Prep

Although it takes some practice in front of the stove, my opinion is that most of the work is done well before the food hits the heat. Although he's a rather pompous man, Anthony Bourdain taught me (through his books) that being ready is way more than half the battle. He breaks it down into 'deep prep' and 'prep', but for most of us, 'prep' is really where we'll put in the most effort and where the difference between a good meal and an unintended mush will be.

Knife skills and kitchen organization/readiness will make everything significantly easy and can turn the reluctant cook into a foodie. For me, it means having two knives I go to relentlessly, keeping them in good shape, and organizing my space with bowls (those light-weight stainless ones are great). Although I don't do a lot of measuring, I still like to keep my ingredients separated into categories, if not giving them each a little bowl of their own. I think an example will help.

Almost every Monday I make a dish my girlfriend came up with which we fondly call "The Monday Night Special." It's healthy, easy, and cheap (a recurring theme). Here's how making the dish looks like in my kitchen:

After cranking the tunes, I fill up my pot with cold water and put it on the stove. (I do this almost any time I'm making dinner). I grab the cutting board and my Forschner santuko blade, run it on the steel a couple times. First comes the garlic - sliced and minced, then put off to the side on a small plate. Then comes the peppers - cored and sliced, then put into a small stainless bowl. Then comes the parsley, chopped and put into a cup. Then comes the cheese (ricotta), mixed into the cup with the parsley.

When everything is ready, the water is boiling, I toss in the tortellini, and heat up the olive oil. Now it's just a matter of putting the ingredients in the pan, a quick saute, and mixing it all together at the end. Clean-up is a snap because everything I used (except the knife and pan) can go into the dishwasher, and we're ready to eat.