Two years ago, if you had asked me what my best dishes were, I would have said they were my pan-seared scallops in lobster sauce, my apricot-ginger glazed duckling, and my chateaubriand.
But though I do believe that I excel at those dishes, that would have been the wrong answer.
Fois Gras terrine, salmon mousseline, halibut cheeks en pappilote....fancy stuff that has it's place, but that only a small percentage of the world's population even has the skills to attempt let alone be good at.
I have come to the conclusion that the true test of one's culinary skill lies not in the ability to make something that hardly anyone else can make, but to make something that EVERYBODY can make and to make it better than anyone else can make it.
Ask me that same question now and my answers are: lasagna, pozole, chicken & dumplings. Simple stuff. Peasant food. Anyone can do it and almost everyone is familiar with it and likes it. But one things (among many) that this job has taught me is that I take far more pleasure out of hearing someone say "this is the best damn lasagna I've ever had! It's better than my grandmothers!" than I do out of being praised for something that can generally only be found in high-end restaurants for $30 a plate.
Now, that's not meant to discourage people from taking chances in the kitchen and learning new and fancy things, but I would exhort you not to do so at the expense of figuring out how to make that meatloaf or homemade mac 'n' cheese goddamn perfect. And in the end, refining your techniques and learning about the flavor profiles of such simple fare will aid you greatly when you do decide to move on to trickier and more exacting dishes.
That is extremely encouraging, and now I want mac and cheese. :argh!:
I wanted to say this is most motivating, but Coyote said the correct word, encouraging :) While I love trying out new stuff, like sous-vide, it's cool because it's weird and sciencey, most of the time I'm cooking more mundane things, and I also love figuring out how to get those just right. Knowing a bit about the science behind it helps though, but everybody needs some framework.
On a somewhat related note on that topic. The past couple of times I made stock, I tried your method of cutting the onions in half, unpeeled, and cooking them for a while until the undersides turn brown. First of, I noticed that if you cut them the "wrong" way, that is in half between the roots and tip, not through them like you'd normally do if you'd plan on dicing them, it's much easier to get the peel of a hot onion afterwards. But most importantly, I'm not going to do it next time. Or maybe just with one or two onions and the rest just plain. Maybe I got different onions than you, but even though the flavours are really excellent, for some reason it makes the onions really really sweet. So sweet, that it makes the stock kind of too sweet. Especially when I later made red beet soup out of it, and added another couple of onions (prepared the same way) to the mix. People liked it, but I know it was too sweet. I didn't even eat the leftover (it was just one bowl).
I couldn't agree more with the OP.
A couple of nights ago I came up with the following, I am sure it has been done before, but here and now I made it up.
Skinless chicken breast.
1/2 to 1 cup crushed almonds
tarragon
thyme
rosemary
mint
garlic salt
onion powder
Tenderize chicken and marinate it in rum for 30 minutes.
Make milk and egg wash
add generous portion of tarragon, 2 or 3 pinches of rosemary and thyme and 1 pinch of mint to wash.
add almonds, garlic salt and onion powder to flour.
wash and bread
brown breading then reduce heat to low and simmer lidded until done.
Damn, it was good.
ETA: fry in first cold press olive oil.
LOL, I took the almonds out of my wifes can of deluxe nuts, put then in a glad freezer bag and beat the piss out of them with the back side of a hatchet.
I am in fact banned from the kitchen after the last fire. :sad:
If the women leave, I'll die.
Quote from: The Good Reverend Roger on February 11, 2012, 12:26:09 AM
I am in fact banned from the kitchen after the last fire. :sad:
If the women leave, I'll die.
I love to cook. The only thing about this RV park that bothers me, other than the neighbors, is the fact that there is no grill outside and we forgot to buy one.
Quote from: Charley Brown on February 11, 2012, 12:28:12 AM
Quote from: The Good Reverend Roger on February 11, 2012, 12:26:09 AM
I am in fact banned from the kitchen after the last fire. :sad:
If the women leave, I'll die.
I love to cook. The only thing about this RV park that bothers me, other than the neighbors, is the fact that there is no grill outside and we forgot to buy one.
I like trying to cook, but the directions are very vague, and bad things happen. I don't fucking understand it. I can do anything else I set my mind to, but when I touch food requiring heat, all kinds of bad shit happens. I have precisely zero (0) talent in this area, and I am insanely jealous of people like ECH and Freeky, who just throw shit at the pot and make pure taste bud sexiness.
Get a part time job in a restaurant, that'll learn you some basics.
