I've decided to turn this dormant blog into my own food blog.
For the past few months, i've been unhealthily obsessive with online recipe reading (on top of my baking OCD). And yes its true, not all online information are trustworthy and therefore, not all online recipes are worth the effort but then the question presents itself:
"Which recipes are dependable for that make-it-or-break-it dinner or cook-out party?"
Before I attempt to answer the above question, there are a few issues to lay on the table:
Firstly, i think we have to give all the fellow cooks* out there the benefit of the doubt - no one posts a crappy recipe in malice. There is , however, the matter of taste, which ,as Emmanuel Kant puts it, cannot be universally correct or simply a matter of subjectivity. Because if taste was only subjective and everyone can say anything is good, there won't be any standard to begin with! With that said, in order to live harmoniously (and to explain why people still eat fast food), we have to give everyone the "right of taste" ie anyone is free to say something is delectable but similarly anyone (else) is perfectly correct when he/she disagrees.
Secondly, Man is selfish. Cooks are humans. Cooks are selfish.
I might be too cynical in saying this, but i do think that cooks will never disclose their complete recipes. That is why we see "Hilton Cheesecake" , "Jean-Georges Lava Cake" and "The Best Tiramisu Ever" recipes floating around in cyberspace. No sensible cook (especially one with 3 michelin stars) will let you know that secret ingredient they infuse into their cooking for that one little star anis or durian zest might be what makes dish A turn into Dish A+++. I further confirmed my suspicion when Katherine refused to disclose that magic herb that made her lemon meringue pies far superior to Bree's best in Desperate Housewives Season 4. But like how Mencius believed in 人性本善, I am always reassured in mankind whenever I see people share their cooking tips with the rest of the world. (like how 1 tbsp of sour cream in any cake batter makes it more moist) But o' cynical me! I am half-obliged to rationalize gracious behavior : Maybe its that confidence in one's skills (or the difficulty of the recipe) that allows a cook to be this magnanimous. I, for one, am most stingy with my recipes. I stand guilty of pettiness. Mostly because I intend to open a cafe/bakery one day. And Hey, i did spend alot of time, money and effort on wrong recipes too! Okay okay, I shall not attempt to justify my selfishness anymore, in fear of seeming hypocritical (since i do leech off the magnanimous cooks). I shall try to learn to share.
Thirdly, Recipes are like driving instruction manuals (and philosophy), what do they tell you? Everything, and essentially nothing. Too many a times I end up with dry smelly cake instead of "Peter's Granny's Old Scrumptious Classic Chocolate Cake of Sin" because of my lack of experience. So I say : read up on theory. What chemical reaction lies behind the glorious madeline hump? Why are eggs, flour and butter found in all recipes? What makes egg whites turn into meringue batter after frantic beating? But food theory is just as airy as recipes. In that sense, cooking is more of an art than a science. Try, fail, learn - Try again. Not only is cooking a mad test of determination, it SEARS your pocket. Fail that tiramisu and find yourself paying hundreds of Chinese dollars for that imported mascarpone again and again and again. But if you're as ultra-obsessive as I am, you can't play safe. I'll recurringly believe in the success of every attempt and buy that saffron for Paella #1, #2, #3...... Nothing undermines my warped sense of kitchen integrity more than being mentally prepared for failure and using less. I'm sure this will be my downfall when I embark on commercial ventures. but until then, let me trudge on in obstinance.
*cook seems more generic and gives more allowance for failures. so i prefer the term to the french "chef" whose cooking process is ooooooh- ahhhhhh-voila when mine's more of the ooo-PHUCK-shit!!!!!-huh?-cheayyyyy.
*************************** So spotting a recipe is not that easy, you need to find one that is generally agreeable to the tastebuds of your guests and yourself (No dignified cook will make something that only everyone else loves!), one that is relatively honest with all the crucial ingredients and after all that, you STILL might not succeed because a recipe, is well only a recipe. Just words and at best, step by step videos. A few ways to reduce the probability of stepping on kitchen landmines : 1) The Potentially Good Recipes : I like my recipes off blogs. You get personal tips and honest confessions. Cook bloggers or Blog-cookers are generally a very unpretentious lot who find failures in the kitchen as noteworthy as successes (althought the latter is very much preferred!). I find those recipes from professional chefs a little bit, well, too professional, presumptious (that you know every french culinary term) and too concise. 2) The Double-checking : Cross-reference 2-4 recipes and compare the different methods and ingredients. Some call for an extra egg yolk or 0-100gm more sugar. These are fine. But sometimes there are fundamental differences like how certain recipes protests against opening the oven door when baking choux puffs while others claim that a small opening would allow steam to be released. Compare, contrast then google on the doubts you have and try to find answers in cooking forums that address more theory-based questions. 3) The Adjustments : After some trial and error, you should be able to tailor recipes to your own desire. Less sugar if its an American classic recipe, add 2 more yolks into any pudding recipe, substituting cream of tartar with lemon juice, adding citrus which is almost good anywhere. 4) The Reincarnation : If you're in a high level (which i am not but always try to dabble), you can try turning a basic recipe into a very personalised one . A few ways to do this , mix and match your favorite recipes (A mousse with B sponge), alter a crucial ingredient or combine several recipes (A says 2 eggs, B says 3 eggs. lets do a 2.5 eggs). 5) Notes notes notes : After every successful attempt, take some time to remember how you did everything and what you added to make it work. Also remember to jot down those little risks you were taking but didn't affect the overall result. These phenomena probably mean that you're lucky or those actions had negligible effect. After every failed attempt, get over your depression of dumping the whole tray of burnt babies and get a grip. What did you do wrong? If you took little risks like adding flour all at once into egg for madeleines, its very likely these were the little devils that killed your recipe. However, if after seriously backtracking , you can very surely say you followed the recipe to a tee, then its time to go through your ingredients - any thing smelly or spoilt? if there are STILL no apparent tell tale signs, then its time to suspect the RECIPE itself! This is when you're thankful for comments/feedback columns. The more people who try the recipe means : 1) People try and like this recipe 2) You have a reservoir of experience to tap from. So this comes into consideration too when you first decide which recipe to use!
Thats all for now!
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