How often do you cook something new?

corblimey

I'm stuck in a bit of a rut at the moment. I've got about a dozen recipes that I return to again and again, and my meal planner for any given month is looking a bit dull. I'm thinking of giving over 1 weekend per month to cooking at least 1 brand new dish, but every time I consider it, I bottle it a little and go with something I know and love.

But I'm determined to give it a go, and just wonder how often you guys throw caution to the wind and try making something brand new?

Alun

I'm similar .. I stick to a core set of recipes for ages, but gradually add in new ones and phase out ones I've got tired of.

What I tend to do when I'm in a rut is to just go out and buy all kinds of stuff, including some strange ingredients I don't normally buy, and this forces me to become a bit more adventurous and inventive with what I cook. Sometimes it works out fine, and I've got a brand new 'standard' for the future, and sometimes, well, we'd better not talk about that Usually it's the Friday night, 'bottom of the fridge' experiments that turn out the best though!

duploelabs

Myself and my missus usually play a game where she (who's not much of a foodie but rather an eater) goes to the shops and gets the following. 1x protein, 2x Veg, 1x Carb and I ready steady cook.

Suffice to say results are mixed but some gems are revealed

olaola

Not enough really. Even though I like cookbooks, I never use them unless I'm making a cake - or dessert. Something that needs precise measurements. For some reason I have a savoury recipe dyslexia! I just can't seem to follow them at all. I usually end up re-creating things I've eaten in restaurants, or I've had in other people's houses.

jdivision

I try something new about once a month, like others I buy some stuff and then put the main ingredients into the BBC Food website and see what comes up.