Felt like getting better at cooking, and what better way to commit than to make a video about it!

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I would rather stand on tiptoes while doing 
this instead of lower the camera even though   it’s literally 3 feet away from me. 
That’s the version of lazy I am. [A typewriter clicks away, then dings] Guess what? I am in the mood to cook again. Or 
to be more accurate, I’m in the mood to be in the mood to learn how to cook better. And as I 
so enjoy doing, I am going to use my job as a YouTuber for accountability. If I make a video 
about something, I’m more likely to stick with it. So, I’m not setting myself, like, a make all new 
meals for a week kind of challenge. I’m not even gonna do, like, cook through a whole cookbook 
or anything. There’s no challenge here except learning to cook more things, specifically more 
international dishes because (little bit of shade to Americans) but we don’t have exactly great food 
culture, let’s be real. I don’t need to know how to make more casseroles or a hamburger. But I’ve 
gotten some really good cookbooks of late that cover either a bunch of different countries or 
that are specifically food from other countries that I’m so interested in. I really want to widen 
my palette when it comes to eating. I also want to widen my cooking abilities. I’m just gonna try- [Puppy yawn] 
That was a big yawn. I’m just gonna try to cook a bunch of stuff over the next – who knows – unknown 
period of time, and I’m gonna vlog about it, I guess. And then whenever I feel like this 
video is long enough, I will stop the video… but hopefully not the cooking. How do we feel about 
this? It’s too late. Your opinion, unfortunately, can no longer be taken into account. Let’s go see 
what I’m gonna cook first. Or more accurately (again, let’s be accurate), more accurately, let’s 
go see, uh, what I need to go to the grocery store for because… even if I was cooking something 
very boring, the kitchen is currently bare. The cupboards are bare! I’m down here. So, all my 
cookbooks are over here. These are a few that I definitely could reference. Um, they’re, like, more 
herb, veggie, fruit focused. I think that’s what they’re literally all called. But this right here 
is my collection of more international cookbooks… along with one about pie. This is the one I 
got recently on my, um… [laughter] I’m sorry this framing is absolutely ridiculous, but I’m so lazy right 
now. I don’t want to get up and change it. This is the one that I got on my bookstore trip which 
was who knows how long ago by the time you’re seeing this. So, it’s pretty cool because it goes 
through, like 50, different countries, I think, and tells you about the food of that country. 
So, like, India: you’ve got a bunch of different information about Indian food that you could 
then go look up recipes for these things. Like, it’s just giving you sort of general information. 
And then they also have recipes, of course, all the way throughout with, like, what country or area that 
recipe is from. And on top of that, then they have, like, informational pages about different ingredients 
and the way those ingredients are used all around the world. Very cool book. I don’t normally get 
cookbooks that don’t have pictures of the food in them. I like to see things first, and then usually 
decide I don’t like how it looks. Um, this one’s all illustrations, but I think that’s helpful. 
Oo, so here: I just turned to it. One that I think I should learn how to make – or try making – is jollof
rice. I think I’m gonna choose two right now so I can go out and get the ingredients for both 
of them, cause lord knows I don’t want to go to the   grocery store for one meal’s worth of ingredients. 
Actually, let’s be real. I’m here alone right now – Mat’s gonna be gone for, like, another month 
or so – so each of these is gonna be, like, three to six meals for me because I’m gonna 
have leftovers. Oo, okay. Totally other type of food here. (Oh god, I forgot I have to pronounce 
this now.) It’s pickle soup. I’m not gonna   try to pronounce it. No, I am gonna try to 
pronounce it, but I’m sorry if I get it wrong. Zupa Ogör- oGORE-coo-wah? Ogörkowa. Any Polish people to
tell me if that’s right? It’s a pickle soup from Poland. That sounds fascinating. So, I think those are gonna 
be my two things to start with: jollof rice and zupa ogörkowa. See, this can be fun. This should be really 
fun, right? Maybe it won’t all turn out okay, but at least it’s, like, a cooking adventure. Turn 
cooking into an adventure and then vlog about it so you feel like you have to do it. Woo! [VO] We 
are starting with the pickle soup. It’s not really soup weather out, but also hot food is hot 
food, and we eat it all year round, so I’m not sure why it being liquid rather than solid makes 
