Most of what I know about cooking I learned from television. The Frugal Gourmet, The Urban Peasant, Yan Can Cook, are a few of my major influences. All of these, and others, like to sprinkle little helpful hints throughout the program. I was really impresses when Martin Yan explained why he will never cut off his fingers on camera. There is one cutting tip I learned myself. I can't say that it has not been on TV, just that I never saw it there. To put it on a bumper sticker it is :
Hold onto the big end and cut on the little end.
For example, if cutting slices from a peeled potato, once you get past halfway, the potato should be turned around so the part you are cutting is smaller than the part you are holding. This helps to keep it from slipping.
Recipes are to cuisine what paint by numbers is to fine art. Cooking is not an experiment in stochiometry. A real cook will know how much Oregano is appropriate for a dish.
A few years ago I was watching a TV chef, I think it was Justin Wilson but I'm not sure. With each ingredient he put in a little extra to make it taste better. By the time he was done, it wasn't better, there was just more of it.
The Chinese may have the right idea. When you ask for the name of a dish you frequently get a response like "Chicken with brocolli and cashews in shrimp sauce." With that name you can pretty much go home and make it yourself.
At best, a recipe should be considered a starting point. For example I am on a salt restricted diet so I tend to skimp on salt. I do not expect anyone else to like it, but I'm cooking for myself. Sometimes the amount of an ingredient I use is dependant on what and how much I have on hand. If I have some tomatos that are threatening to go bad, I may use all of them in a dish, just to clean out the fridge.
The other day, I ran out of Oregano. I was about to throw away the empty bottle, then I thought "This may be good for something". It was. I pried off the shaker top and refilled it with flour. Now when I am cooking and want to thicken up the sauce a little bit, I just shake some flour from that old Oregano jar. Works like a champ.