Teach Dave to Cook is a new video miniseries from Washington Post Video and Voraciously, featuring Mary Beth Albright, The Post’s host and editor of Food Video, and her friend Dave Jorgenson (who also happens to work at The Post as a video producer, editor and writer for “The Department of Satire”). Dave wants to learn how to cook, but he doesn’t know where to start. Mary Beth is here to help, with handy tips, sage advice and just the jolt of confidence Dave needs.

Mary Beth: Two words: two meats. If you’re feeding other people, consider your audience. It’s Dave. Read the room.

[Teach Dave to Cook Episode 3: Homemade croutons are always a good idea]

For most of my life, my last name was Zupa (“zuppa” is Italian for soup). So I love the double-sauce chicken scarpariello we make in this episode. Hot, tangy, sweet, spicy — it’s got everything.

Dave: Unlike Mary Beth, my last name is not soup-based. It basically means, “Son of George.” But my mom’s maiden name is Cook, so I guess that means I should be able to cook chicken scarpariello.

There’s more to me than meat, but frankly those other parts aren’t as important. Mary Beth was exactly right and chicken scarpariello is a dish I am excited to make for friends and family. My girlfriend is also happy because I think she was getting tired of steak.

MB: Note to self for Secret Santa 2019: buy Dave a shirt with the first sentence of the previous paragraph printed on it. His girlfriend will love when he wears it, along with socks that say “Pretty Okay Boyfriend.”

D: This episode’s top takeaways:

If I say enough weird things to Mary Beth, I’ll get a full outfit for free.

A lot of cooking is practice. Like cutting sausage. I am not good at that (yet).

Many meals, like chicken scarpariello, can be calmly prepared hours before guests even arrive for dinner.

Italian shoemakers had some good ideas.

Watch the full series: Episode 1 | Episode 2 | Episode 3 | Episode 4 | Episode 5

More from Voraciously:

Rachael Ray’s ‘30 Minute Meals’ changed how we cook. Now she’s back to teach a new generation.

Roasting a chicken is as easy as putting a baking sheet in the oven

Food Hacks: Citrus-Grilled Salmon | Grilled Green Salsa