When you are making everything from scratch, cooking becomes a hobby. You can make tacos and buy a salsa from the store and make some good tacos, but when you are making the salsa and thinking that you should add just a bit more of something, you are in hobby territory.
Smoking meats is a hobby. To get dinner ready, you start at 3am and tend the firebox all day. You try different rubs, woods, and techniques to make the product of your craft the best it can be.
Making pizza from scratch is a hobby. You make may make dozens of pizzas to just get the sauce, dough, or crust right.
Following a recipe to make something is not a hobby unless it is just a starting point in something you wish to refine and make your own.
When you are making everything from scratch, cooking becomes a hobby. You can make tacos and buy a salsa from the store and make some good tacos, but when you are making the salsa and thinking that you should add just a bit more of something, you are in hobby territory.
Smoking meats is a hobby. To get dinner ready, you start at 3am and tend the firebox all day. You try different rubs, woods, and techniques to make the product of your craft the best it can be.
Making pizza from scratch is a hobby. You make may make dozens of pizzas to just get the sauce, dough, or crust right.
Following a recipe to make something is not a hobby unless it is just a starting point in something you wish to refine and make your own.
I agree with all but the last part.
Following a recipe can absolutely be a hobby. You can take a lot of enjoyment out of it, and it’s even useful.
I wouldn’t say it’s an art, but it’s definitely a hobby.
You’re always following some form of a recipe unless you’re blindly experimenting