much difference, you know? I have a bad habit of   altering recipes as I use them. Maybe it’s demand 
avoidance, maybe it’s good old hubris. This is why I think Mat is actually a better cook than me. 
He will take a good recipe, follow it exactly, and end up with a delicious meal. Meanwhile, I’m 
like, “Meeeh, what if I just leave that out and add more of this and switch those up? It’ll be fine, yeah?” 
But I don’t think it’s really fair to   alter a recipe and then claim you don’t like the 
original thing, right? So, I’m gonna do my best to actually follow these pretty closely. Having 
said all that, I’m making a few changes here, hehe – just small ones. They call for new potatoes, and I 
have some very new potatoes because I picked them out of a pot in my backyard yesterday… only they 
are technically russet potatoes. I also have a feeling you’re supposed to use regular-size dill 
pickles – like, the big boys – but I always have these small snacking ones on hand, so I’m going 
with those and guesstimating how many tiny pickles equal six big pickles – and probably guesstimating 
incorrectly. [Charlie] Honestly, that feels like a lot less than six pickles cause, like, pickles are pretty big 
if they’re regular size, right? Should I do more? You do add the pickle brine to the soup as well, 
though. I do have more, but I think I’m gonna leave it at that. [VO] I do love making soup (in theory, 
at least), and I used to make a good veggie one kind of like this, but minus the pickles. So, 
it’s nice to be doing it again. Soup is usually just chopping everything up and then waiting, 
you know? Once you put everything in the pot, you don’t have to do much. Grand. [Charlie] Okay. I am a 
crackers with soup kind of person. Hey, Bubby. Don’t mind the puzzle. I started a puzzle while 
I was letting it boil. So, pickle soup. I mean, it smells really good. Every step of this smelled 
good because… well, because it smells good. But also, it’s been a really long time since I made 
something with, like, aromatics in it and cooking, like, browning butter and garlic and dill and, like, 
actual cooking flavors. I’ve been cooking stuff, you know, like… fried eggs. I’m sure more than 
that, but like, I’ve been cooking very, very simple stuff: you know, macaroni and cheese, fried eggs, 
stuff like that. So, just, like, the smell filling the kitchen of a real meal again was quite 
nice. It’s making me more excited to do this, to be cooking more often. The soup’s not for you. 
You just want a cracker. He does love a cracker. Bye. Well, there’s a nice pickle chunk. Pardon me eating like a little gremlin. We look 
the same. I just don’t want to spill. But okay, this works. This works way better… than I thought 
it would, for sure. I mean, it’s kind of just a nice vegetable soup. I like the sour cream that 
was used to thicken it at the end. That gives it some really nice flavor. But like, yeah, you just 
get the flavor of pickle running throughout, and it’s not weird. It’s nice. It’s like putting 
pickles on a hot sandwich. It’s that little burst of extra flavor. Pickle soup from Poland. I 
gave it a yes. I’ll rate them like I rate books. I hate doing things as, like, 1 to 10 or 1 to five 
or something because I overthink that way too much, and then it’s like, well, what if I say this 
is an eight, but then later on something else is   an eight and that makes this technically a seven. 
I way overthink ratings. So, I prefer to just be like, was it good or not? And this one gets a yes. [Kissy sounds]
You’re so nice. Hi. Are you the cutest potato? [VO] 3 days later, I had eaten the last of the soup for 
lunch, so it’s time to make the jollof rice. Want to know a fun fact? For my entire childhood, we 
never once rinsed our rice before cooking it, much less soaked it. A gasp twas heard round the 
world! Yeah, I didn’t even know that was a thing until after college. [Charlie] Oh, lordy. Hoh! Red onions 
are way more potent to my eyes. Like, white, yellow onions don’t really bother me that much. (Bother 
me that much.) The red ones sure do. Or purple. Do   you call this a red onion or a purple onion where 
you’re from? [VO] Ginger is one of those things I am slowly acquiring a taste for. I didn’t like it my 
whole life except in, like, baked, sugary goods like gingerbread. And then, like, a year ago, I decided 
to start ingesting more and just dealing with it. And now I am even able to drink those power 
shots with ginger in them. Woot. We can change ourselves! There is a whole chili in here, and it 
said you could use a scotch bonnet or habanero. Uh, scotch bonnet scares me just by name, so I 
went habanero. And I’m still scared that that’s gonna be really spicy. Apparently, I need to 
start acquiring a taste for heat next. And yes, that is how I measure spices. Cooking is an art…. 
or a playground. This smells delightful already, but then anything with onion and garlic 
