SC - Cooking by "hand"

[Decker, Terry D.]

"James F. Johnson" wrote:
> 
> Years later, trying to train dishwashers and busboys to be prep cooks,
> it occured to me to advise them that one cooks _food,_ not the recipe.
> They would get fixated on following the recipe to the letter, even if
> the food was too wet, or dry, or not emulsifying, or too much or little
> seasoned. Quality of the ingredients varies from time of year and
> geographics. So varies the weather and climate. The printed recipe and
> exact measures don't vary in response.

Well, sometimes they do, or could, but then once you've written a recipe
for publication, accounting for all the variables, some helpful editor
reminds you of space considerations and asks if you _really_ need those
comments on altitude and humidity ;  ) .

As for the unfortunate recipe-bound, it simply means they usually have
no intuitive essential understanding of the food the recipe is
describing. That's all right if you have a good recipe. I once made a
pan of lasagne at a friend's home, and had the pan about three-quarters
full, with enough pasta, fillings, and sauce to add a fourth layer. I
was about to do this when my friend came over and asked what I was
doing. She said lasagne has three layers, not four. I told her that was
ridiculous, and that you made as many layers as pan depth and
ingredients would allow. When you ran out of one or the other you were
done, with the option of making another small pan if you had enough
ingredients to do that. She replied something like, "That's not the way
we do things in _this_ house!" It turns out her mother had always made
three layers because she followed a particular recipe in a particular book.
 
Adamantius
- -- 
Phil & Susan Troy

troy at asan.com
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