Am I a genius for not using recipes when cooking?
Written by Guest on January 28th, 2012
Question by Lloyd: Am I a genius for not using recipes when cooking?
I realized that I almost never use recipes. I just cook. Is it true that some people can’t do this? I think I might be a genius.
Best answer:
Answer by Allie
Congrats! You are a natural born chef….that is, if your food is delicious 
Give your answer to this question below!
January 28th, 2012 at 1:43 am
I don’t know about that. I don’t use recipes, but I am not a genius. I won’t get into the semantics of it all, but this question might prove you’re not.
January 28th, 2012 at 1:43 am
No. My father in law doesn’t use a recipe when he cooks…and we end up with ‘cookie pie’ complete with coconut, choc chips, oatmeal, maybe nuts…and its like a pound per small piece (its so dense). It may turn out in the end, but its not amazing.
You aren’t a genius unless your food is awesome.
January 28th, 2012 at 2:05 am
I also don’t use recipes, it’s fun that way!
January 28th, 2012 at 2:41 am
Sorry you are not a genius, I don’t use recipes.. other than a guide. *I* an sure I am not a genius.
All good chefs cook by taste. Add something take away something.
Besides recipes are not scientific formulas. If you use a dry herb there are many different tastes. A little dried tarragon can go a long ways but some you can harder taste at all.
January 28th, 2012 at 2:48 am
No you are one of many
))). Yes there are some who don’t know to do this. Now if you can bake without a recipe you are a genius. Other than pizza off course.
January 28th, 2012 at 2:57 am
So am I!!!! Or maybe we are just confident and competent cooks.
January 28th, 2012 at 3:53 am
Not really, I never see my mom use a recipe since she’s been cooking, but she doesn’t consider herself genius, it’s just a natural thing
January 28th, 2012 at 4:26 am
Some people can, some can’t. It’s not really a mark of genius, it’s just a knack, like an ear for music.
January 28th, 2012 at 4:43 am
LOL Just because you don’t use recipes doesn’t make you a genius! ; )
I do the same. My friends are always amazed that I just get in there and whip things together. I have a friend who uses recipes and still gets it terribly wrong. Some people can just COOK while others struggle to boil water.
OMG– Let me share this one with you. We were over at my friend’s house and he made fancy mashed potatoes. They were very salty. I mean it was like “WOW” salty. His girlfriend asked if they were supposed to taste like that because it was a new recipe he had found and wanted to try it. His response was “Yes, sweetie! It’s French!” LOL Now everytime something goes wrong, we ask if it is French.
P.S. I know French cooking can be rich, but this guy is out of his mind… lol
January 28th, 2012 at 5:31 am
I don’t know about all that genius stuff……some people have natural talent that are gifted. Cooking without a recipe…doesn’t take alot of “skill” per say if you will….just plain common sense.
I’m a pretty good cook myself…..It’s easy for me..However…when it comes to anything tech…I had to learn first from a recipe…For baking and other things….. I’m a natural at cooking…..”Genius” -No..
January 28th, 2012 at 6:22 am
It all depends on how the food tastes! If it’s disgusting then no, your not a genius, just a bad chef in denial!
If it’s really good then maybe you are!
January 28th, 2012 at 6:59 am
I do that all of the time, so no two meals are exactly the same. I will start with something basic and then grab what ever is at hand, making it up as I go.
I have some chipolatas in the fridge defrosting and I am thinking of them in a curry for dinner.
Dinner is in 10 1/5 hours, so there is plenty of time for me to change my mind.
January 28th, 2012 at 7:57 am
Maybe not on the same plane as an Einstein or von Braun. It does take some talent to throw stuffs together and come out with a palatable dish that teases the senses and makes for a happy tummy. I dunno, but think that your experience in the past helps, and your knowlege of basic principles of cooking and food science. When I cook, I rarely use a recipe but when I bake that is a science and usually require a recipe if it is not something that is made often enough to remember.
Yeah, my neighbor cooks, but uses recipes and has no talent for throwing things together WITH a recipe or without!
January 28th, 2012 at 8:03 am
i don’t think anyone does that anymore.. reading cook books recipe’s. we use are imagination
January 28th, 2012 at 8:35 am
I can do it and I’M definitely not a genius. As a matter of fact, I’m borderline retarded. I’ve been tested.
January 28th, 2012 at 9:30 am
Not so much a genius, just a natural.
I’ve found that like my mother I just come up with recipes and people ask me for the recipe and I can’t give it to them because I don’t measure anything.
I have friends that can’t make something without a recipe.
It’s just something that you’re born with.
It just takes imagination and whatever sounds good to you.
January 28th, 2012 at 9:50 am
No, you are not a genius, and yes, some people can’t do this. Some follow recipes very closely, some refer to them but improvise around them, while others don’t use recipes at all.
I always thought recipes were a good starting point to give me ideas, then I just go wherever I go with whatever I have on hand, and with whatever technique I want to use. Occasionally the result just doesn’t work, but that is a rather rare occurrence. Can’t be afraid to fail or will never discover something good.