in it smells delightful to me. I’d wear   onion and garlic as a perfume. My savory smell 
brings all the boys to the yard….. cause they want dinner. Anyway [laughter], I have nothing more to say 
about that. [Charlie] Oh god. Nooo. Just flip the lid. [VO] It did say to take the chili 
out after it cooked. That’s   not just me being a wimp about spice. I promise! [Charlie] Jollof rice. We’re gonna use the real 
mic this time because I hated editing   that audio, and if I hate editing it, 
someone probably hates listening to it. Somebody’s gonna say this is disgusting, too. It’s fine. He’s well behaved. He just 
sits here and stares. This smells amazing. And he’s so cute. Ohp! [Cough…… wheeze] Y’all that habanero, uh…. it, it did stuff. Whoo! 
Dang. You don’t even have to cut it up and put it in. You’re not getting any of this, sir. 
It is too spicy. It’s not too spicy for me,   though. It’s a little more spicy than I would 
normally go for, but I think it’s good to, like… try to encourage myself to eat slightly spicier 
foods. It’s not obliterating the flavor. That’s my thing with spice. I’m, like, 1) I don’t 
really want to be in pain when I eat. 2)… if it gets too spicy, it’s like the heat is just 
taking away the flavor because you’re just on fire, and you’re not actually tasting anything. That’s, 
that’s a little spicy for me, but it’s okay. Also,   my rice is ever so slightly undercooked, 
and I put in slightly more – like, slightly – but still slightly more liquid than it said 
to. So, I don’t know if that’s a liquid thing or a timing thing. That’s always my thing with 
rice. If it ends up not getting fully cooked,   I’m never sure which of those two things. Did it 
just not have enough water or did it need more time? Rice experts, tell me all of your thoughts. 
This is delicious, though. Oh, AC’s coming on, so let me wrap this up. It’s a yes for me. 
Good stuff, y’all. Oh, yeah, and I decided on my next two recipes, so I can go out shopping for those.
We’re going to do harira? Haria, ha, bleh [cough, choke]. Harira, from Morocco: a spiced vegetable soup. And 
then alsoooo plov from Afghanistan. So once again, a soup and then a rice dish. I might also – this 
is a dessert, not, uh, a dinner food – but I am very fascinated by the carrot (suspense, where did it 
go? Great, I lost it) halwa. It’s, like, a carrot dessert, and that’s super interesting to me. So, 
I might try making that. But this I will try to, um, cut down the recipe to just one serving cause 
I certainly don’t need to be making four to six servings of a dessert. Let’s do it. I got to go 
grocery shopping again. [VO] Today, we make harira. I keep wanting to flip my Rs in the middle of 
that, and it’s, it’s making it sound real weird.   This one’s got a lot of chopping involved. So, 
I’m bringing out the big guns: AKA, this fancy knife I always forget we have because we store 
it by itself in a fancy knife drawer that I never   open. Look at her go. Also, for anyone who’s got 
a brain like mine, I’d like to note that I would never show you footage of me cutting myself in a 
video like this. You know, just in case you have an undying assumption that all chopping footage 
will end in blood… I hope that guarantee lets you breathe a little easier. Goodness, this is gonna 
be a lot of soup. A lot of soup with a lot of spices. Actually, this doesn’t seem like much in 
quantity to be honest. I mean, admittedly, I’ve never used harissa before, but that’s such a small 
amount. Not speaking of small amounts though, I did actually leave out two cups of stock, cause 
y’all, this is so much soup. We aren’t even done. There’s more stuff that goes in here. Okay, 
question for the masses: when a recipe says   to use a can of chickpeas – no further instruction 
on the prep of that can – does that generally mean you should drain it or not? The canned chickpea 
world is fairly new to me. I did, like, a half drain – middle ground. After almost an hour of 
boiling, we finish it off with lemon juice and more cilantro and salt and pepper. And oh 
boy, I really hope I like this cause I’m gonna have leftovers for a solid week. The recipe 
says serves six. Six what? I guess six very hungry people. [Charlie] I will say, because the simmering 
on this soup is done without the lid on the pot, it did reduce quite a bit. So, me leaving out two 
cups of liquid I think was fine. It just means that it’s overall more of like a stew rather 
than a soup, which is really fine because I prefer things to be a little more thick and chunky 
instead of brothy. We are once again surrounded in puzzling. This is the, uh, the mostly edge pieces 
puzzle from Yetch Studio. It’s quite difficult. Hmm. It was really interesting smelling, like, 
the cinnamon and the ginger along with all the savory spices. I know that’s a way more 
