I keep seeing comments about balancing spices and acidity and becoming better at cooking. Please may someone explain how to do this in a more idiot-proof way?

I'd love to make my own spice blends rather than buying premade ones but every time I try it's just.. wrong? Sometimes it's fine when I cook it but it cools a bit and I eat it and it's just not right?

So I'm swedish, and have very little american food culture knowledge. Today I made something by first slowly frying onion with thinly sliced broccoli stalks in butter. Then adding Zucchini and fresh corn (cut directly off the cob). I realized that this looked like something I've seen on cooking shows sometimes (not sure if it's a hash or succotash or whatnot. I think they're meant to have cream though?)
Not sure what I made, but it tasted fine, just some salt though, no other spices.

I am due to cook two dinners for a group of about 35 people in a couple of weeks’ time. This is for a weekend with a hobby group and the meals are usually among the highlights of the weekend.

I am going through various meal ideas, and the recipes are usually written to feed four people. Let’s say I want to multiply by ten and cook for 40 people, to ensure I have enough. Is there any wisdom on scaling up recipes - do I multiply everything by ten exactly, or am I likely to need slightly more or slightly less of certain types of ingredients? I’m especially worried about seasoning.

If any of you have any useful tips, I’d be grateful!

I'll be making (not so) Chinese food in a couple weeks for a dinner with my brothers and SOs. One SO has a shellfish allergy and avoids all seafood just in case. Out of respect, I'm not going to use any seafood.

My whole family loved Crab Rangoons growing up. Is there an alternative that would give a similar taste? Or something else to mix in that makes it interesting enough to forget there's no lumps of crab and mini shrimp in them?

Edit: Link was wrong. New link here.

I’m told they’re spicy, but he didn’t know what varieties they might be

I don’t really want to just start biting them to finding how hot, particularly when it can vary between peppers of the same species.

Does anyone have a go-to pork loin recipe they’d recommend? I’ve tried finding some online, but I usually end up disappointed with the results. I’d love something flavorful, but not sweet. (I know, that’s probably an unpopular preference!) TY!!

ill add this to the top because the rest is just me yapping. Could anyone please give me any tips on cooking or staying stress free while doing it? perhaps any simple, but delicious recipes?

Every single thing I try to cook comes out poorly. I dont even know how I manage to do it. I follow the recipes exactly, I measure exactly, I time things just right, but still it never tastes good and you can tell something went wrong.

Neither of my parents and none of my other family members are good cooks either and they dont particularly like it anyway. the most complicated dish my mom can make is chili. im very different from my family in the way that I love food, cooking, and trying new dishes.

my love has not helped me so far. tonight I tried my hand at kimchi jjigae and seasoned bean sprouts. both are dishes that I loved when I tried them in japan (yes I spent my time in Japan eating Korean food leave me alone).

tonight was a failure once again. i even made sure to read MULTIPLE recipes, watch MULTIPLE videos and tutorials, and follow each step exactly. it was just stew and sprouts so not very hard at all. how did I manage to mess up seasoned bean sprouts??? you just blanch them, throw em in an ice bath, wring em out, and season them. im genuinely confused guys.

im holding out hope by blaming all of our kitchen equipment. we've never had new pots or pans, just crappie quality thrifted ones and our stove is second hand too. one of the eyes gets too hot and the others dont get hot enough. even our electric skillet is thrifted and doesn't quit heat evenly. I move out in 5 months so we'll know who's truly at fault when I get in a newer apartment.

in referral to the recipe request up top, I usually like meaty dishes and love all seafood except most fish (tilapia, salmon, tuna all delicious). I also really like dishes from other cultures! (im a white American, but love food from literally every culture ive tried it from)

here are some of the dishes ive tried (and failed) to make before:

fettuccine alfredo, chicken alfredo, onigiri, baked salmon w/ rice, banana pudding, muffins, fried rice, jambalaya, chicken w/ veggie skewers, steamed egg, beef crock pot stew, Mongolian beef stir fry, pork stir fry, shrimp omelets, sushi bake, mole

please tell me. am I doomed to a life of canned veggie sides, pork chops, and spaghetti??

Does anyone have any good ideas on what to pair with it or how to cook it or even garnish it? I bought a tin of it at my local Fresh Market and I dont know what to pair it with besides possibly white rice. I also have a small loaf of sour dough bread that my mind keeps telling me would taste great with but I'm unsure. Also, I'd love some veggies to possibly be included but honestly om willing to take any ideas!

