I figure after a few decades of trying every cut I had access to in two separate companies, it’s just not gonna happen.
I posted the link on the NYT COTM thread if you want to try it!
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Four things:
English muffins (I can make them, but the convenience and quality of store-bought is always hard to beat).
Poached eggs (not gonna do it).
Smoked bacon (ours is good, but we always still crave store-bought).
Hamburger/hot dog buns (I bake good ones, but the convenience of store-bought is hard to resist).
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My maki rolling skills leave a lot to be desired. Maki and other sushi are otherz thing I leave to the experts. Also tempura.
I can’t get my goulash or chicken paprikash to be quite as delicious or tender as the Hungarian restaurant versions.
All the Hungarian restaurants near me have closed over the past 2 years. There is one that’s about 5 miles away from me in Toronto, but their paprikash tasted like it had been frozen, so I haven’t gone out of my way to give them business.
I also don’t bother making palacsinta or crêpes at home.
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Im really bad at cooking Asian . Maybe its the ingredients. And the technique. I like it though.
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Pie crust. I didn’t get the pie crust gene, I gave up a long time ago.
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My meatloaves are always over a pound. If I don’t use it up in leftovers or making a matloaf sandwich or two, I freeze the rest and chop it up later for a meat sauce for pasta.
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I got better at making fried noodles in 2020. I would say sometimes they’re better what some restaurants are serving.
I still haven’t attempted things like ginger beef, sweet & sour, or General Tsp chicken at home.
My fried rice is pretty bad.
I have gotten pretty good at making Burmese, Thai, and Indonesian curries.
I’m pretty good at Vietnamese roast chicken. I haven’t made that for a while.
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Mine is a disgrace. I couldn’t think of anything to add to this thread (other than that I’m having some bread trouble at the moment), but you reminded me of my most profound failure.
I also can’t make a rolled omelette to save my life, despite watching Jacques Pepin do it about a million times.
I just watched him again, to depress myself.
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Guess I need to start using metal forks in my nonstick pan. . . However since I don’t have a cookware sponsor I guess I have to go in a different direction
I’m more along the lines of Alton Brown’s method from Good eats.
Maybe I’ll have better luck with that.
I swear by alexandraskitchen all butter recipe using the Cuisinart and tea towel (never terrycloth) and also a silicone mat for rolling pie dough, works like a dream. You wrap the disc then refrigerate before rolling out.
Rolling between parchment paper or plastic wrap doesn’t work for me.
The Jaques Pepin Omelet is my white wale . Simply difficult .
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I think it is good to have a white whale…for some, it just makes for more of a challenge to make it better.
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Fried rice.
Fortunately I have zero desire to eat it, which is lucky.
Living in Hawaii with a Japanese wife, we always have a surplus of rice. Fried rice is really an “empty the refrigerator” dish. Once you get the technique down…you just sort of slog it together.
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I make a pretty mean Thai curry & laab, but for Chinese dishes I’ve found the Woks of Life website to be incredibly helpful. It has def upped my stir-fry and fried rice game (like frying the eggs first — who knew???).
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My lunchtime version of fried rice is about as traditional as peanut butter, but it works…a microwave packet of rice, a handful of ham cubes, a handful of frozen peas and carrots, a handful of diced onion, an egg, and some soy sauce. All pantry staples.
It’s more Panda Express than traditional, but I can bang it out in 5 minutes.
Reminds me of an episode of the TV program “Wok with Yan”, in which he said, “Stop talking about cooking Chinese. It’s Chinese FOOD you’re cooking.” 
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