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My favorite knife is a 'disposable' blue handled Sysco paring knife that I got from the restaurant where I used to work. It's thin blade gets super sharp and holds a decent edge and, because I got it for free, I don't mind running it through the dish washer.

I remember watching my parents (mom, mostly from scratch; dad, mostly from a can) cook when I was growing up but I don't remember helping much beyond the simple things (salad and such) or ever being "taught" anything. The only time I did help out was when it came time to slaughter and pluck chickens, but that's only tangentially related to cooking.

However, I did watch cooking shows on PBS on the weekends. Mostly, "Yan can cook." It's probably why Asian food is my favorite now.

When I was a teenager, I started getting more responsibility for grilling. Mostly because I was good at lighting fires :-)

One year (approx 16-17), my parents assigned me the task of cooking the Christmas roast. At that point, I don't think I'd ever cooked anything more advanced than mac & cheese or possibly a burger on the grill. They left the whole task up to me, including method of cooking and when it would be done. I ended up settling on the BBQ since I knew it best. I cooked it over a low fire for about 4 or 5 hours. As I recall, it turned out wonderfully.

After that, I didn't cook for years (all through college). After college, I moved away so I mostly ate out. Eventually, I met a girl and started cooking for her to try to impress her. Apparently a childhood of sitting in the kitchen and watching Saturday cooking shows had rubbed off on me. I did pretty well with stir-fries, fried rice and grilled meat/veg.

The next girlfriend (later, wife) was vegetarian so that presented a whole new challenge. Tourist cooking school in Thailand provided me with more confidence. Later, I joined a group of friends in a monthly international potluck. That really forced me to learn to cook new recipes.

Now, I am to the point where I'll try pretty much any recipe and be confident that it will turn out reasonably edible.

I have an easy "go to" salad that I make when I'm tired. I use the pre-washed greens or spinach. Then I slice a carrot and celery stalk (I suppose you could do this right into the bowl if you were careful). Next are the pre-toasted almonds or sunflower seeds (from Trader Joes) and some raisins. Lastly, some blue cheese or feta crumbles. No messing with salad dressing. I don't really care for it or the extra calories (and I get plenty of olive oil in the rest of my food).

If I want to mix it up a bit, I'll use a chopped Pink Lady apple or cheddar cheese.

I can have this on the table in under 10 minutes and it always tastes good enough for me!

Bacon. Yech! I have never been a fan of bacon and I find it annoying that it is the new darling ingredient. Seriously, it seems like it is in nearly every recipe.

I disagree with the author about pulling the plate. When I am eating out I hate it when the server doesn't take the empty plates. I don't want to sit around with an empty plate in front of me. I'd like to be able to put my hands/elbows on the table.

When I became a waiter, I was told that older people generally prefer to keep all plates on the table until everyone is done, while younger people prefer to have the plates pulled as they finish.

My wife has similar restrictions (vegetarian, not spicy, no detectable eggs). When we first me there were a lot of foods that she "didn't like". It turns out she mostly just doesn't like the taste of cumin (that took a long time to figure out!). On the other hand, I love all sorts of food. I've found that I can make just about any of my favorite foods if I just limit the amount of cumin and chili peppers.

Most of the recipes I make are found by Googling "recipe vegetarian [name of food/country/cuisine]". Tonight we had a vegetarian Thai tom yum soup (hot/sour soup made w/ lots of veggies and limes/lemon grass).

Other favorites include corn salad with bean, tomatoes and bell peppers. We eat it hot or cold with rice or tortillas. We also make calzones but sometimes with oil, no sauce and less cheese. And we love Asian rice/noodles with peanut or hoisin sauce. You should also try Central and South American vegetarian dishes. Many of the central/South American countries avoid spicy foods.

When I was a kid, we used to raise and slaughter chickens and turkeys. I normally just helped with the plucking (I was pretty young) but once, my dad let me try chopping the chicken's head off with a hatchet. Unfortunately, I was young and the hatchet was dull, so I more, mangled its head off than chopped it off.

I've also helped dress geese (that I shot) and a hog.

I think you shouldn't eat meat if you're not willing to take part in butchering of it (not that you have to personally butcher every piece of meat you eat).

No tirades? Well, I worked in a decent restaurant in a well known locale in California for 4 years. In that time, I saw:
- a chinese waiter who goose-stepped and muttered threats and Nazi slogans
- a pastry chef punch a refrigerator
- a waiter calmly reading his pad, turn and throw a plate of food across the kitchen
- a chef that got tired of cold plate complaints put a plate of food in a salamander, heat it to 400 and hand it to a waitress who didn't know about the hot plate
- various other screaming, swearing, and near fist fights!

I think you just landed in a bum restaurant. How boring!

Prime rib? lasagna? meat loaf? Do you really want me thinking about my mother all night and how you can't cook as well as her?

I'd much rather have a woman cook me something new and interesting. Something with some spice.

My perfect first date dinner would start with her saying something along the lines of, "I had this once in Hong Kong/Nice/Cairo and I think I've just about got the recipe right." How's that for a conversation starter?