common thing in a lot of other food cultures to, like, use all of those spices in savory 
stuff rather than just in sweeter items. But yeah, it’s always really interesting to me 
because it’s something my nose is definitely not   super used to. Hi. What do you sniff? Oh, 
thank you. I’m procrastinating tasting it right now because I know it’s very, very hot. 
Also, we’re gonna go back to gremlin mode   cause it’s soup. Well, it’s not as drippy 
of soup. Feels safe to sit up straight. That’s a solid vegetable soup. It also is very hot, 
temperature-wise. Not spicy hot. The spices in this – maybe just because they’re spices I’m not as 
accustomed to eating together – but they’ve really just blended into, like, a nice flavor. Like, I think 
the first soup I could pick out, like, oh yeah, I taste the ginger, I taste the garlic, I taste the 
whatever. Um, this is very much, like, if you asked me what spices are in this, couldn’t tell ya (if 
I hadn’t just made it myself). But it just has an overall nice flavor. Very warm and comforting… 
on what was already a very warm day. But that’s okay. Big yes on this one. I think this might 
be my favorite so far. Huzzah! [VO] It’s plov time, baby. Please enjoy the puppy trying to catch a 
fly first. He tries so hard. He never gets it. The recipe says this is more traditionally made 
with lamb, but does suggest goat or chicken as a substitute, and since I’m not the hugest fan of 
lamb, I’mma stick with some chicken thighs. Also, I already had those, so you know, huzzah. Both 
the plov and the halwa call for grated carrots, so I’m gonna go ahead and grate all the ones I 
have left, then just store the remainder until   I’m ready to make the halwa, probably in a couple 
days cause I kind of randomly made another totally unrelated dessert yesterday. If you’re wondering 
why I keep cramming food scraps into containers while I cook, I really want to start composting. 
I mean, we are supposed to “compost here” (major air quotes around compost). Like, the city gives 
us this little bin that we’re supposed to fill   and then dump with our yard cuttings for pickup. 
But uh, I was cooking so little for a while there that I put some scraps in that bin, and then the 
next time I went to add more, it was growing a thriving community of mold and gnats, which, like, heh…
I don’t love that in my kitchen. So I’m researching ways to actually compost in a suburban backyard. 
I think I’m gonna go with the tumbler option, but in the meantime, I wanted to start saving up 
my food scraps without them getting nasty yet. So, I’ve been storing them in the fridge until  
tis time to throw them in an actual compost bin. Anyway, that had nothing to do with the plov, 
but we’re cooking now, baby. Not with gas, unfortunately. I kind of miss our gas stove 
from, like, three apartments back. And if you’re wondering if I grated any of my knuckles in that 
whole messy process, I invite you to casually clock the band-aid on my thumb. Tis but a flesh
wound! Told you I’d never show you that, though. [Gasp, snort, chuckle] Oh god. Ah!
All right. I’m cumin everywhere! Ha! [VO] Y’all, this is why all my clothing ends 
up stained. Either I spill while   eating or I splatter while cooking.
I am not a careful person. [Charlie] Oh god, that smells really good.
Uh, I love food! [VO] But here we have plov in all its glory. I’m just 
realizing that it might be pronounced, like, plove or something. I’m sorry if I mispronounced it. 
[Charlie] Y’all, this is yet another puzzle. I have been blasting through these things lately. It’s just, 
like, the only thing that I want to do right now   in, like, my downtime, not working time. Hello. 
I really haven’t been in the mood to stitch recently, and you know, I’m not gonna force 
myself to do that if I’m not in the mood. So, it’s basically been reading and puzzling. Now, 
it is ploving time. Okay, you were supposed to, like, just cut a whole head of garlic in half and 
throw that in. Uh, but when I did that, my head of garlic kind of just fell apart into a bunch of 
different cloves. As usual, smells amazing. Also, according to the recipe book, Richard Nixon 
really liked this dish. What an interesting tidbit to provide. Are you good boy? [Kissy] Yes, you are. 
Let’s see if my rice is cooked properly this time. Mmmm. Oo. Very nice. Like, a good mild flavor cause 
the main two spices in this were coriander and cumin. And then of course, you have garlic, 
onion, bay… [Singsong] And the rice is cooked this time! Huzzah. I’m loving these rice dishes that 
have stuff mixed into them. Like, growing up, we only had two kinds of rice that we would eat. 
We’d either make white rice and then something would be put on top like stroganoff, or we’d make what 
we called herbed rice which was basically just rice with a bunch of herbs in it, and we’d eat 
