I think you've answered your own question-that is, that defining what makes a good cook is very subjective; it's all in how the food is interpreted which can vary as you've descibed in your mil's case. What is bland to you, is wonderful to your fil.

For me, I like some mastery of the basics of food science along with creative flavors. I don't gravitate toward people who make the same attractive but uninspired meals over and over, but to really earn my respect, the person has to have enough chutzpah to sometimes say 'this is just trendy-- it doesn't actually taste good.'

You know, that's a interesting question. It's like millymoo says, it's very subjective. It all depends on what you value. I think if someone can pull off a consistent product that tastes good, you're a good cook. To me, a great cook also cares about presentation, depths of flavors, and pairing the best foods together. It's a little like the difference between grilled cheese sandwiches. I may be in the mood for American cheese on white bread grilled to a golden brown, or pairing three cheeses on french bread grilled to gooey perfection with herb butter. Either one could be good or great, depending on what I'm in the mood for!

A good cook is someone who cooks what the folks eating like. Lol.

Yah, I know, that's simplistic. But, someone who insists on trying to "educate" the palate of others by feeding them foods they do not care for or if impressing people with one's skill and sophistication is more important than pleasing them then that person is not a good cook, just a show off.

I'm not talking about gently introducing unfamiliar ingredients and dishes to someone who is willing to at least try, of course. Nor am I saying that a more adventurous cook must stick to hamburger helper and baked chicken because that's what the diners have always eaten.

All that said...

I think my stepmother is a good cook, though she pretty much sticks to good old Yankee cookery. When I met her, she'd never used a fresh mushroom in her life (when she was growing up, the only fresh 'shrooms available were found under cow pats in the fields....ewwwwwww) but she can make the Sunday pork loin roast come out moist and juicy every time, even if it isn't encrusted with exotic spices and sauced with some amalgamation of liquor and fruit in a reduction of home made stock of some kind.

She can make a pie from fruit & flour to oven in 10 minutes...that's a two crust pie, and her crust is as flaky as you could wish.

Her chowders are incredibly simple in terms of the ingredient list, and thinner than we on the West Coast might be accustomed to, but...YUM-MY!

Over the years, I've introduced her to things like stir-fries using fresh vegetables (and fresh mushrooms) and I about poisoned her once with a garlic pasta side dish I made. She hadn't eaten fresh garlic in her life, and I went pretty heavy with it, not realizing. She enjoyed it immensely, but was up getting rid of it off and on for the rest of the night.

She now cooks with fresh vegetables and even uses (small amounts of) fresh garlic.

Aha, I have it! A good cook is someone who is both a good hostess and willing to try something new!

To me a good cook is someone who has a knack for knowing what types of seasonings and ingredients can be put together for an appealing taste. I won't say that "anyone" can follow a recipe, but if all you do is follow a recipe (even if the dish turns out spectacularly), it's kind of a "paint by number" dish. How could a good recipe be bad if you follow the directions exactly?

I don't think formal training is necessary (it can't hurt though, can it?). I think it's all about really knowing your ingredients. And that comes with time and experimentation. And that means that even great cooks will most likely have some mighty flops.

I think if you can make a great meatloaf or roast chicken or spaghetti sauce, then you can make a great meatloaf or roast chicken or spaghetti sauce, but it doesn't necessarily make you a good cook in general.

Because what a person prefers to eat IS so subjective, I think a good cook has to be willing to step outside their own personal preferences and cook "to their audience". I could make scalloped potatoes and a baked ham for David and he'd be blissfully happy but Elery would pick at it. He'd rather have gyros or something very spicy, which I wouldn't eat. I want a very rare piece of beef and a lot of fresh vegetables. A good cook has to be creative and willing to try new things which are outside their own area of expertise.

My Grandmother was a good cook, Dad used to say she could make a great meal out of nothing. I'm sure she'd never even heard of cioppino, but she could make a great batch of turtle soup. She was able to take whatever ingredients she had on hand and make a healthy and satisfying meal out of them, some of her "emergency suppers" became family favorites.

My mother was not such a good cook. She'd make a lovely apple tart with every slice of apple perfectly placed, but you'd need a chainsaw to cut the crust. It looked perfect, but was inedible. So, appearance matters somewhat, but the food had better be good too.

So, my version of a good cook is a creative person, wiling to try new things but able to stay within the parameters set by the people eating their cooking, and someone who knows enough basics that they are comfortable substituting the ingredients they have for ingredients in a "recipe" that are unavailable.

Now, that's just my definition, and it's far from complete. I'm sure others will add to it, or disagree.

Annie

On the one hand, whether or not a cook is a good cook is up to the person or people that he/she is feeding.

On the other hand, I think a good cook has to have some knowledge of cooking methods, cookery science, seasoning techniques, the art of putting a menu together, and how to stretch limited supplies when necessary. This knowledge may come from books, training, experience, learning from others, or just an inner sense that some people possess.

