Of Cooking - A summary of the last 12 months
I thought I’d do a post more for posterity than anything else. January 2010 saw a determination to learn how to cook. I had recognised that I was unhealthy and really just existing on a very basic diet of meat and westie-veges. I had crap pots and pans and too few of them. I had few utensils. No measuring cups. And I really didn’t know where to start.It was around that time that I found the Jamie Oliver '20-Minute Meals' iPhone App. (an aside: I see that he’s now released a new Recipes app. Must download.)This app not only has recipes, but lists of essential equipment and ingredients. It has videos teaching various skills - chopping, mortar and pestle, tips etc. And it was the push I needed to get started.A little more research and I’ve found BigOven.com (a cooking community site with associated app) and Epicurious.com.Over the year I’ve gotten more adventurous with my cooking and taken some risks. I’ve found cookbooks that make sense to me and I’ve had some great results. I’ve explored Italy, Thailand, Morocco, India, Spain and just starting on France.The best thing about my learning to cook is that a year ago I was insular and but now I have confidence to share with others. It has allowed me to open up and invite people in to my world - something I really hadn’t done for a long time. At the start of 2010 I was cooking for one but eating for four (hey, if it tastes good you may as well eat seconds. And thirds...), but over the course of the year I have learned to freeze leftovers and cook a little leaner (due to joining a gym).So here is a selection of photos of meals I’ve prepared (in no particular order). I have also been learning to match wines with the food and have enjoyed recommendations from a number of people.
Parmesan-encrusted Snapper
Italian Meatballs
Crumbed Chicken with Basil & Parsley infused spaghetti
Parmesan-encrusted Pork
Chicken Carbonara
Chicken Tikka Masala
Crab Risotto with Fennel
Thai Red Duck Curry
Thai deep-fried fish (I did this one to scare my kids! Eyeballs!)
Seafood Marinara
Indian Spicy Roast Chicken (roasted in banana leaves)
Tuna and Salad
Summer Prawn Salad
Christmas Glazed Ham (Gordon Ramsay recipe)
Moroccan Spicy Grilled Chicken
Lamb Rogan Josh
I do hope that in some way my learning of last year inspires others to do the same. It is not actually hard to learn to cook. I was surprised. And it has been so rewarding.I’d love to see what you create as well. And perhaps swap recipes with you.- Simon.