Sorry if this question is stupid and also that this seems like a lazy q&a thread but I have genuinely been wondering this for a while.

So here’s an example for this question
>canned black beans
>rice packets that come in box
>throw both into microwave
>canned tomatoes
>mix all together
Would you still consider this cooking

>>21408263 (OP)
ehh, at the most basic level, yeah. it's nothing to be proud of but it's a step above ordering doordash.

>>21408263 (OP)
How do you think America was founded? They had tons of canned/salted/preserved food on those ships. Using preserved foods in dishes is still considered cooking if you're using 2 or more ingredients and cooking it yourself.

>>21408283
Canning didn't exist before the Revolutionary War anon...

>>21408263 (OP)
Um yeah, but its never the main ingredient. Its just a something or two that saves time usually rather that making 100% from scratch. The rest is all fresh though. If I use them its usually like a 70-30% fresh/canned or frozen ratio. Works out good. People that live on canned shit get all kinds of problems because it literally doesnt have the nutrients you need in it and high in sodium, but its fine to use it to add to things and as long as you arent eating it everyday.

>>21408263 (OP)
You know, it's pure autistic semantics, but if I were throwing it together I'd say I'm "making dinner" instead of "cooking dinner." But that's just me, I can see an argument for it being technically cooking.

if it was good enough for WW2 moms and housewives that are now everyone's dead grandmas it's good enough for me