep fried is waay too greasy (obviously theres exceptions) but when you bite into something and a mouthful of grease squishes out, thats just not enjoyable. Id much rather eat something that been baked or airfried, which often is more crispy/crunchy
The best cooking advice I have ever received and I use these three things every single time I cook: 1. Fresh is best. 2. Taste everything at every stage. 3. Clean as you go.
I disagree with the fresh is best mentality. In some situations, yes, but frozen and canned food are just as nutritious, and in many instances serve the recipe better. I would much rather use canned beans for my chili than finding some fresh kidney beans and prepping them ahead of time. Further, there are food deserts in which fresh food just ... isn't available. Making people think that they can't make great food cause of where they live is, in my opinion, horribly privileged.
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Prices for specialty items are too damn high. As a celiac, I appreciate the Fad dieters demanding better quality and more variety of gluten-free foods, but $10 for a half a loaf of sandwich bread is insane
I would like to add... don't cook after 6 (numbers may individually vary of course) beers. Horrible things happen. Mostly your tastebuds are numb and you add more of all the seasoning because you can't taste them when taste testing and in the end, no one can eat it. I have proven this using science with my husband, who is normally an amazing cook, as Guinea pig.
I've had some pretty delicious things happen after a 6 pack! At least, I think they were delicious 🤔
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Here's one from me: If you need to pan-fry something, pre-heat your pan first (I use 7/10, maximum). If you can hover your hand 1-2" over top, and if you can feel the heat... it's NOW ready for oil/butter/etc. Be VERY careful you don't overheat your pan. Also wait a little bit before adding your food so that the oil can heat up first. You can get a sloppy, soggy, oily mess if you don't pre-heat. And, often, food sticking to your pan. Oh, and stir often to cook evenly. Especially important with things like potatoes. (I make fries at home this way with a minimum of oil)
MIRACLE WHIP IS NOT MAYO!! I've been having this argument for 17 years with my husband and I will not surrender!!
I can't believe you've been married that long to someone who would eat miracle whip! 😊
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Cooking is a science and it’s all about confidence. Every dish is an experiment. Sometimes they work. Sometimes they don’t. But you have to be confident enough to try.
Whenever I make macaroni & cheese, I always add some pasta water to sauce to help thicken it
Really with the language? I know we're trying to prove we're "grown up" and "with it", but it's offensive and unnecessary for an otherwise good read.
Gumbo is more than just chicken and sausage. Should always, ALWAYS be brown in color, NEVER WHITE! Before you ask yes, I'm from Louisiana, my mother was pure Cajun from Morgan City and I grew up eating gumbo. The literal meaning of gumbo is a mixing of many ingredients to make one pot. Yes, you have to serve it over rice. Most of us in Louisiana put eggs in ours and let it cook in the pot. Oh don't forget the potato salad and fried fish with it! Cest bon!
Salad is boring. There are so many better ways to eat a pile of vegetables.
Cooking with onions should be a crime! Especially given all the other-wise wonderful foods you people ruin with them. MAC-AND-CHEESE DOES NOT NEED ONIONS YOU F-ING PSYCHOS!
I'm so sick of people food and body or moral shaming. Fk you all. Imma add garlic to my pasta and then wear my very uncomfortable to you, but not me... bikini so you can to look at while I stuff my chubby ass with more garlic wearing a baby's girl collar from having a very comfortable and truthful relationship with my bdsm daddy aka my husband. I hope it pisses everyone off. You judgemental asses.
Also I lost a kid to sids. So try me please. I'm sick of shaming people if ridiculous. I'm me your you. Be yourself and I'll be myself. We don't need to Attack each other over bullshit reasons. It needless to say...just be yourself. No matter what.
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Using unsalted butter is unnecessary. Always. Never have I ever had anything taste too salty using salted butter
Yes! I don't even buy unsalted butter. It's a tasteless fat.
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Loved this, have to add my two sense. "Deconstructed" is not a cooking term. It just means you were too lazy actually put the dish together. I swear to God, Everytime I hear a chef say that, I lose a bit more faith in the culinary culture.
