What was your mother’s cooking like?
Was she skilled like Julia Child or an expert at burning toast? Did she make microwaveable meals or steal recipes from the back of food packets?
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Regardless of her cooking level, moms always cooked with one secret ingredient: love. That’s what makes certain dishes memorable (and extra delish!).
Here, Redditors shared the 19 meals that remind people of their mother’s cooking.
Bon Appét*t!
Meat empanada
A lot of love goes into dishes that take a lot of effort to make. That’s why this Redditor loves his mom’s meat empanadas, which she would make with either ground meat in a tomato sauce or shredded chicken and potato curry. Yum!
Piggy piggy salad
“Lol, my mom is not a great cook, but I fondly remember the goofy names of her frequently-made dishes. ‘Piggy piggy salad’ was a basic green salad with bacon. ‘Chili-like substance’ was ground beef cooked with canned beans and tomatoes.” – u/ tsukiii
Undercooked eggplant
Yes, even the worst foods can have the fondest memories! That’s how this Redditor feels about his mother’s undercooked eggplant. Even though it was terrible, it reminds them of her.
Cheap cuts of steak with baked potatoes
“My mom cooked simply to appeal to the extremely basic tastes of my dad, despite my mom and I love spicy flavorful food. While I always thought the food my mom cooked was so ‘boring,’ it is so comforting to come home to the meat and potatoes meals of my childhood.” – u/ lapetitepoire
Meatloaf
One Redditor’s mother pulled a Friends moment with her cooking. When they moved out and asked for the family’s “secret family recipe” for meatloaf, they discovered that this it was actually a recipe from the back of the onion dip package!
Spaghetti
“My mom isn’t the best cook. Dad was/is the primary cook of the household when I was growing up. But she could make spaghetti, so we had that a lot when Dad wasn’t cooking.” – u/ milkbeamgalaxia
Banana pudding
When a parent doesn’t cook a lot, the dishes they do make tend to really stand out. For this Redditor, it was his mother”s banana pudding with nilla wafers every Thanksgiving. Sounds delicious!
Mom’s tomato sauce
“Even though she calls it gravy and it drives me nuts when she does. But it’s delicious! Better than anything you could get from a can or a jar. (Simple to make, too, but requires a lot of stirring and at least an hour simmering.)” – u/ coffeeblossom
Mashed potatoes
Although it’s a simple dish to make, this Redditor’s mother made them memorable by using a $400 mixer. This made them super smooth and creamy! She had time to nail the recipe since it was the only thing she knew how to make in it.
Plain white steamed rice that’s slightly scorched
“My mother is not a good cook and is known in our family for her bland food. She had my brother call me once while I was traveling on the other side of the world to ask me for a pasta recipe.” – u/ Aeroden
Chocolate roll
In case you don’t know what this is, it resembles a large Hostess Ho-Ho. One Redditor called it the most delicious treat in the world! Ever since their mother passed away, they try to make it every other week to put a smile on their dad’s face.
Gumbo
“My mom made the absolute best gumbo and I’ve spent the last 10 years trying to get it right because she never wrote down the recipe for me before she died despite me practically begging her to do so. God I miss her (and her gumbo!)” – u/ myhappylittletrees
Apple pie
This Redditor’s finds it miraculous that his mother makes the best apple pie. She hates desserts, after all, and never had them growing up!
She makes them well using a recipe from a Betty Crocker cookbook, which she tweaks to make the perfect balance of sweet and tart.
Leche flan
“Even the stuff from the local Filipino bakery is spongey scrambled eggs compared to my mom’s. Thick, smooth custard. No bubbles. Her secret ingredient is the tiniest splash of lemon extract. Sometimes she’ll put a layer of flan on top of cassava cake (shredded cassava cooked with macapuno coconut). Lord, so good.” – u/ bachrock37
Lasagna
What could be better than mom’s lasagna? One Redditor’s mother perfected the recipe by only using fresh ingredients and adding extra ingredients like parboil Italian sausage. Yum!
Soup when you’re sick
“When you’re sick she can just look at you and determine whether you need egg drop soup or potato soup. Once she’s made her assessment, give her half an hour to bring it to you in bed and fuss over you while you eat it. I’m telling you, it’ll fix you right up.” – u/ Friendly_Recompence
Microwaveable meal
Let’s be real: not all moms are the best cooks. Some can barely boil water! This forced some to feed their family microwaveable meals, like this Redditor’s mom. While it’s not the healthiest option, they tried their best.
Egg in the nest
If you don’t know what this is, it’s when you cut a hole in the middle of the bread and cook an egg in it. One Redditor shared that they would give anything to taste one more egg in the nest from their mom.
Kraft Dinner
“Kraft dinner-the best on the street. So good the kids would make trouble for their parents if they made it and would beg to over to my moms house.” – u/ wishinghearts40
Last Updated on April 18, 2022 by Sarah Kester
