Here are the most important things to remember when cooking.
Safety
If there's a fire in your kitchen, don't water to put it out. Instead, cover the fire with a frying pan top or pot top and deprive it of oxygen to put it out. Many fires in kitchens involve grease, and water on hot grease makes the grease splatter and potentially spread the fire. So instead, cover it up.
Cut slowly and carefully using knuckles as a guide. The only times I've cut myself with a knife were when I was trying to cut quickly for no good reason. Use knives carefully with good technique.
Wash your hands before you cook and during the cooking process.
Turn the pot and panhandle to the side. I've never knocked off a pan off the stove, but I've gotten close.
Clean
I've never understood the division of labor between cooking and cleaning. One person cooks, and their partner cleans? It's nice when people help each other out. Households where chores are a collaborative effort are optimal. But cleaning is part of cooking in many ways. You have to clean vegetables and fruits, you need to clean your hands often when cooking, and you have to clean surfaces, dishes, and utensils.
I recommend cleaning utensils and dishes when you have time while you are cooking. It makes the pile of dishes after a meal less intimidating. For example, while waiting for water to the bowl, clean off the cutting board. Waiting for a steak to rest, clean off the stovetop. There's a fair amount of time when you need to wait while you cook, so use this time to tidy up.
It's a wonderful feeling at the end of meal prep to have a clean kitchen. I really struggle to cook in a kitchen that isn't clean. Before you start cooking, having a clean space is sanitary, and safer. The process of cleaning clears the mind. Unfortunately, I'm not always able to clean up right after a meal. Especially with kids, the kitchen isn't sometimes thoroughly cleaned up until after they go to bed, but it's a great feeling when it is cleaned up. It's now a space ready for creation.
Tip: dishwashing gloves make cleaning feel like less of a thing. I mind doing dishes far less when I have dishwashing gloves.
The arc of cooking starts with a clean kitchen and ends with a clean kitchen. Embrace cleaning as part of your process, and take pride in your tools and space.
Pay attention when you cook…with all of your senses.
The most rewarding cooking moments have been when I have been entirely focused on cooking and not distracted. All five senses are involved in cooking, and it's a wonderful experience to be fully engaged. There is a sound when the water leaves vegetables as it hits a hot pan and when meat is done searing. The color at the edge of pancake zucchini fritter tells you it's time to flip. The smell of ginger in a pan lets you know it's time to add other ingredients into a stir fry. There is the feeling of a finger touching banana bread and it coming back like a soft pillow that lets you know it's done, and of course, there's taste.
There are times when I cook when I play music or listen to a podcast, and it's not a bad thing to do this, but it's not the same as letting the sounds of cooking create a soundtrack of your process and helps you focus all of your senses.
I've often cooked while being distracted, and it's inevitable with small children in the house. There's no shame in that, but try to take time to cook with all of your senses. It's a lot of fun.
Cook when you're not hungry.
Cooking when you are hungry can be stressful. It's hard to enjoy cooking when you are just trying to make a meal as soon as possible. Try to find moments to cook between meals. You don't have to eat what you cook. You can try cooking something and working on recipes and then save what you make for the next meal.
Don't just cook to make food to eat.
Sometimes cook for the sake of enjoying cooking.
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