More Than Just Fuel
Sep. 3rd, 2013 05:14 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
dormant_dragonIt's been many years now since I first started to really care about food; though it must be said, the early signs that I would ever do so were less than promising.
During my childhood, I would only ever order one of two things whenever we ate out - lasagne or, if the restaurant didn't have that on their menu, fish and chips. I didn't have what could be called an adventurous palate. Nor did I feel any great interest or demonstrate any particular talent in school cooking classes. I was quite content to stick to a fairly narrow and "safe" range of dishes and my response to new and unfamiliar foods was generally one of avoidance.
My culinary ineptitude continued through my teens but then in my early twenties, a few things happened to shift my attention towards food and cooking. For one thing, I moved out of catered accommodation, so I had to start learning to find my way competently around a kitchen, work out how to make things taste good and realise that rather than throwing every spice in my pantry into a dish, a more balanced, less enthusiastic approach to seasoning generally yielded better results. This was the second half of the 90s, about the time that cooking shows really came into their own - so it wasn't long before Jamie and Nigella found their way into my video collection (to be joined, down the years, by the Two Fat Ladies, Hugh, the Hairy Bikers and more). And the pivotal experience was being taken out to a couple of gourmet restaurants and finding out just how good food could be - it was then I discovered that in fact, I really love eating.
And that's the key thing - I enjoy cooking primarily because I seriously enjoy the results. I cook the kinds of things that I like eating, and it just so happens, fortunately, that other people like them too. There is something deeply satisfying about seeing other people enjoy food that I've cooked.
Happily, with the growing interest in food and cooking came an increased willingness to experiment with flavours and try things, even things I thought I didn't like, just in case I've been missing something amazing. As a child, I never liked avocado. Later, through the means of guacamole, I realised that actually it's really nice to eat. Other things I have more recently added to the list of foods that I like and will readily use include anchovies, olives and even mushrooms (though I still don't think I could face a barbecued fieldy). I have even consumed a freeze-dried cricket, just to see what it was like; if you're wondering, they taste quite unlike any animal protein I'm familiar with - I can't disagree with one food writer's observation that they have a flavour much like that of dust.
Now I'm taking what feels like the next logical step in my foodie progression - growing food. I dare say my gardening experiments will be the subject of many a post in the weeks, months and hopefully years ahead!
During my childhood, I would only ever order one of two things whenever we ate out - lasagne or, if the restaurant didn't have that on their menu, fish and chips. I didn't have what could be called an adventurous palate. Nor did I feel any great interest or demonstrate any particular talent in school cooking classes. I was quite content to stick to a fairly narrow and "safe" range of dishes and my response to new and unfamiliar foods was generally one of avoidance.
My culinary ineptitude continued through my teens but then in my early twenties, a few things happened to shift my attention towards food and cooking. For one thing, I moved out of catered accommodation, so I had to start learning to find my way competently around a kitchen, work out how to make things taste good and realise that rather than throwing every spice in my pantry into a dish, a more balanced, less enthusiastic approach to seasoning generally yielded better results. This was the second half of the 90s, about the time that cooking shows really came into their own - so it wasn't long before Jamie and Nigella found their way into my video collection (to be joined, down the years, by the Two Fat Ladies, Hugh, the Hairy Bikers and more). And the pivotal experience was being taken out to a couple of gourmet restaurants and finding out just how good food could be - it was then I discovered that in fact, I really love eating.
And that's the key thing - I enjoy cooking primarily because I seriously enjoy the results. I cook the kinds of things that I like eating, and it just so happens, fortunately, that other people like them too. There is something deeply satisfying about seeing other people enjoy food that I've cooked.
Happily, with the growing interest in food and cooking came an increased willingness to experiment with flavours and try things, even things I thought I didn't like, just in case I've been missing something amazing. As a child, I never liked avocado. Later, through the means of guacamole, I realised that actually it's really nice to eat. Other things I have more recently added to the list of foods that I like and will readily use include anchovies, olives and even mushrooms (though I still don't think I could face a barbecued fieldy). I have even consumed a freeze-dried cricket, just to see what it was like; if you're wondering, they taste quite unlike any animal protein I'm familiar with - I can't disagree with one food writer's observation that they have a flavour much like that of dust.
Now I'm taking what feels like the next logical step in my foodie progression - growing food. I dare say my gardening experiments will be the subject of many a post in the weeks, months and hopefully years ahead!