I don’t get the pride in not measuring anything “because your granny never did.” Buy some damn measuring cups/spoons, you cretin.
Roast your chicken with your vegetables, especially if you're making a soup with it.
-A pancake turner works great as a bench scraper.. -Make your pie shell(s) and freeze in a jumbo zip lock. They'll be ready to go, and super flaky if you put them in a hot oven when frozen.
My huge pet peeve is when people don't set timers. If all your stuff is burning, you aren't checking on it soon enough. And a timer will help you do that. Stop saying you can't cook when what you really mean is you are forgetful and don't want to make the effort.
In the US it should be illegal to use soy. Every processed food has it, even Hershey’s chocolate. You’re all basically just eating a lot of soy. Soy has no taste and companies use it to make more without actually spending more on real ingredients. Why would a donut need to have soy in it, or chocolate or cakes, bread, cookies, pasta. Look at the ingredients list and I bet you’ll find soy in everything in your pantry. You’re paying a fortune to eat something that is basically worthless.
I think you may be speaking of soy lecithin which is a very common food additive, but the vast majority of foods contain an extremely minuscule amount. Nothing that would equate to "eating a lot of soy." If you mean protein bars that use soy as the many source of protein, yeah those are cheap garbage.
Load More Replies... Here's one of mine- making exotic and foreign dishes is NOT cultural appropriation- everyone should be free to make whatever food they wish as no recipes should belong to any one race/group. Culinary gatekeeping needs to end. Allow your tastebuds to embark on a global trip via your kitchen, guilt-free!
Eat foods that are in season where you live to the greatest extent you can. It's cheaper, better tasting, and better for the environment.
Also. Buying in bulk is not a bad thing. Buying heat and eat food is not bad and investing in a vacuum sealer will pay for itself over and over again
Take the f*****g tails off shrimp unless they're meant to be eaten with your fingers!!!
I know the reason to leave them on is they are meant to give the dish more flavour, but I agree. I don't want to stop in between each mouthful to use my hands to remove the tail.
Load More Replies... Mine is when people bitch at others for cooking things the way they want too if you're going to be patient and do it from an educational standpoint fine, but if your going to have attitude and be all high and mighty about it than shove off, my dad was born in Italy and moved here in his late 20s my family has gone to Italy many times and I have gotten yelled at many times by my Italian relatives for this, fyi If I want to I will break the spaghetti, & I will put whatever I want on my pizza (especially pineapple), & I will use alfredo sauce (I rarely do but that's because I'm lactose intolerant), and finally I WILL EAT AT OLIVE GARDEN IF I WANT TOO, food belongs to everyone and if your excuse for why something shouldn't be done is because that's the way it's always been done then you can take several seats.
baked> deep fried Most stuff thats deep fried is waay too greasy (obviously theres exceptions) but when you bite into something and a mouthful of grease squishes out, thats just not enjoyable. Id much rather eat something that been baked or airfried, which often is more crispy/crunchy
The best cooking advice I have ever received and I use these three things every single time I cook: 1. Fresh is best. 2. Taste everything at every stage. 3. Clean as you go.
I disagree with the fresh is best mentality. In some situations, yes, but frozen and canned food are just as nutritious, and in many instances serve the recipe better. I would much rather use canned beans for my chili than finding some fresh kidney beans and prepping them ahead of time. Further, there are food deserts in which fresh food just ... isn't available. Making people think that they can't make great food cause of where they live is, in my opinion, horribly privileged.
Load More Replies... Prices for specialty items are too damn high. As a celiac, I appreciate the Fad dieters demanding better quality and more variety of gluten-free foods, but $10 for a half a loaf of sandwich bread is insane
I would like to add... don't cook after 6 (numbers may individually vary of course) beers. Horrible things happen. Mostly your tastebuds are numb and you add more of all the seasoning because you can't taste them when taste testing and in the end, no one can eat it. I have proven this using science with my husband, who is normally an amazing cook, as Guinea pig.
