Analysis of Learning to Cook
The rectangular kitchen was narrow
But had enough space for the six of us
Of course, not at the same time
Large green refrigerator
Small white four burner stove with
A beige hood that sat atop like a hat.
The first thing I learned was
How to make sofrito aka recaito
Fresh cilantro finely chopped
Garlic cloves smashed on a pilon
White round onions and dark green bell peppers
Of course, ajices dulces were included
One yellow, green and red
Sautéed or braised in olive oil
The aroma was potent like holy water
To be anointed
Blessing soups, beans and mixed rice.
I think I was about ten
Short like my mama so that
I stood on a crate
Placed in front of the stove.
The second thing I learned to cook
Was white rice
Big aluminum pan filled
With water
Boiled with a little salt
3-4 cups of Goya white rice
Then, manteca Crisco
A large silver metal spoon
Stirred and stirred.
The many times I tried
The rice was
Dry and hard like cardboard
Soft and mushy like pudding
Gooey and sticky like pancake batter
Salty like bacalao
Yuck!!
Then came the beans
Red, white, pink, black, pinto, garbanzo, gandules
Much better
Especially with the sofrito
At times with potatoes or Calabasas or bolitas de platano.
These are but memories
Of my mom and dad teaching me
To cook the Puerto Rican way.
Scheme | ABXCXD EDXFXGXHCGI XDXX XIXCXIAXX XEXXCHXXBCDF XXX |
---|---|
Poetic Form | Tetractys (24%) |
Metre | 0010010110 1101110111 1111011 110100 1111011 0111101101 011111 1111101 1010101 10111001 1110011110 11110010 110101 11110101 001011011010 11010 1011011 1111011 1111011 11101 101101 01011111 111 1010011 110 110101 111011 101010 0110101 101 010111 011 10111 1010110 100101110 1011 1 1101 1111111 110 010101 11101010101111 111100 11101101 1101101 |
Closest metre | Iambic tetrameter |
Characters | 1,328 |
Words | 257 |
Sentences | 7 |
Stanzas | 6 |
Stanza Lengths | 6, 11, 4, 9, 12, 3 |
Lines Amount | 45 |
Letters per line (avg) | 23 |
Words per line (avg) | 5 |
Letters per stanza (avg) | 171 |
Words per stanza (avg) | 41 |
About this poem
This poem is a memory remembered about learning to cook when I was a child.
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Written on January 08, 2021
Submitted by ACABEO.EMILIA on December 12, 2022
Modified on March 05, 2023
- 1:17 min read
- 4 Views
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"Learning to Cook" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 26 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/146517/learning-to-cook>.
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