In order to gain a cooking skill you must first finish the cooking tutorial
successfully. You must keep the pots cooking without allowing them to boil 
over. To do this, touch a pot to select it then shake the iPhone to keep the
heat down and stir the pot. Do this enough times in the allotted amount of 
time and you will earn one point. 
In order to cook in general, you must first purchase a recipe from the local 
"Corsican Bistro" located by the beach. Once you have done this, go to the 
grocery store "Quickmart" to purchase your ingredients. You can also grow 
them in your garden if you have already upgraded your house, which saves 
time and money.