I read recipes the same way I read science fiction. I get to the end and I think, “Well, that’s not going to happen.”

This is a modern, anonymous humor line that circulates widely in quotation collections and on social media, typically attributed simply to “Anonymous.” It plays on the everyday experience of reading aspirational cooking recipes—often requiring time, equipment, or discipline the reader doesn’t expect to follow through on—and compares that feeling to the suspension of disbelief in science fiction. Because it lacks a stable attribution to a named writer, comedian, or publication, it is best treated as a piece of contemporary folk humor rather than a traceable literary quotation with a single originating occasion.

The joke hinges on an incongruity: recipes are practical instructions, while science fiction is imagined speculation. By claiming to read both the same way, the speaker confesses a gap between intention and action—enjoying the fantasy of self-improvement (home-cooked meals, culinary ambition) without believing it will materialize. The line gently satirizes modern optimism marketed through lifestyle media: the recipe promises transformation, but the reader anticipates real-life constraints will intervene. Its humor is self-deprecating, turning procrastination or low follow-through into a relatable, non-moralizing punchline.