Do I smell something burning?

Pinterest myth #423...the instructions are ALWAYS 100% correct. 

Okay, I know...our number one suggestion is to follow the instructions when trying out a pin, but Lyndsey is here to tell us that sometimes the instructions can be way off. 

 "I am a newly wed. My husband and I had been married and in our new home for all of two weeks when I decided to surprise him with a pinterest inspired meal when he got off work. Bear in mind, I am no Paula Dean. I have no hesitation admitting I am not a great cook, but if you give me directions, I can usually pull off whatever recipe it is... Enter Chick-fil-a inspired chicken."

The Original Pin

http://www.domesticfrugalista.com/2011/09/15/recipe-home-made-chic-fil-a/ 

"Things went fine until it was time to fry the chicken. The directions tell you to heat the oil for 20 minutes. Now, most of you would automatically say 'No way!'. I, however, thought, 'Far be it from me, a lowly novice cook, to judge these super women Pinterest people...' and continued to heat my oil on the stove top (on 5) for 15 minutes..."

The Pinstrosity

http://www.clintondailynews.com/photoarchives2.htm

Okay...that's not really Lyndsey's house...but you get the idea. 

She tells us that she ended up with "a grease fire in which the fire department was called, and my husband and I were out of our home for close to a month while is was being cleaned of smoke damage.... Lesson learned, take everything with a grain of salt."

"P.S. no picture of burning skillet, though flames went to the ceiling..."

Lyndsey, I hope you don't mind I was chuckling through your story. I think that most of us have these early cooking stories (or if you're like me...still making these cooking stories). I was at a sleep over and my friend and I got up early to make breakfast for the family and pulled out their pancake recipe and mixed it up...only we didn't know there's a difference between baking soda and baking powder. We didn't end up with a kitchen on fire but those were some pretty weird and nasty pancakes. Or like when I decided to make potpourri as a kid and put some grass which I had pulled form the lawn into the microwave to dry. I was sure I was going to get a great smelling plate of awesomeness and that mom would be so proud of me. That microwave made everything taste very..."organic" for the next few weeks. So, we all have these moments that to some might seem like, "Well, duh!" moments, but really we all do things like this every now and then. I'm glad the house didn't burn and that everything turned out alright in the end. But yes...20 minutes is way too long to heat your oil on high...but you know that now.