that, like, plain with, like, a chicken breast and broccoli kind of thing. But we didn’t do really 
dishes that had rice with other stuff like this. It makes the rice so much more exciting. Oh, 
and the AC is coming on, so plov: it’s a yes for me. [Happy hmms] [VO] Dessert time. Let’s make halwa. I started by 
weighing my pre-grated carrots to see what percentage of the recipe I needed to make, but uh…
[Charlie] 15.9 ounces. Recipe called for one pound. It’s like I planned it. Oh god. This recipe requires you 
to cook the carrots on the stove for 45 minutes to an hour. I did not read ahead. [VO] Yeah so, first 
you’re supposed to warm and slightly dry out the carrots, then you add the milk and just cook 
it on low for almost an hour or a full hour, stirring every 5 minutes. Basically, you’re 
evaporating all the liquid while softening   the carrots…. slowly. And wow, it’s been an hour. 
An hour of my stove making this horrid noise: [horrid noise] It’s so bad. It didn’t say what type of sugar 
to use, so I took the liberty of adding light brown sugar cause flavoooor. Then there’s ghee and more 
cooking and a tiny bit of cardamom and a pistachio garnish and tra la. [Charlie] Dododobooo. I don’t think I’m
gonnaeat all of this. It was more for the looks. Although, you know, it’s a carrot dessert, so that’s 
a veggie, right? It makes it feel a lot healthier. Also, yes, another puzzle. We’ll 
just move that out of the frame. You’re so zoomed out right now. Come a little closer. 
Good, good. It said to eat this either warm   or room temperature, and I did just take it 
straight out of the pan, so it might be, uh, hawt. You cannot eat anything without him being up here. Are you my darling? Oo, I like that. It’s not overly 
sweet. I thought it might be really sweet from smelling it cause it was smelling very caramelly – care, car… 
whatever – at the end there once it had the sugar and the butter in it. It balances really well with 
the carrots. So then it’s not super sugary. Yeah, I really like that. I don’t know how often I 
would bother making it since it takes an hour of, um, going into the kitchen every 5 minutes to check 
on it. But I’m glad I made it this time. Hoo! Ho! The top layer was warm. Underneath was still hot. The 
cardamom is really nice because that’s not a spice that we use super frequently in America. 
So taste bud wise, we’re not generally very used to it. I made, like, cardamom Chelsea buns 
one time and took them to work, and granted, I think I overdid it on the cardamom – it was a 
very strong flavor. But it was, like, the only thing   I ever took to my job that didn’t get eaten. Like, 
one person ate some and said that she loved it, and no one else wanted to. It was a very small amount, 
first of all, and also, I just think it goes with the carrots really, really well. So it’s a gentle 
flavor – an introduction to cardamom. All right, fun dessert. I’ve decided we’re gonna make one 
more dinner dish in this video, and then hopefully I’ll keep doing it afterward. But, take it away… 
tomorrow. I’m gonna make it tomorrow. There’s a lot of panting happening over here. [VO] Last thing 
we are making is mohinga from Myanmar. And this one called for rice powder, but also told you how 
to make it, so I started by getting that ready.   The recipe says it’s traditionally made with 
catfish, but you can use any mild white fish. I got Dover sole, cause that’s what was available. 2 
pounds of it, which yikes… that’s a lot of fish. The puppy would gladly consume it all for me if 
given the opportunity. Now, we chop up a bunch of good smelling stuff and throw it in a pan with 
the fish and some water to make a broth. While that’s simmering, I’m gonna make a paste out of 
even more good smelling stuff. [Charlie] Oh, whoops. Y’all, the recipe said shallot, and I know what a shallot 
is, but for some reason, even when I was grocery shopping, my brain interpreted that as scallion. 
Do I have a shallot? I do not have a shallot. Well, we’re going with scallions. [VO] Oh well, this 
still smells fabulous, so I’m sure it’s fine. The fish is removed. The broth is strained. Then, the 
paste and some spices are heated in oil before you add the fish back in. It said to whisk the rice 
powder into the boiling broth and then cook until thickened, but, um… it didn’t say how long that 
would take or how thick it would get. And after a very slight change towards the beginning, nothing 
seemed to be happening. So, I just moved on. I’m only prepping one serving of the rice noodles, 
of course, since they’re supposed to be, like,   you know, fresh for every meal. And then I 
also skipped the hard-boiled egg garnish cause I don’t like hard-boiled eggs. So, we’re 
just going with a bit of cilantro on top. [Charlie] Don’t mind the mess. No! I made the mistake of 
leaving the door open too long today, and now there are numerous flies in the house, so I just 