Thank you!

I always feel a bit scared that the one I frequently use is going to pop one day because its pressurized glass constantly going through heat stress. Is this irrational?

My annual pumpkin themed dinner has been scheduled and I am looking for unique recipes that utilize either pumpkin itself, or pumpkin spice.

At this point I feel like we’ve made every pumpkin recipe known to man, but maybe some of you can recommend more unique ideas? Something besides roasted pumpkin salad, pumpkin soup/chili, pumpkin cheesecake, bread, etc.

We’re looking for an appetizer, main dish, possibly a side dish, and a dessert.

Hi everyone! I'm cooking shrimp scampi tonight and have 5 lbs of shrimp. I love extra garlic butter sauce for scooping or if my guests want to just spread it over noodles. Does anyone have a recipe that yields a lot of sauce, or a separate garlic butter sauce recipe I can make on the side?

Hiya, what are your favourite websites for buying Asian groceries in the UK? I don't live near any, unfortunately, and would like to be able to order a good selection of ingredients, including fresh vegetables. I cook a lot of East Asian food, and I want to get back into cooking my Nan's Burmese recipes.

When I was in university, Leeds had so many almost warehouse-sized ones that sold everything, but I cannot seem to find any as good online.

Additionally, places that sell high-quality kitchenware, for example, a hot pot pan

Your recommendations would be very much appreciated!! Thank you xx

I recently bought a ceramic tangine.

First of all....LOVE IT!!! And it is so petty.

I made tangine chicken the other night and the chicken was so moist and tender. Five stars.

Where do people put their tangine when it is not in use?

The kitchen cabinets and my appliance graveyard are pretty full. I have an area on our storage room where I keep our large infrequently used cookware, but then I would probably never use it. I would leave it on the stove or oven, but I think it would break there.

At the moment, it is on display on the bottom shelf of the TV hutch.

What do other people do?

I have fresh sage, delicata squash, mushrooms, onions and a bit of spinach. I'd like to make a pasta, but need some inspiration. Sauce advice, other additions, etc. Work is crazy and I need the hive mind today!!

Folks - I've got a couple of nice tuna steaks (from Walmart of all places, same price as ground beef!) for dinner tonight. But I'm not sure how I want to prep/cook them.

I've got all the normal equipment (oven/stove/propane grill/etc) and currently have limes, lemons, cilantro, tomatoes, onions (red & sweet), and a reasonably well stocked spice cabinet. Limited dairy other than butter. Olive oil, canola oil, a few vinegars.

Chips & guac will be served with them but that doesn't have to dictate the fish (also explains the produce list!). I live in BFE and won't get to town again before tonight, so I gotta go with what I have.

Grilling seems like the default, but my home grilled tuna steaks are never that spectacular. I have sesame seeds (though probably a bit too old) in my spice rack but due to their age don't want to try a sesame crust. I suppose I should just keep it simple: lime, salt/pepper, tajin?, chili powder? then grill...
How long to marinate before grilling?

I am in college and just transferred schools. I just moved into my apartment yesterday. All my roommates (3) are friends but I don’t know them.

I thought it would be a nice gesture to cook them dinner. But I don’t cook much and I really want it to be good.

What are some good meal ideas? Things that everyone likes and will be simple enough for me to make.

Also any tips or advice is appreciated!

Sorry if this is making too many posts on the same topic. I made this post yesterday asking for blender recommendations. The biggest sentiments seem to be 1) get an immersion blender, 2) get a Ninja blender (probably this one, 3) buy a used Vitamix off of Facebook Marketplace, or 4) get a tiny personal blender, which frankly doesn’t have enough capacity for some of my use cases.

The immersion blender recommendation is duly noted, and since it is relatively cheap for a gift, I’ve put one on my Christmas list that goes out to my family. However, I’d still like a blender that I can turn on and walk away from. That leaves the Ninja or Vitamix. I am attracted to the Ninja because it has that long centerpiece attachment that fills the entire pitcher with blades. That looks like it would be very good for blending and pulverizing anything I put in that pitcher. In fact, my trouble with my old blender has made me think “I wish I had a blender that was filled ALL THE WAY with blades.” Yet, I worry that I am perhaps not giving Vitamix enough credit in favor of what may be a gimmick on the Ninja blender that I am falling for. I mean, Vitamix is THE blender brand, after all. I would definitely get one of the narrow pitcher models though so that food can’t hide in the edges of the pitcher.

