8 Chef Tips For Cooking From Scratch

Let’s get this out of the way: Individuals who don’t really like to cook are not going to be cooking from scratch. So, if you’re reading this, then it’s safe to say you have a passion and curiosity about food that’s worth exploring.

Chef/author Tracey Augustine agrees, pointing out, “You have to love food—because otherwise you are not going to take the time to cook from scratch. Cooking from scratch is love.”

That love, says Augustine, is what will motivate you to “get in there and start doing it” when it comes to preparing food in your kitchen. “There’s a difference between cooking because you have to and cooking because you want to,” observes the culinary pro of 25 years.

What is Cooking From Scratch?

But what does cooking from scratch really mean? “It means different things for different people,” says Augustine. “If someone is truly cooking from scratch, you would literally have to make everything. Let’s say you’re making a pasta dish. To truly be cooking from scratch, you would have to make the pasta, your sauce…But even in restaurants, it’s hard to do everything from scratch.”

The biggest hurdle when it comes to cooking from scratch, notes Augustine, is time. “Cooking from scratch takes time, and a lot of people don’t have that time,” she points out.

It’s the main reason we may find ourselves resorting to expensive food delivery services and pricey pre-packaged foods instead of making a homemade meal. “The bottom line is you’re paying for convenience,” states Augustine.

Quality Meals Made Easy

However, to offset what may be the daunting task of crafting homemade everything for a meal, Augustine suggests making quality, healthy ingredients the star of your recipes and supplementing with convenience items where needed.

“Box pasta is fine. But you would have to make your own pasta sauce, which is easy, instead of [using] sugar-laden pasta sauce. And you can also buy really good chicken stock. You don’t need to make that. You can buy things to help your cooking from scratch along,” she offers.

“The most important thing with cooking from scratch is you get to control your ingredients,” the Los Angeles-based chef points out. “You get to control what you put in there—the quality of ingredients, the salt, the fat content.”

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Top Tips For Cooking From Scratch

Augustine offers these tips to help you get started on your journey to cooking from scratch:

• Pick up the skills. Augustine suggests going online to check out videos that actually show you how to cook. “Go to YouTube, learn how to hold a knife and basic cutting skills. Those are the first things you learn in culinary school: it’s knife skills, basic cutting skills like how to dice, slice, mince. Master cooking methods like sautéing, boiling, steaming,” advises the chef.

• Attend a class. Cooking classes are another place to pick up skill sets for cooking from scratch. “Almost everywhere has cooking classes. They’re not cheap,” says Augustine, who previously owned a cooking studio. “If you just want to learn the basics, want to have fun, then try a cooking class. [But] a lot of times in cooking classes you don’t cook everything because of time allowed, so a lot of things are done for you. However, you do learn.”

• Gather the right tools. “Besides a good knife, an 8-inch or 10-inch chef’s knife, have a pair of tongs. Tongs are the best thing in the kitchen to me. I can do almost everything with a tong,” advises Augustine, who also suggests adding a wooden spoon and spatula to your tool kit. “You have to have the right tools and get yourself a couple of pans. You can do everything with a cast iron skillet.”

• Use cooking tech. Crock pots, slow cookers and air fryers are just some of the appliances that make cooking from scratch easier. “Stews, soups, casseroles and one-pot meals are great starting points for people who want to cook from scratch,” advises Augustine.

• Start Simple. The seasoned chef says starting with a simple menu is the route to success when cooking from scratch. “If you don’t have a lot of experience [in the kitchen], go and buy a rotisserie chicken and make the side dishes. Every single thing doesn’t have to be from scratch,” coaches Augustine, who also believes breakfast meals are a great starting point for new cooks.

• Read the recipe. Then read it again.“ Read the recipe from the ingredients list to the end—because you will miss something,” cautions Augustine, who has written and edited recipes throughout her culinary career. “A good recipe will take you step-by-step from the beginning to the end. Get the ingredients together before you start.” Be on the lookout for any twists and turns in the recipe, she cautions. “For example, you may need one cup of oil. If you don’t read through [the recipe carefully], you’ll come to find out you have to set aside a portion of it—instead of using the oil all at once,” notes the chef.

• Stay organized. Successfully cooking from scratch requires careful planning. “This is where mise en place comes in,” says Augustine about the culinary technique of prepping and organizing your ingredients and tools prior to cooking. “Get everything in order, all the chopping. You’ve got to be organized. You can’t be all over the place.”

• Taste as you go. “Learn when to put the seasoning in when you’re cooking from scratch. You can’t put salt in too early or else you’ll over salt…You can substitute fresh herbs for some flavor if you’re trying to watch your sodium or fat. You can use olive oil instead of butter or a mixture of both like I do,” offers Augustine.

Made With Love

While cooking from scratch will require more effort and time, the rewards are totally worth it, affirms Augustine. “One of the benefits of cooking from scratch is that you can take time to show love to those who’ll enjoy your meals,” she says.

“You know the old adage ‘made with love?’…I truly believe you can taste it when you’re cooking from scratch.”

Culinary professional Tracey Augustine’s 25-year career spans everything from recipe development and working as a chef in a restaurant to teaching cooking classes. The Los Angeles-based chef/author is currently at work on a food-related novel set in 1999 and loosely based on her experiences as one of the few Black female chefs working in the fine-dining industry.