Quote from: Charley Brown on February 11, 2012, 12:31:55 AM
Get a part time job in a restaurant, that'll learn you some basics.
I'll need to clone myself first.
As for ECH's OP, the point that interested me is that a Chef can get away with murder if it's shit nobody's ever tasted before, because they have no standard by which to judge it...But EVERYONE has had lasagna, which means you better know your shit if you want to impress them.
I agree, simple food, well prepared and presented, is an art in itself.
Quote from: The Good Reverend Roger on February 11, 2012, 12:30:08 AM
Quote from: Charley Brown on February 11, 2012, 12:28:12 AM
Quote from: The Good Reverend Roger on February 11, 2012, 12:26:09 AM
I am in fact banned from the kitchen after the last fire. :sad:
If the women leave, I'll die.
I love to cook. The only thing about this RV park that bothers me, other than the neighbors, is the fact that there is no grill outside and we forgot to buy one.
I like trying to cook, but the directions are very vague, and bad things happen. I don't fucking understand it. I can do anything else I set my mind to, but when I touch food requiring heat, all kinds of bad shit happens. I have precisely zero (0) talent in this area, and I am insanely jealous of people like ECH and Freeky, who just throw shit at the pot and make pure taste bud sexiness.
I struggle with it, myself, but I'm learning.
Quote from: Fuck You One-Eye on February 10, 2012, 11:20:47 PM
Two years ago, if you had asked me what my best dishes were, I would have said they were my pan-seared scallops in lobster sauce, my apricot-ginger glazed duckling, and my chateaubriand.
But though I do believe that I excel at those dishes, that would have been the wrong answer.
Fois Gras terrine, salmon mousseline, halibut cheeks en pappilote....fancy stuff that has it's place, but that only a small percentage of the world's population even has the skills to attempt let alone be good at.
I have come to the conclusion that the true test of one's culinary skill lies not in the ability to make something that hardly anyone else can make, but to make something that EVERYBODY can make and to make it better than anyone else can make it.
Ask me that same question now and my answers are: lasagna, pozole, chicken & dumplings. Simple stuff. Peasant food. Anyone can do it and almost everyone is familiar with it and likes it. But one things (among many) that this job has taught me is that I take far more pleasure out of hearing someone say "this is the best damn lasagna I've ever had! It's better than my grandmothers!" than I do out of being praised for something that can generally only be found in high-end restaurants for $30 a plate.
Now, that's not meant to discourage people from taking chances in the kitchen and learning new and fancy things, but I would exhort you not to do so at the expense of figuring out how to make that meatloaf or homemade mac 'n' cheese goddamn perfect. And in the end, refining your techniques and learning about the flavor profiles of such simple fare will aid you greatly when you do decide to move on to trickier and more exacting dishes.
YES YES YES, A THOUSAND TIMES YES!
Quote from: The Good Reverend Roger on February 11, 2012, 12:26:09 AM
I am in fact banned from the kitchen after the last fire. :sad:
If the women leave, I'll die.
:lulz: You're on a roll tonight.
Please tell me more about this Halibut en Papillote...
LMNO
-wife gets bored.
Nope. but I'll tell you about Pozole all damn day if you want.
Quote from: Fuck You One-Eye on February 11, 2012, 05:22:14 AM
Nope. but I'll tell you about Pozole all damn day if you want.
It's one of my favorite things and I will eat it until I burst if I can. The version I make is Mexican red posole. I've considered trying green posole but the red is just SO GOOD.
I didn't even know there WAS green pozole. Gonna have to investigate/experiment.
I love that the original pre-conquest pozole recipe calls for chopped human.
I like to serve mine with a "mexican slaw" made of thinly shredded green cabbage soaked in a solution of white vinegar, ground cumin, and a couple packets of con culantro y achiote sazon goya, which in addition to its flavor lends a nice brilliant orange color to the cabbage. The briny crunchiness of the slaw provides a nice counterbalance to the rich meatiness of the pozole, and a pinch on the top of the bowl along with a couple slices of avocado and a dollop of sour cream makes for a wildly colorful presentation that also looks like the mexican flag.
I've never heard of Pozole. ... apparently it's a kind of soup. If it's that good, I'll have to investigate. I bet there'll be some special and absolutely required ingredients that I'll have to hunt down, but okay :)
Quote from: Fuck You One-Eye on February 11, 2012, 10:47:33 AM
I like to serve mine with a "mexican slaw" made of thinly shredded green cabbage soaked in a solution of white vinegar, ground cumin, and a couple packets of con culantro y achiote sazon goya, which in addition to its flavor lends a nice brilliant orange color to the cabbage. The briny crunchiness of the slaw provides a nice counterbalance to the rich meatiness of the pozole, and a pinch on the top of the bowl along with a couple slices of avocado and a dollop of sour cream makes for a wildly colorful presentation that also looks like the mexican flag.