went on a killing spree, which like, you know flies are annoying me when I actually start whacking 
them with a towel because I don’t normally kill bugs. I’m, like, a catch and release or a herd it 
towards the door kind of person. I’ve had it up to here with the bzzzzz. Anyway, this was kind of the 
most stressful dish I’ve made yet. I think it was just because there were several different steps 
and elements and pans – a lot of stuff going on at once. But making the rice powder was interesting. 
And that paste smelled so good. Like, the whole thing does smell good. I have a feeling it’s 
not supposed to look like this. Uh, I don’t think your fish is supposed to… disintegrate. Is this a 
good example of mohinga? Probably not. However, all the same flavors are in there, so I assume it 
should still taste like whatever it’s supposed to taste like. I’m literally using a fork because 
there’s not really a soup or a broth anymore. It’s more like a stew. A fish stew with noodles. 
I’m sure you would like it, wouldn’t you? Ope…. Ahem! I think I got a peppercorn. Yeah so, because 
my fish, like, disintegrated into the broth, it was kind of hard to get it back out without 
also getting the chunks of lemongrass and ginger and the peppercorns. So, I just got a whole 
peppercorn. That’s not supposed to be there. Maybe I should have just cut it up bigger, but 
also, like, different fish do different things when you cook them. So, it might just be that, like, sole 
is not great for being cooked in this way. Um, it’s good. It’s not blowing me away, which 
again… is probably entirely on my preparation of the dish and not the dish itself. I like 
the lightness of, like, the lemongrass, ginger, uh, garlic flavor. Turmeric. There’s a lot 
of turmeric in it. Oh, my mic’s going to die. Let me go change batteries, and then we’ll wrap 
this up. Okay. So yeah, this worked really, really well. It accomplished the things that I wanted 
to accomplish. It kept me cooking new things consistently so that every single day, either 
through a new dish or through the leftovers, I had, like, a good hearty meal at least once, which 
has been especially helpful because I’ve been home alone this whole time. When Mat is gone, I tend 
to eat out and order food less, which sounds like, oh, great. So, that means you’re cooking, right? 
No, I get into a bad habit of, like, eating snacky dinners, which can at least involve a lot of 
fresh fruits and vegetables because I genuinely like that stuff, but it’s not always, like, well 
balanced and super healthy. So having at least one, like, nice soup or rice dish every day has 
been really, really good, and I do really hope to continue it now that I’m not making a video. I 
can do things without tricking myself into doing them. Hello. Welcome back. Let me go murder a fly 
real fast. [Thwack] Where’d you go fly? I’m gonna end up spraining my wrist doing this. Are you the master 
of the house now? I think my favorite dish – though granted, it’s been like a month, so I don’t fully 
remember anymore – but I think my favorite dish the first time was the harira and my favorite dish 
as leftovers was the plov. That was really good… like, every time I had it after that. I just put a 
little bit of water in it every time I reheated it   so that it would, like, moisten. What are some other 
dishes from around the world that I should try to make? I think the reason this worked so well is 
because that cookbook is very much like, here’s just some normal, hearty dinner kind of foods. I 
mean, it has a variety of stuff in there. It has all sorts of things, but I chose the ones that 
were just sort of normal dinner dishes. Whereas   most of my other international cookbooks – because 
this is what I’m usually attracted to – are from really experienced chefs, and so it’s, like, really 
creative, interesting dishes. And that can be a little bit intimidating because I’m like, oh god, 
I already don’t know this cuisine, and that looks delicious, but, like, I’m seeing a lot of steps and 
a lot of ingredients I don’t recognize and stuff.   So, I think this was helpful because most of 
it was just, like, soups, rice dishes, you know, fairly basic stuff. Anyway, I got to wrap this up 
cause I need to turn on the AC in here. Can you hear the puppy panting in the background? All right. Well, your head’s not gonna even be in there. [Off screen wordless wailing somewhat reminiscent
of the song “Send Me On My Way”] But that really balances with….. [snort, sigh] dog fur in my food. It’s just what 
happens when you have an animal. [Repeated smacking noises] Don’t put that in. I have killed your friends, and I will do the same to you. [Singing] “Ahbubblysaybubblyohng” Is your little heiny shakin’? [Singsong] That is thaaaaat. [The typewriter clicks and clacks away, with dings here and there]

