Confessions Of A Cook

I love cooking. I love the smell, the mess, the preparation, I love everything about it. It’s my stress reliever! My father taught me when I was about 7 years old. I stopped for a while in college because I was busy studying and doing other things, more so in doing other things (ahem! Ü). And although I know I can cook a decent meal for anyone, I am not the type who can just whip up something from whatever’s in the kitchen.

And so this is my confession:

I. FOLLOW. RECIPES

I follow precisely at first and then later I develop that recipe into my own. And that’s when the fun begins. I add any ingredient I want and you know, sometimes I fail but when I get lucky, I have one very tasty and unique dish to MY (haha!) credit. And I’m definitely going to share them with you guys one of these days! Oh I’m excited! 

Anyway, along with this confession are some tips on what you can/cannot do in the kitchen. Nothing serious, just little something-something:

Go online – My favorite website is: http://www.delmonte.ph/kitchenomics/recipes. It has always been. I love that they categorize the recipes by Budget Range, Cooking Time, For Whom, and Meal/Recipe Type. It makes scouring easier. Of course they use Del Monte Products which made me discover that their recipe mixes (Quick ‘N Easy) are actually not bad. I use the Sweet ‘n Sour and Curry variant a lot. Anyway, here are the recipes I like from that website:

 

 

Pork Pina Hamonada, Hawaiian Wanton, Lumpiang Shanghai, Chicken Adobo with Pina
*Photos from kitchenomics website*

Be adventurous – While I follow recipes from top to bottom, I like to add touches of my own from time to time. I like my food hot so I add Cayenne pepper most of the time. Actually, scratch that, I add Cayenne Pepper ALL THE TIME! I mean, if I can add it to my rice I would. For meat recipes, I also add a tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce most of the time. Not too much because it’ll overpower the recipe, I love just a hint of it.

BLACK Pepper – I know most cooks will use White Pepper on white-sauce based recipe. I love Black Pepper though. It’s tastier and it smells better. I don’t mind the black spots, they’re like freckles on a smooth skin. I like it.

Soy Sauce and Sugar – If I don’t like the taste of the recipe I follow, those two are my go-to guys. Well, one or the other. I add sugar if I want to make it sweeter and Soy Sauce if I want it saltier. Believe me, nothing could go wrong with these two!

Ginger is only for Fish and Beef – I got this tip from my youngest brother Mac who got it from one of the cooks we hired back then. Well, you know beef with their beefy smell and fish with their fishy smell right? Ginger gets rid of those. On the other hand, pork doesn’t have a porky smell so it’s of no use. 

According to Auguste Gusteau:

“You must be imaginative, strong-hearted. You must try things that may not work, and you must not let anyone define your limits because of where you come from. Your only limit is your soul. What I say is true - anyone can cook... but only the fearless can be great.”
 

 

When it comes to cooking I am not fearless, therefore, I am not great. But I am good and for now, I’d settle for good.

I hope this helps! Have a great day! xx