I serve mine with a sideboard consisting of shredded cabbage, chopped radishes, chopped onion (white or green, I prefer green) chopped cilantro, sour cream, and lime wedges. I'll have to check out your way sometime.
The one thing I don't like about making posole is picking the germ off the kernels so they bloom properly. I always end up feeling like my thumbnails are going to fall off.
Quote from: Triple Zero on February 11, 2012, 11:35:34 AM
I've never heard of Pozole. ... apparently it's a kind of soup. If it's that good, I'll have to investigate. I bet there'll be some special and absolutely required ingredients that I'll have to hunt down, but okay :)
Most of the ingredients are pretty widely available, but you might have a hard time finding dried posole corn. If so, you can substitute canned hominy; it's not quite as good but it's pretty close.
Quote from: Nigel on February 11, 2012, 04:20:51 PM
Quote from: Fuck You One-Eye on February 11, 2012, 10:47:33 AM
I like to serve mine with a "mexican slaw" made of thinly shredded green cabbage soaked in a solution of white vinegar, ground cumin, and a couple packets of con culantro y achiote sazon goya, which in addition to its flavor lends a nice brilliant orange color to the cabbage. The briny crunchiness of the slaw provides a nice counterbalance to the rich meatiness of the pozole, and a pinch on the top of the bowl along with a couple slices of avocado and a dollop of sour cream makes for a wildly colorful presentation that also looks like the mexican flag.
I serve mine with a sideboard consisting of shredded cabbage, chopped radishes, chopped onion (white or green, I prefer green) chopped cilantro, sour cream, and lime wedges. I'll have to check out your way sometime.
The one thing I don't like about making posole is picking the germ off the kernels so they bloom properly. I always end up feeling like my thumbnails are going to fall off.
Yeah, when I'm just doing it at home or on the ship I generally leave that stuff on the side (along with cilantro and lime wedges) so people can add or not as they choose, but for a restaurant presentation or something similar where people are expecting a fully presented dish the mexican flag condiment motif is a guaranteed winner.
Quote from: Fuck You One-Eye on February 11, 2012, 06:01:03 PM
Quote from: Nigel on February 11, 2012, 04:20:51 PM
Quote from: Fuck You One-Eye on February 11, 2012, 10:47:33 AM
I like to serve mine with a "mexican slaw" made of thinly shredded green cabbage soaked in a solution of white vinegar, ground cumin, and a couple packets of con culantro y achiote sazon goya, which in addition to its flavor lends a nice brilliant orange color to the cabbage. The briny crunchiness of the slaw provides a nice counterbalance to the rich meatiness of the pozole, and a pinch on the top of the bowl along with a couple slices of avocado and a dollop of sour cream makes for a wildly colorful presentation that also looks like the mexican flag.
I serve mine with a sideboard consisting of shredded cabbage, chopped radishes, chopped onion (white or green, I prefer green) chopped cilantro, sour cream, and lime wedges. I'll have to check out your way sometime.
The one thing I don't like about making posole is picking the germ off the kernels so they bloom properly. I always end up feeling like my thumbnails are going to fall off.
Yeah, when I'm just doing it at home or on the ship I generally leave that stuff on the side (along with cilantro and lime wedges) so people can add or not as they choose, but for a restaurant presentation or something similar where people are expecting a fully presented dish the mexican flag condiment motif is a guaranteed winner.
I could totally see that being a pretty impressive presentation.
Terri is working on putting a cookbook together. She figures if we can cook it and clean up after in a motorhome, then even her kids should be able to cook this food. :)
Quote from: Charley Brown on February 14, 2012, 05:56:53 PM
Terri is working on putting a cookbook together. She figures if we can cook it and clean up after in a motorhome, then even her kids should be able to cook this food. :)
Gonna say to you what I said to Vincent when he said he's doing that: WANT. So let us know when this goes down so I can BUY.
Quote from: Jenne on February 15, 2012, 07:02:15 PM
Quote from: Charley Brown on February 14, 2012, 05:56:53 PM
Terri is working on putting a cookbook together. She figures if we can cook it and clean up after in a motorhome, then even her kids should be able to cook this food. :)
Gonna say to you what I said to Vincent when he said he's doing that: WANT. So let us know when this goes down so I can BUY.
Of course, we have talked about putting it on kindle and nook for $.99.