Do you enjoy cooking?

get very far with

In university, I never got very far with cooking.

When you 'get far with' something it means you succeed at it. However, we usually only use the phrase to talk about failure, or not getting far with something. Notice the following:

1. I never got very far with that software. It was too hard.
2. You will never get far in life if you do not have friends. (for 'life' use 'in')

record

My record is one month of not doing dishes.

When you talk about a personal 'record' you talk about the best or most you have ever done something or 'recorded' yourself doing. Here are some samples:

1. My record for saving money is 300 dollars in one month.
2. My record for not showering is one week. My friends hated me.

try new things out

I like trying new things out.

To 'try new things out' means you are experimenting. If you just 'try' something, you might do so without thinking much about it, but when you 'try something out', that means you are more aware of the results for future reference. Notice the following:

1. You should try out that new restaurant. It is really good.
2. We tried the recipe out, but it did not taste good.

ethnic foods

We cook ethnic foods from Africa.

When something is 'ethnic' it means it comes from a small subgroup of people that have a local, but unique culture. When something is ethnic, that means it is traditional or natural for that group of people. Notice the following:

1. She cooked ethnic foods from her home country.
2. The ethnic dress of that culture is very colorful.

in the slightest

I do not enjoy cooking in the slightest.

The phrase 'in the slightest' means 'not at all' or 'at all'. It shows that the speaker does not have positive feelings about something. Notice the following:

1. I am not interested in going in the slightest.
2. I do not like horror movies in the slightest.