This Shark Tank Investor Wants Cookbooks Thrown Out Of The Kitchen

For some people, having a trusty cookbook stored at home can be the difference between a magnificent home-cooked dinner and ordering out. And yet, there is a case to be made that an overreliance on following specific instructions every time you make a meal does more harm than good over time. One person who makes that claim is "Shark Tank" venture capitalist Kevin O'Leary. In an exclusive interview with Mashed, he indicated that leaning on a cookbook to tell you what to do every time you step into the kitchen is a mistake that can result in stale gastronomic endeavors.

Mr. Wonderful (or chef Wonderful, as he often refers to himself) isn't completely against the practice of utilizing cookbooks. After all, sometimes they hold the secrets to a wealth of vintage recipes which you'd otherwise miss out on. However, using a cookbook as a culinary crutch limits one's ability to be imaginative with your cuisine.

Kevin O'Leary used beef Wellington as an example of how overdependence on cookbooks can be detrimental to the one thing that makes a dish stand out: creativity. "You don't have to only do beef Wellington the way it was done in England for 200 years," he said. "You can add elements underneath that pastry that are interesting and a big surprise for people. I don't think I've ever made beef Wellington the same way twice."

Despite Kevin O'Leary's aversion to using cookbooks, he does acknowledge they occasionally have a place in the kitchen. If you're attempting to make a dish you've never cooked before, it's a good idea to clue yourself into the details necessary to make it correctly. "You want to stay true to a crème brûlée if you're making a dessert, for example," he said.

Essentially, using a cookbook is like looking up a walkthrough for a video game you're stuck on. Sure, it helps you advance to the next level, but the joy of finding your own path is lost. However, if you're trying to upgrade traditional fare like French onion soup, O'Leary said, "Your worst enemy is a cookbook because you are rigorously looking at exact portions in some dish that's been made the same way for years."

Once you're familiar with the nuts and bolts of how a specific dish comes together, it's time to start getting innovative. That essential aspect of gastronomy allows people to come up with their own signature version of a recipe (not to mention it's a lot more fun). "Try different things," O'Leary said. "That's the whole art of cooking."

Static Media owns and operates Mashed and The Takeout.