Teresa

A good cook uses what is on hand, considers the palates of the people who will eat the food, doesn't need expensive/fancy ingredients to turn out a tasty and tasteful meal. A good cook realizes much of enjoyment comes through the eyes, so dishes are attractive. A good cook improvises and improves recipes, and occasionally has a flash of genius and makes up a dish.
We're all good cooks. Some of us just haven't discovered our strength yet!

I considered myself a good cook when the lightbulb went on about a few things. When the recipe said twenty more minutes of baking and I could tell by smell and appearance that the item was done. Realizing a certain ingredient would overpower a recipe or that adding an ingredient or two would take it to the next level. When I could pull random things out of my fridge and pantry and be able to make a good dinner.

My family thinks I'm a good cook and my guests think I'm a good cook so I am satisfied with that!

A great cook is creative, spontaneous, adventurous, and is not afraid to try new things. That statement describes all of us. If we didn't have these qualities, we wouldn't be in the cooking forum! :-) Cheers to all of us great cooks!

Al

donnaloomis - "How could a good recipe be bad if you follow the directions exactly?" obviously you've never cooked with me - lol....I can ALWAYS find a loophole!

anyway, seriously. I like the comments about being able to mix things together without instructions and come up with something fabulous...I think that many people consider me a good cook, at least around here (I mean my hometown) - but it all takes a GREAT deal of effort on my behalf. It's those that make things seem effortless - that impress me the most...invite me over and set out to making dinner an hour or so later than usual, and entertain me and my family while you're prepping things and cooking things, and your table is already set, and the fabulous cheesecake is already in the fridge and you're making the stacked pizza in front of me while drinking wine with me, and everything still all turns out wonderful, then THAT'S a great cook...:-)

Jo, I agree with millymoo, you answered your own question very well.
In fact, everyone here has pretty much hit the nail on the head in some form or another.

A good cook is many different things to many different people.

One other important trait of a good cook is to know when less is more.
Rachelellen gave a fine example of that with her stepmother's pork roast.

Fancy, exotic, or highly spiced or sauced does not always equal good.
Sometimes plain and simple is better.

Rusty

Now.....a great cook is someone like the caterer I use here at the office. Marg is Canadian, but can make squash casserole and sweet tea as well as any Southerner. She can make the standard meatloaf and succotash taste out of this world and she can fix a beef tenderloin or pork roast that would rival any fine dining restaurant. Files of her own recipes are safe with her daughter, but she often does not need a recipe and she frequently does not make the same dish exactly the same way as the last time she fixed it. Her food looks so appetizing you just want to swoon. I think she is superior to other caterers in nearby cities who charge way more than she does. Plus, she is just such a good person in every way. I feel so blessed to call her a friend. One of these days I'm going to take pics of a buffet table here to show you.

I do not know that she has had formal training; her early childhood in Saskatchewan was a meager existence actually, but filled with love from good parents and a loving family. When she married a local man and moved down here, she cooked at the restaurant that he owned. She is a very unique person!

Teresa

My first thought was that a good cook is someone whose food people want to eat, but Annie has a point about the people who just know how to prepare a few things well. I had a roommate who could make fried chicken and carrot cake. They were good. But she couldn't cook anything else.

So I would say a good cook is someone who can look in a fridge and a pantry and turn out a good meal out of what's there. Who can go to the market and make up something inspired by what looks good there--and knows what makes something look good.

And a great cook is someone like Teresa describes who can make even the most ordinary things extraordinary. This is a baking analogy, but it holds: My brother makes the best Toll House cookies. People fight over them. My best friend, who is a good cook and decent baker, made the same recipe and got inedible horrors. Some people just have the touch (knowledge, skills, experience, breath of the angels, whatever)...

There are excellent responses here so not much to add other than a it's all relative. I have to chuckle every time a friend or family member says I am a good or even great cook. In reality and amongst my virtual friends on the CF, I am average at best and in constant learning mode--thank you all for the on-going lessons.

mustangs, I think you've said it best.

A good cook is constantly learning.

Rusty

I think a good cook is able to make something tasty from whatever she can find. Some people could probably be great cooks if they had the resources to have the very best ingredients, but if they are the average person with a budget, a good cook can buy wholesome, healthy, fresh foods and create something tasty and attractive that othrs like. And she always serves it with love.

My idea of a good cook is someone who can consistently prepare a dish with the right balance of flavours, right texture and consistency. Doesn't have to be elaborate dishes, actually I find those are often the easiest to hit out of the park. If it's a tuna casserole it needs to be creamy, not too salty and the tuna should be recognizable.

My idea of a really good cook is someone who does that without a recipe just by look, smell and taste.

My MIL was a good/great cook because she could put together a meal for 10 spontaneously from what I would call "absolutely nothing" in the pantry and 'fridge. Always a meat or meat combo stretched with rice, potatoes, or crackers; two veggies (slathered with butter and some sprinkle of herb) from her garden, from the local grocer within walking distance, or begged from a neighbor; homemade jam and bread or rolls (always); and a simple dessert like Jello or ice cream with frozen/reheated homemade lady fingers or crispy lace cookies, or her famous sour cream sugar cookies dusted at the last minute with cocoa powder"for zing". I called her a great cook because she never, ever, complained about not having enough food. She humbly presented her dinner for however many showed up as "food to enjoy with good company". She enjoyed the conversations and brushed off compliments with "And did you get enough to eat?"

