It is one of the few fermented foods I eat that someone else makes. I get it at my Farmers’ Market from a woman who calls her business Pachamama. I am guessing she ferments the beats and adds them in her hummus. She also offers fermented garlic, pepper, and black bean. Beet and garlic are our house favorites.
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My kitchen is of a size and layout that make extensive mise largely unnecessary. My spices, sink, and utensils are within arm reach of the stove, and my main cutting surface is right behind me. I keep a salt pig, a pepper grinder, bottles of olive and peanut oil, and a tub of herbes de Provence on the counter by the stove. I pretty much never measure anything.
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I measure for baking and new-to-me recipes. My kitchen is on the small side as well, but I try not to keep too much on the counters if I can help it. If my workspace is clear, I’m more apt to start cooking then if I have to move stuff around.
Spices are grouped by “savory” or “baking” and the essentials (salt, pepper, oil) are front and center in the cabinet. I do keep a utensil crock for the most-used ones by the stove; everything else lives in a drawer next to the stove.
I solved one of my limited storage issues by getting a sturdy bookcase for the dining area and using it to display the “fancy” pots–Le Creuset DO and stoneware, some of my pretty mugs, etc.
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Most people’s presentation game would improve if they simply quit putting too much food on the plate at one time. Serve courses. It’s not hard. It only requires more plates and that’s about it.
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This is actually true.
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I think there are plating and there are plating-plating. Plate presentation always exists. It is just how much we put effort into it. I think many people refer plating as the great effort of plate presentation. The other thing is that the level of plating also goes with the level of the dish.
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Then there are guests who do the same thing - maybe it’s an offshoot of the dreaded all-you-can-eat buffet. I’ve seen it in my own home (note: there was plenty of food for seconds, and thirds, and nths )
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This! It irks me when I serve dishes with different plates on the table and guests end up with their dinner plate piled with veal, risotto, and broccolini, topped with salad, balancing a roll and butter on the other rim. Meanwhile they dig in, using their salad fork for everything. Then when the evening is over dishes and flatware meant to have been used still look pristine. But are they? It is alarming how many people I consider generally well educated know very little about table settings. This included water goblets and wine glasses. I don’t expect them to ask if I know the Bishop of Norwich if they want more Port, but you’d think they’d know not to pour wine where water belongs and start with the outboard utensils and work their way in!
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Some friends are for dinner parties, some are not. It’s not good or bad, it just is.
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Freaks me out when this happens, too. I didn’t grow up on an estate, but basic table settings and what you do with them was just known. It was probably taught in Jr. High Home Ec classes. And certainly once you went out into the world, basic etiquette included how to navigate a dinner table. And what about the dreaded lunch interview?
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Unfortunately, dining etiquette is not part of our education system. My dining etiquette is also limited, so I am not speaking from educated perspective. There are such a wealth of knowledge in term of etiquette. For example, I am recently learning the etiquette in tea (Japanese) as well.
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Cook for the crowd you’ve invited.
A good host worries over the guest list far more than the menu.
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Come to think of it, I am disappointed at the lack or deterioration of just everyday manner, even to walk on the street not to block everyone or not to cut in line of people or even not to block the entire supermarket isle…etc.
Some people act like only they exist and not understand that other people share the same world as them.
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Directing the tempo of a meal is also in the hands of the cook. If you don’t want your guests to fill their plates, just cook one course at a time. Also gives some breathing space while eating and cooking.
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It takes as much talent to stage a wonderful dinner party as it does the evening service in a Michelin starred restaurant. Maybe more.
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You are front of the house, back of the house, and at the table. You must coordinate the selection of the table and invitations. You are everything in the kitchen from chef to dishwasher. You are the buyer. You are the sommelier. You may even be the florist and a bartender. I love it.
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Random thought. I think you have answered me before, but I forgot. Do you live in Singapore? Is this why you have this adorable Merlion as your icon?
I need to work on menus that play to that concept. Suggestions welcome.
Yes. Absolutely.
I am getting to the stage of life that finer things in life is nice. If your son in law is into plating (and not a temporary thing), getting him a nice pair of plate tweezers or tongs will be a great gift.
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