How would you tell someone that their cooking is bad?

I'm from the south. If you can't cook. You simply tell people you can't cook. Hasn't stopped any of us from trying yet. Be honest and give people constructive criticism. They might not be able to cook yet but there's no reason they couldn't learn with some outside help and being condescending would be no way to do it, so just politely bringing up recipes you think they might be able to handle might be best. If not, hey, it's food, and unless it's dangerous to ingest, it's doing what it needs to do. I'm not going to turn down a free meal no matter how bad it tastes.
 
AHH !! Burnt sausage and soggy cabbage. My mother cooked it like that and childhood things stick, such memories - I love it [I know I'm not supposed to but hey ho].
The only other way around it is to turn up with a takeaway and tell them it's a treat !
 
I wouldn't tell a person that their cooking is bad but that's just the way i am. I would never dream of offending someone or hurting their feelings without good reason and bad cooking is not good reason. It's really not the end of the world if someone cooks a bad meal, too many people are rude and tactless these days and have no concern for the feelings of others. We all have strengths and weaknesses and we can't all be great cooks, so people should get over it, there are more important things to worry about.

The exception to this is restaurants or other food establishments where you are paying. If you are served bad food there then it is correct and your right to complain. You are paying good money and are entitled to a certain standard of service and cooking. A friend or family member on the other hand is attempting to do something nice for you, remember that.
 
So I was working long hours last week and did not cook much. Where I was working there are two restaurants. One is an Italian restaurant and the other belongs to a friend and business partner. Well I am trapped. The Italian restaurant prepares much better food and if I am honest my friend's food is not good at all.. Somehow I am expected to eat there as he's my friend but the food is not up to scratch. I actually think it is mostly bad. Here is where I think I should say something but I don't know quite how to say it.
 
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Quite the predicament there...um, it depends on the situation. If the cook DOESN'T know that their food tastes crap, then I wouldn't say anything, because that could just be YOUR palette and everyone else likes it. IF it IS truly bad, then the cook probably IS aware...in that case, I also wouldn't speak up, because I don't want to embarrass the host
 
Charcoal grills can also give off a nasty taste to food if it is not cooked right!

Ever been invited to a cookout, you go there, expecting to have good tasting barbecue, begin eating it, and then you found out that the meat cooked on the grill, especially the ribs, tastes like lighter fluid?! That is because whoever started the fire and used charcoal lighter for the coals DIDN'T WAIT until the coals (all of them) turned white!! That is a complete turnoff to me, and I won't go back to that person's house if that is the case!!

This would've been a sure sign that it is safe to put the meat on the grill. In order to eliminate that awful taste in the meat, all of the coals have to be white. I know several people that do that, and once I found out that they did, then I don't go back to any of their cookouts! I stay away. When they offer to invite me back, I just respectfully decline, telling them that I made a prior commitment to be at someone else's cookout. And if they insist, by saying something to the tune of like; "Well come over after you leave from there." My reply will be; "Well, I think that I might end up leaving the other person's house late at night." :stop:
 
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Hard task... if I'm close to the person - let's say my mom or someone from my family, I would very delicately say what's missing on the food or what is too much (for example "Hey, you put a bit too much salt here").
But if it's someone I don't have a bigger intimacy with I would either be quiet and not say anything, or I would suggest them to add or take something off without directly saying it's bad.
 
If it is something that is not cooked MY way, say for instance, chunky onions, bell pepper or celery, I just pick them out. I HATE chunky stuff like that, & I won't eat it!! :mad:
But if the person makes me mad enough, I will just come right out and tell them that they can't cook!! :mad: :stop:
 
One thing we all have to remember and I get reminded regulary every ones expectations are different
To hot to cold
Over cooked or undercooked
Under seasoned over seasoned
Serviced to fast or slow
To moist to dry
And if you get it right there's not enough
The list goes on
To many experts,
:chef:
 
I'm not the best cook in town, nor am I claiming to be one, but I DO know quite a bit about cooking.

As of late though, my toughest & most picky critic has been my 11-year-old grand nephew - the one who likes to cook & bake. He does not hold back any of his punches and comes right out with whatever is on his mind!!

I explain to him that people DO have feelings, and that if he does not like someone's cooking, then he should wait until the timing is right to let them know, but not in front of everyone. I love him dearly, but this is where I find it hard to please him at times!

He should not even say anything harsh, except to say that that he either ate already, or that he's not hungry! But for someone who has not been cooking as long as his older relatives have, he should never bite the hand that feeds him. He needs to be more kinder and respect other peoples' feelings if he wants to win confidence from others in the family. He needs to stop! :headshake: :stop:
 
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I think I'm one of those people! :laugh: I started late in the kitchen scene and still learn but yes, I will be the first to admit, my dishes don't always taste as they should. However, my hubby and kids let me know, but not in a bad way and I appreciate feedback. That's part of learning the skill of cooking and baking. But if the cook is not open to criticism, then I don't really know how one can let them know without offending them. :eek:
 
I was over at a friend & his girlfriend's house on Sunday for Easter dinner.
The food cooked was very good, and tasty.

The only thing wrong was the mac & cheese. I find that some people just can't make good mac & cheese!
It was way too overcooked, and it looked like grits & cheese!! It did NOT have any taste of cheese and it tasted flat! And it was just too bloody soft!! So soft & mushy that a baby could eat it and have no problem with it!! But I didn't say anything for fear that I might not be invited back. And I WANT to be invited back! I just won't eat the mac & cheese again.

And even though she is a very nice person, I just couldn't bring myself to eating that!! Everything else was fine though. I ate everything else on the plate except for that. I had to pretend like I was full, which in a way, I WAS. Though I only eat in small amounts, the next time that I'm invited over there, I won't eat the mac & cheese.

I was so disappointed that the next day when I got home, I made some mac & cheese, and it was so good! I told her aunt to ask her the next time, if she should bring anything, then tell her; "i'll bring some mac & cheese."!! :yuck::sick::stop:
 
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I had attended our annual big family dinner on Saturday evening.
After grace & blessings for the food were said, then everyone went up to the table to get a plate of food. It was served buffet-style. One such item that I had on my plate was a fairly large piece of rib. When I bit into it, right away, I tasted the charcoal lighter fluid!! Plus the meat was burnt up on the outside, and not done at the bone!!! I quickly put it down and didn't finish it!!

One of my worst pet peeves is not only BBQ that tastes like lighter fluid, but meat that is overcooked on the outside & not done at the bone!!! Burnt up & ain't done!!!! :mad: :stop:
 
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I, personally, wouldn't tell them. My husband, on the other hand, won't hesitate. The way he chooses to say it is what makes the difference. If he laughs and says it like
 
kana_marie said:
I, personally, wouldn't tell them. My husband, on the other hand, won't hesitate. The way he chooses to say it is what makes the difference. If he laughs and says it like
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My 11-year-old grand nephew will do that in a heartbeat!!
If something on his plate is not right, and once he finds out who cooked it, he'll call you out & tell you that you ruined it!!
He holds no punches!! He gets this from his mom. And since he likes to cook & bake, he also has become a food critic at places where he & his family like to dine. So he has become an authority on how he feels food should be.
Don't get me wrong, I love him very dearly, but he's so brutally outspoken at times!!. :headshake: :stop:
 
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