30 Comments

  1. Try measuring out all the spices first thing and putting them on a plate. That way your not stressed and you don't get damp in the left over spic, making it clog and stick in the jar. Have a tasty cooking jurny😊

  2. Polish person – you were impressively close with the pronunciation! You just need to remember that "w" is pronounced "v" in …most languages other than English, and also you need to stress the penultimate syllable in most Polish words, so "o-gur-KO-va". Also, that's my least favorite soup xD can't wait to see if you hate it. (I paused mid-video to type this comment).

  3. Fun recipes! In a past life, (or decade, same thing), I had a food blog (also ADHD, I just didn’t know yet). I TOTALLY used the blog and associated deadlines as a tool to stay accountable. Now I’m just running amok with like 3 recipes and bagged salads.

    Have an inspired week!

  4. I think “new potatoes” are as opposed to cured potatoes? When overwintering potatoes in a cold cellar you let the skins harden after harvesting so they have protection from getting too dehydrated. So fresh picked potatoes are “new” potatoes with thinner skins.

  5. For rice, it could be either not enough water or not enough time. I like to use the measurements suggested by the rice brand (usually on the packaging) which is often one part rice to 2 parts water or 1 to 1.5 for Jasmine rice.

    The way you can tell which issue it was is by how much, if any, liquid is still sitting in the pot not absorbed into the rice yet. If there's leftover water and the rice taste/feels under done, then the rice needs more time to cook so it can finish absorbing the liquid. If there is no liquid left but the rice is under done, then it needed more water.

  6. Absolutely love harira. I've only made it once (hubby hates any kind of soup – it's a texture thing), but Morocco knows their spices. If you come across a spice you can't find in a market (granted, you're near LA, not BFE Utah…), I highly recommend The Spice Market. I just got long pepper, grains of paradise, juniper berries, and a few other odds and ends to add to my collection.

  7. real food, why go out when you could cook it yourself, cause you know how to. Very nice!! thanks for having us join you!!!

  8. I also didn't know rinsing rice was a thing until I watched cooking shows. I still don't do it after I tried a few times, all it does is waste water and make no discernible difference in my dish.

    And I want to see what rice experts say, I am a complete buffoon and cannot consistently make rice unless I'm using a rice cooker.

