Dolly Parton explains why she learned to cook while growing up

Dolly Parton has recently revealed she was never fond of cooking but learnt to cook “out of necessity”.

Speaking to PEOPLE, Dolly and her sister Rachel Parton George reflected on their home kitchen while they were growing up.

“It’s always bread that takes me back to our childhood home… Cornbread,” shared Dolly.

The musician stated, “I still love the smell of bread cooking whether it just be some loaf bread that Rachel's doing or some cornbread. I just think nothing says [home] more than just the smell of bread.”

While talking about cooking gravy, Rachel mentioned, “We always thought that my father’s gravy was so much better than Mama's because it was left-handed gravy,”

“And it was,” replied Dolly.

The country musician opened up that she “learned to cook out of necessity”.

“We'd have to climb up on the chairs to peel potatoes, turnips or whatever. We were really helping out when Mama was not well, or in bed with a kid or having a new baby or whatever,” remarked Dolly.

The musician mentioned, “So my first [lesson] came out of just really being a necessity of us helping mom as the older girls.”

Dolly pointed out that with “12 kids and 14 mouths to feed, meal time took skill, coordination, and negotiation”.

Rachel chimed in and added, “Everybody knew to be there at the right time. We wanted to be together.”

Meanwhile, Dolly and her sister have now published a new cookbook, Good Lookin' Cookin': A Year of Meals - A Lifetime of Family, Friends, and Food. It will hit bookstores on September 17.