I've had some pretty delicious things happen after a 6 pack! At least, I think they were delicious 🤔
Load More Replies... Here's one from me: If you need to pan-fry something, pre-heat your pan first (I use 7/10, maximum). If you can hover your hand 1-2" over top, and if you can feel the heat... it's NOW ready for oil/butter/etc. Be VERY careful you don't overheat your pan. Also wait a little bit before adding your food so that the oil can heat up first. You can get a sloppy, soggy, oily mess if you don't pre-heat. And, often, food sticking to your pan. Oh, and stir often to cook evenly. Especially important with things like potatoes. (I make fries at home this way with a minimum of oil)
MIRACLE WHIP IS NOT MAYO!! I've been having this argument for 17 years with my husband and I will not surrender!!
I can't believe you've been married that long to someone who would eat miracle whip! 😊
Load More Replies... Cooking is a science and it’s all about confidence. Every dish is an experiment. Sometimes they work. Sometimes they don’t. But you have to be confident enough to try.
Whenever I make macaroni & cheese, I always add some pasta water to sauce to help thicken it
Really with the language? I know we're trying to prove we're "grown up" and "with it", but it's offensive and unnecessary for an otherwise good read.
Gumbo is more than just chicken and sausage. Should always, ALWAYS be brown in color, NEVER WHITE! Before you ask yes, I'm from Louisiana, my mother was pure Cajun from Morgan City and I grew up eating gumbo. The literal meaning of gumbo is a mixing of many ingredients to make one pot. Yes, you have to serve it over rice. Most of us in Louisiana put eggs in ours and let it cook in the pot. Oh don't forget the potato salad and fried fish with it! Cest bon!
Salad is boring. There are so many better ways to eat a pile of vegetables.
Cooking with onions should be a crime! Especially given all the other-wise wonderful foods you people ruin with them. MAC-AND-CHEESE DOES NOT NEED ONIONS YOU F-ING PSYCHOS!
I'm so sick of people food and body or moral shaming. Fk you all. Imma add garlic to my pasta and then wear my very uncomfortable to you, but not me... bikini so you can to look at while I stuff my chubby ass with more garlic wearing a baby's girl collar from having a very comfortable and truthful relationship with my bdsm daddy aka my husband. I hope it pisses everyone off. You judgemental asses.
Also I lost a kid to sids. So try me please. I'm sick of shaming people if ridiculous. I'm me your you. Be yourself and I'll be myself. We don't need to Attack each other over bullshit reasons. It needless to say...just be yourself. No matter what.
Load More Replies... Using unsalted butter is unnecessary. Always. Never have I ever had anything taste too salty using salted butter
Yes! I don't even buy unsalted butter. It's a tasteless fat.
Load More Replies... Loved this, have to add my two sense. "Deconstructed" is not a cooking term. It just means you were too lazy actually put the dish together. I swear to God, Everytime I hear a chef say that, I lose a bit more faith in the culinary culture.
I don’t get the pride in not measuring anything “because your granny never did.” Buy some damn measuring cups/spoons, you cretin.
Roast your chicken with your vegetables, especially if you're making a soup with it.
-A pancake turner works great as a bench scraper.. -Make your pie shell(s) and freeze in a jumbo zip lock. They'll be ready to go, and super flaky if you put them in a hot oven when frozen.
My huge pet peeve is when people don't set timers. If all your stuff is burning, you aren't checking on it soon enough. And a timer will help you do that. Stop saying you can't cook when what you really mean is you are forgetful and don't want to make the effort.
In the US it should be illegal to use soy. Every processed food has it, even Hershey’s chocolate. You’re all basically just eating a lot of soy. Soy has no taste and companies use it to make more without actually spending more on real ingredients. Why would a donut need to have soy in it, or chocolate or cakes, bread, cookies, pasta. Look at the ingredients list and I bet you’ll find soy in everything in your pantry. You’re paying a fortune to eat something that is basically worthless.
I think you may be speaking of soy lecithin which is a very common food additive, but the vast majority of foods contain an extremely minuscule amount. Nothing that would equate to "eating a lot of soy." If you mean protein bars that use soy as the many source of protein, yeah those are cheap garbage.
Load More Replies...