    And I just harvested garlic from my garden, my whole main floor smells like garlic 🙂

  9. Adding to the person who suggested veggie scrap stock. If you have a crock pot/ pressure cooker or something you can 100% make stock in those. Its like set it and forget it stock. Also keep scraps in the freezer if you take a long time to fill a bag like me. We have a tortoise so sometimes our scraps go to her first.

  10. I would like to suggest looking up the channel called Pailin's kitchen. Pai is a chef, living in Canada I think, but born in Thailand. And it's about Thai cooking of course, from super easy to complicated. Everything I've tried has come out wonderful, and her green curry is now a staple in my kitchen! Easy and super yummy.

  11. Your puppers is so good. My sweet girl gets as close as she can and then sneezes at my food. I guess that's her way of trying to claim whatever is on my plate.

  12. You can freeze your food scraps for the compost!

    Also, can you share the name of the publisher/author of the book you are using, please 🙏🏼

  13. I'm on a similar journey! I hateeeee cooking and my ADHD having self therefore finds it next to impossible to do. And I unfortunately live alone so I can't use puppy eyes on my boyfriend lol. DoorDash loved me, my wallet did not. Max over on the Tasting History channel has actually done a lot to get me interested in cooking and trying new things! And honestly learning I could make whole rice dishes IN the rice cooker was a game changer for me.

  14. Oh my goodness!! This was great! I think you would enjoy the other newbie/learning how to cook channel Anti-Chef (especially his earlier stuff, he's not so much a newbie now, but he was when I started watching him) because he's been learning how to cook in front of a camera and has made all kinds of mistakes. He's more into the Julia Child and fancy shmancy chef stuff, but you might enjoy watching it. Hint: Vanilla bean pods — the scrapings are the good stuff. Don't throw that away! Cheers!

  15. And chickpeas should be drained, rinsed if necessary. The liquid is called aqua faba if you ever run across that in a recipe.

  16. As a Ukrainian Canadian (with ancestors from western Ukraine and eastern Poland, but both Ukrainian), your Polish pronunciation was actually really good for a first go.

  17. Hi, a Pole here! Ogórkowa is the OG polish soup. However, I do recommend trying it again with the correct kind of pickle, the small ones are vinegar based, while the large ones with cloudy brine are fermented and a different flavor. It brings a plain veg soup to a whole different level 🙂

  18. That plov looks yummy! I dislike all the planning that goes into cooking so we do hello fresh but I’m also a messy cook so I also had to sew an apron 😆

  19. You asked what to cook next. Try avgolemono soup. It's a Greek chicken soup with rice, lemon, and eggs that are tempered and stirred into it to thicken it. It's a hug in a mug.

  20. Shakshouka! It's an egg dish poached in tomato sauce and wiped up with fresh bread. Really popular café/hotel breakfast dish, but obviously it makes for a delicious dinner.

  21. I thought it was funny that she said Matt is a better cook because he follows the recipe and she does not because she changes what she does or doesn't like and in my house it is the total opposite!!! I cook with my heart and use the recipe as a suggestion and it turns out really good, and my husband follows the recipe and all ways ends up asking me to fix it because the taste if "off"😂

  22. Rice – maybe ¼ to ⅓ cup per person, depending on how much you can eat. Then use double that amount in water and let it boil until the water is mostly gone.
    For Chick peas I assume they're like kidney beans, rinse them completely and just pour in the beans/peas

  23. You need to take your favorite pattern (which I bought because of you, yet have not made, because of me), and make you an apron. Many aprons.

  24. I love the Thai cookbook Sabai by Pailin from Hot Thai Kitchen!

    I've found it helpful to make a list of meals that I want to make (both favorites and new) and then when I sit down to plan out my meals and groceries for the week, I can pull from my premade list instead of trying to come up with all the ideas then. Once I've gone through my list, I start again. This way, I only have to put in a lot of planning effort once every couple of months!

  25. The W is pronounced like a V. Other than that, your pronunciation isn't bad. Pickle soup is my favorite dish of all time. If you decide to ever make it again do yourself a favor and use fermented pickles. The only brand that I know of in these parts is called "Bubbies". The water is murky and briny and there is no vinegar in them, just salt. They will be in the refrigerated section of the store. I'm glad you still enjoyed it though. "Smacznego!"

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