I think there's possibly an issue of needing instructions that are implicit rather than explicit in some recipes. Like a recipe might say "mince the garlic" and there are actually so many sub-steps in that--if you don't know how to separate a couple cloves from the bulb, set them on a cutting board that you use for aromatics bc you will never get fully rid of the smell, take a wide blade and hold it flat on top of the garlic, smack the flat of the blade firmly with the heel of your palm to smash the cloves open, then peel the skins off the cloves which should be easy ish now that they're busted open, then use the blade to chop the slightly flatted cloves, then change angle and chop them again, and keep doing that until the pieces of garlic are all teensie--then you're gonna struggle to just read and follow the directions.
And that's three words in a recipe--"mince the garlic"-- unpacked into the instructions someone might never have read.
Yes, these are closeable gaps, but someone might not even know where to begin, and I wouldn't blame them for being overwhelmed if they have to separately research and unpack every other sentence in a recipe.
And then there's the factor of tools--crappy, mid, quality, and just plain specialized cooking implements will have radically different effects. If you're new to this shit, you're not gonna know what to invest in vs what doesn't matter, or if your tools are shitty, or wrongly specialized, and are likely to blame yourself for tool issues.
And THEN there's the possible factor of being straight-up clumsy. If you have fine motor control issues, handling knives and fire is frightening for good reason. You have to find recipes modified specifically for you. (If that's you reading this btw, go ahead and look up "disability-friendly cooking," "knife-free cooking," or whatever aspect you struggle with. I promise you, whatever it is, others have gone before you.)
I love cooking, a lot of it is instinctual to me, it's genuinely a favorite hobby and I have honed my skills to the point that I would call myself a really fucking good cook, who can handle both low-energy "5 mins turns a ramen packet into a real banger" meals and "high complexity multi-hour prep" meals, and the range in between. This is to say that I am PRO-COOKING and PRO-LEARNING and I think it's very worthwhile, worth looking up "beginner recipe" and taking 101 cooking classes etc., but please let's not act like the learning curve isn't VERY STEEP, if you're starting from zero.
Anyway consider getting the book Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat. It explains a lot about how cooking works and will expand your comprehension whether you're a raw beginner or a seasoned chef.