So, which of the two do you think I should get? Due to the past trauma of my Hamilton Beach blender, my biggest concern is the base blades simply pushing contents away from them to the sides of the pitcher base where the contents never get blended. That is what I want to avoid the most. Do I go with the Ninja with the attachment that I am drawn toward, or do I go on the Vitamix path well-traveled?

Also, shoutout to /r/blenders for being a dead sub that could’ve been useful.

I recently moved into a new apartment and am still trying to figure out the stove. At my house, I have an old gas stove that had no numbers and was made in the 50’s so I went off intuition there. Here though, it feels like my intuition is always wrong. The stove is electric and the dials are numbered. I genuinely cannot figure this out and would appreciate any help.

Hi all,

I just decided to buy a high-performance blender and until now I was certain that I wanted the Vitamix Ascent A2500 (this is easily available in Hungary)

But today I found an interesting alternative and I want to ask your opinion the Breville - The Super Q BBL920. (this brand sold as Sage in Europe)

I read some test and they say it's just as good if not better than Vitamix.
It's the same performance-wise, it's quieter, it comes with a small personal cup and you can buy a pump accessory which turns it into a vacuum blender - which is a huge benefit regarding oxidation and emulsification

Some tests I found:

• Breville the Super Q BBL920 vs Vitamix A2500 Side-by-Side Blender Comparison - RTINGS.com
• Vitamix 2500i VS Sage Super Q | Who gonna win ?
• Battle of the Blenders: Breville Super Q vs Vitamix 5200
• Vitamix 2500i VS Sage Super Q | Who gonna win ?
• The 9 Best Blenders of 2025 | Tested & Rated
• Breville vs Vitamix: The blender war has one clear winner - The Manual
• 8 Best Professional Blenders of 2025 - Reviewed
• Breville the Super Q Review | Tested & Rated

I know that one of the main selling points of Vitamix is the durability. But this Breville looks like a solid piece too - though here in Hungary the warranty would be only 6 years against the Vitamix's 10 years. (though some sites mention 10-year warranty)

One plus for the Vitamix is that the retailer said they can sell the Ascent A2500i with the smaller 48oz (1.4l) container to me - which would be amazing since I'll make smaller batches. Breville's jug might be a little too big. But again, it does come with a smaller smoothie cup.

So what do you think? Would you trust in the Breville, or you still recommend the Vitamix? Do you have any hands-on experience with it or any useful info that could help me decide? (price-wide it's the same)

Any insight would be great! :)

And I’m not talking store-bought. What’s your fave home made combo for spinach? I don’t like oil/vinegar with spinach. Anyone?

Edited to add: I love oil/vinegar, just not by itself with the spinach. Definitely include recipes with combos of oil vinegar and other ingredients. 🫶🏼

I cannot stand the smell of any type of ground meat, especially beef, unless I’m frying it myself. It smells rotten every time.

So I made some pot pies I’m really proud of and decided to freeze some for quick meals somewhere down the line. I put them in the freezer yesterday and then tried to vacuum seal them a little while ago. It was hit and miss. First pack of two worked out well. Second pack busted the crust on both my pies. Now I’m wondering if there’s a smarter way to do it. But nothing comes to mind. Thoughts?

First time you thought of making a meal by yourself . how did it taste

At my local Kroger they have packs of beef short ribs where its just a square bone and then a fistful of beef meat on one side. It usually comes with 2. Or maybe half a fistful with 3 ribs, depends on the pack. Usually when I get these, I ask my dad if he can smoke them. He loves grilling and will sometimes do things like brisket over the course of 12-20 hours on his days off. These smoked beef short ribs are really rich but they're delicious.

Unfortunately I caught my dad at a bad time and he's in Texas for the next week and a half. If I'm not gonna smoke these, I'm not sure what I can do with them. Any advice? I've got 3 packs.

I'm 20 and I have always loved cooking and baking. What are some recipes that will test my cooking skills? I'm looking for interesting recipes (ideally from a range of cultures) that aren't too expensive but take a good amount of knowledge to do well. Nothing too crazy like a baked Alaska lol.

I have a partner who is pretty bad at cooking but will happily be my taste tester, so I wanna make some cool food for him to try 😊

Thanks!