So this year I decided I’m going to try to make myself a better person in many ways. I’ve really been inspired by my current job to make a lot of changes in my life; one of these realizations was that I really need to eat healthier. The first part of that was quitting soda; I had quite a habit going. I’m sure Coca-Cola will miss me. So, my latest experiment is to see if I can manage to learn to cook without killing myself in the process.
Let me explain: I am a horrible cook. Anything beyond “place in microwave, cook for 6 minutes on high” is intimidating to me. Growing up, I managed to set the toaster oven on fire at least twice, and turn what was supposed to be a grilled cheese sandwich into a lump of formless charcoal from which a rather unbelievable amount of smoke emanated. Needless to say, sometime during high school the rule became that Dan stays away from the kitchen. I was that guy. So when I moved out on my own, I didn’t really have any skills to put together a good meal on a day to day basis. I lived off delivery food and frozen meals, with occasional cold cuts or hot dogs to liven things up. Side note: Stouffers frozen meals are God’s gift to those who cannot cook.
Anyway, given my decision, I had spoken to a couple of friends and the universal decision was that I should get a crock pot, because there was little I could do to catastrophically fail at that endeavor – or so they thought. My first couple of crock pot experiments resulted in inedible, hard-to-clean-up messes, including an ill-advised attempt at oatmeal (thank you, internet). But tonight, I celebrate my first successful crock pot meal: Salsa chicken. And it’s actually really tasty. I feel so accomplished, like the first hunter to kill a boar. (Ladies and gentlemen, I give thee: Suburbia!)
So, this is where it starts. Soon I will move to the grill. And from there, who knows where I’ll stop.
Look out world. Here I come.