I learned to cook by cooking with my mom. It wasn't a teaching moment or a choice. It was "time to cook supper, get your ass in here." My mom probably wasn't the best, but she knew what we would eat.  I loved my grandmother, but hated her pot roast. I loved my mom's. She knew not to sugar it. I learned to make cheap cuts of meat and whatever vegetables were about to go bad taste good. There weren't any cooking shows or famous chefs. It was just my mom and what we did with what we had.