Recipe philosophy from Jacques Pepin

Well, I’m pretty not-fledgling :slight_smile: but I like recipes. I describe it as “that’s why they pay them the big bucks”! Especially with seasoning. My palate just isn’t that nuanced.

Oh, and that’s perfectly okay to like recipes – I do, too!

But you know when the dough is too wet/dry, or the meat is browning a little too fast, or if the sauce needs just a few more minutes to reduce all the way.

A n00b won’t know that, and won’t then have any idea why the meal didn’t turn out right…and will blame themselves and get discouraged.

A dear friend of mine follows recipes absolutely lock-step — and she over/undercooks things once in a while as a result, because she’s obsessing over the time spent at a simmer and not realizing that it’s overcooked. I love her dearly, but I now know to not cook with her, because she makes me nuts in the kitchen! :slight_smile:

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Ah gotcha! 'Course my faves are the epicurious (which I rarely look at any more) ones where all these people changed dang near everything and then complain that they didn’t like it :slight_smile:

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http://jacquespepinart.com/message-from-jacques-cooking-and-painting-01/

A masterful discourse on creativity, inspiration, talent, and training.

The first or second season of This American Life had a story about how Colonel Sanders appropriated fried chicken from African Americans, and this woman they interviewed could tell when chicken was done based on audio recordings of a chicken in a deep frier! Aroma is for amateurs :-).

Pepin makes good points, but not all cooking is as fussy as the pear recipe he discussed, sometimes to the point where background skills or differing equipment affect a dish, but doesn’t improve its enjoyment. Also, a dish’s success depends on the quality of the recipe, equipment, ingredients, and the cook. I don’t have the cultural/experiential background to know when the aroma/feel is right for some dishes, but a good recipe, patience, and quality ingredients have allowed me to cook better versions of some dishes that chefs who know better.

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My son was making bacon crack tonight (yes this is a thing) and was talking to his gf on the phine while he was waiting for it to bakre.

I waved at him and stage-whispered that the crack was done.

Mom, the timer hasn’t gone off.

But it’s done.

Sigh…Mom, it’s not buzzzzzz

How did you DO that?!

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That’s how I learned from these to ladies to make fried chicken . How do you know when it’s done I asked " You listen for the sizzle to calm down " Shallow fry in ci .