How often do you make a recipe exactly as written

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How often do you make a recipe exactly as written?

  • All the time. I stop using a recipe if I don't like it.

    Votes: 1 4.8%
  • The first time. Then, I change what I don't like the next time.

    Votes: 10 47.6%
  • Never. I always change something in the recipe.

    Votes: 4 19.0%
  • Other (please specify)

    Votes: 6 28.6%

  • Total voters
    21
Other ^^^^ +2

Sort of like Captain Jack Sparrow "... They're more of a guideline ..."

I believe it was Capt. Barbosa that said that.

When I was new to cooking, I would follow a recipe exactly. I only do it now if I am unfamiliar with a cuisine.

Oh, family recipes are followed to the letter! I want that taste I remember.
 
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OTHER.

I usually follow a recipe the first time. When I don't it's because I like the recipe overall but not a fan of one of the ingredients so I'll sub a different item or leave it out.

For classic recipes, I tend to follow the recipe as I feel it's a classic for a reason.

To further clarify. When I "create" a recipe and add it to my cookbook, I tend to make it the same way every time. Primarily because the senior taste tester in my kitchen likes the same food to taste the same way every time. Can't say I blame her.
 
Always the way it is the first time, How do you know if it is good or not if you don't.

You're right, of course...but I still can't help myself. Sometimes - and I do find this funny - I'll do my usual deviations from the written recipe (i.e., healthier ingredients, more heat, etc.), and afterward I'll conclude that maybe - MAYBE - I might have made a mistake. Still, I'll only actually remake it with the original recipe if I can trace the mistake to an ingredient or process I changed.

As people have noted, baking is a different story, but I'll still swap out things that I know work (like brown sugar in place of white sugar).
 
Rarely

Especially with spices. I don't maintain a refrigerator full of fresh this and fresh that, so a substitute of a dried spice for fresh is usually one of the first things to go.
 
Other.

When I'm baking I follow the recipe because I don't have enough experience with that to wing it.

For most other recipes, I do a lot of estimating instead of measuring, and I taste and adjust as I go. I may substitute for something I forgot to buy or for flavors that I or my wife or guests don't care for. A lot of the time I'm not even working to a recognizable recipe.
 
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