To feed people it takes an hour to prep, a half hour to consume, but to enjoy good company at the table is a lifelong memory to be cherished.

Nancy

I always roll my eyes when friends and family call me a good cook. I'm not. I'm a good recipe follower, though more often than not I may tweak, comingle, and otherwise bastardize recipes to my liking.

My mother thinks (or at least says she thinks) that I'm a much better cook than she. Yes, her repetoire might be considered somewhat pedestrian, but on the other hand her garbage can was never as full as mine. To this day she'll wing tasty meals left and right using the smallest scraps of leftovers and whatever else happens to be in the pantry or fridge. Meanwhile I'm on the internet daily looking for inspiration and heading to the grocery store. She's probably never made homemade chicken stock in her life, nor heard of half the spices on my shelves or condiments in my fridge - and I could go on and on - but there's no doubt in my mind, she's the better cook.

To me what makes a great cook is someone who emulates a scaled down version of an Iron Chef - take a main ingredient and do something creative, original and delicious with it, celebrating that ingredient, without anyone's help.

I'm going to refer to my hypothetical "good cook" as a "he", but I don't mean anything by it, I swear.

You really, really like his food.

He has to make tasty food. Obvious, maybe, but let's set a high-ish standard here. There should be interesting tastes, not always just sweet and savory, but also astringent, clean, complex, heat, coolness. Texture is important, with crunch as well as smooth, hardness and softness, little jewels and big slabs. It can't always be about comfort food. Life is too short to never be puzzled, surprised, challenged, even alarmed and suspicious.

You would be happy eating his food most of the time.

His yummy food isn't always the same. Even a favorite food gets boring if that's all you ever eat. For me, even a favorite type of food gets old eventually. To me, this means a variety of styles and ethnic cuisines - not just Italian. Not just French. We are so lucky in this time and place, to have access to ingredients and tastes from all over the world. Let's have all kinds of cuisine, please.

Eating his food all the time won't hurt you.

His food is nutritionally sound. Not a fast-track to a "cardiovascular event" or type 2 diabetes. But, please, occasionally, letÂs have a old-fashioned fat and salt bath - life's gotta be worth living! His food and equipment budget shouldn't break your bank. Being food-poor sort of ruins the enjoyment of the meal, I think. Finally - Pet Peeve Alert! - if cleaning up takes an hour, I'd rather skip dinner, thank you.

Enough other people feel the same as you.

If his cooking floats your boat, but everyone else says "yuck", then its hard to call him a really good cook.

Gestalt: a configuration or pattern of elements so unified as a whole that it cannot be described merely as a sum of its parts.

You can use words in the dictionary, and I can use words in the dictionary, but a poetÂs use of words transcends the literal meanings given in the same dictionary.

Ringling Brothers is a good circus, but Cirque du Soleil's takes it way beyond flying trapeze. ItÂs all about presentation.

A great chef will give you food thatÂs more than just tasting good. Why do people willing to wait three months to get a reservation at LÂAstrance? Take a look at what they present to you and you will understand.

A cook is one who heats up food.

A good cook is one who has a collection of recipes and can follow the instructions competently.

A great cook is one who makes up recipes for dishes which elicit involuntary "WOW, OMG!"s from you before and after you eat.

ItÂs about gestalt, in MHO.

Great topic for a post, Jo.

dcarch

Like some of you have said, I don't consider myself a good cook. I am an OK recipe follower and I like to eat good food, so I cook. My aunt is a good cook. She can put together a meal out of nothing. It's really amazing, she goes in the kitchen, putters around and you really have no idea what she is doing in there and it seems like nothing, and then she pulls out an amazing meal. She has a great sense of taste and texture and what to make out of what. She is not a fancy, gourmet cook, her food just tastes good. I have also noted that she creates thing bit by bit, which is why it seems like she pulls meals out of nowhere. She starts a dish in the AM or the day before and does some aspect of cooking it and then just keeps going at odd times. She has a grand scheme of her kitchen and food and pantry in her mind. I'm always amazed by her, because she doesn't have fancy serving ware or antyhing, she can serve up the best dessert on a chipped dime store plate. And nothing fancy either, but she knows what pleases. Like when my dad or her son come to her house for a visit, blintzes will be made . . .

On the other hand, practice makes perfect if you have a good palate. I am not too shabby with rice, beans, pasta and soup, because I make them constantly. I now have a tasty repertoire of taste combos and techniques in my mind. So some of it is just good taste, knowing what works for your tried and true favorites. That's my biggest problem actually, my sense of adventure. For every "Wow that was good!" concoction that I try, there are three or four "Meh's" and a sometimes a "Yuk." I dunno, perhaps a great cook never goes there . . . but it is my domain most of the time.