Not a snob on cooking and food wise, I found this to be a good question when debating my friend over beans on toast (UK here).
He says it doesn’t really count as cooking cos you’re just buying already produced ingredients to whack in a microwave or pot and that proper cooking is done from scratch.
I argue this is bullshit as you’re still USING common cooking equipment to make as something as simple as beans on toast because you still have to watch it not burn or dry out.
What are your thoughts on what counts as proper cooking? Would you say canned soup counts? Or frozen pizza since you’re still needing to use an oven and watch the food accordingly?
Theres a difference between those concepts?
To me cooking equals to make something unpleasent/inedible edible and tasty.
Doesnt matter if restaurant or home.
At least restaurant food looks more pretty :)
The French language, for example, differentiates cooking (you put uncooked food in the oven or on the stove and it comes out cooked) and cooking (preparing a meal.) They use “cuire” for the former, and “cuisiner” for the latter.
You don’t cook sushi (with a few exceptions), but preparing sushi is cooking.