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I‘ve said it before, and I’ll say it forevermore: it’s EASY to become a great cook nowadays. In stark contrast to just a few generations ago, today most of us can cruise out our doors and find quality raw ingredients, we have access to the world’s great cuisines just by visiting some ethnic markets, and we can order just about anything on earth with the click of a button and a credit card. The earth continues to radically shrink, and home cooks continue to be the beneficiaries of it.
The flip side: it’s also easier than ever to buy packaged crap and frozen just-heat-up crap, to get take-out crap, and to eat crappy meals in restaurants. It’s almost as if the “work” of feeding ourselves has been outsourced to those that can do it the cheapest and who can make it the most convenient.
What’s missing in all this convenience, however, is the concept of “taking ownership” of what you put into your body. Huge food processing companies have figured out ever-more profitable ways of manipulating a few basic –and heavily subsidized — staples like corn, wheat, and soy, tarting them up in increasingly bizarre ways with increasingly bizarre ingredients no one can pronounce, let alone understand, adding way too much salt and fat, and packaging it all in consumer-friendly designs, colors, and materials to entice us to just outsource the whole business of eating to them.
This is nuts on so many levels one doesn’t know where to begin, other than the beginning: feed yourself! It’s easy if you follow these three superbasic guidelines:
1) It’s not about the gear! Some of the most inventive, knowledgeable cooks I know have the crappiest kitchens. Good cooks can make a lot happen with very little (check out Mark Bittman’s bad kitchen). That said, quality stuff is, of course, nice, and will last longer than crappy gear. But don’t rush out and buy a set of something. Avoid sets like the plague. Just buy what you need, and nothing more. Cast iron is my favorite, and it happens to be the cheapest. See also this post on cooking well in a minimally equipped kitchen.
2) Use good salt, and pepper, wisely. Undersalting, and using crappy salt (that is to say, iodized table salt) are major obstacles to good cooking. Get yourself some kosher salt, some good sea salt, and some good whole black peppercorns; “good” doesn’t necessarily mean expensive. And for the breakaway leap into salts as culinary nirvana, begin to adapt flavored salts into your cooking. For lots of juicy details, check out my essay, “On the Massive Importance of Salt.”
3) Be fearless. Don’t be afraid of making mistakes! A good friend recently told me, “the best cooks are those that make the most mistakes.” It’s true — there’s no better way to learn. It’s also the best way to get to know your own palate. By varying and playing with levels of salt, sweet, herbaceousness, acid/tart, and umami, you begin to learn what lights up YOUR taste buds. No one else’s matters! Play and learn. You get to practice three times a day for the rest of your life — you WILL get this right. And the quicker you make your mistakes, the tastier and healthier your food will be for the rest of your life. Start simple, and start now. Today.
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Scott Ashkenaz and Eric Gower, lisa church. lisa church said: The Beginner;s Checklist To Becoming An Outrageously Good Cook – http://shar.es/aS8fS [...]
I totally agree with your philosophy. Thanks for the additional guidelines. I started buying some quality sea salt to enhance the food instead of using way too many condiments to flavor it.
I love this post and I just bought your book on VOOK…can't wait to get into it…tonite with a cup of coffee and a homemade scone…yahoo
"It’s almost as if the “work” of feeding ourselves has been outsourced…" Not "as if" Eric, IT HAS! It seems so obvious it's hard to understand but the entire act of eating has indeed been outsourced.
What I love the most about breakaway cooking is that it's really about regaining control fr yourself. Being aware of what you eat simply through cooking. Breakaway is so real, so honest, it's subversive.
Now, how do we wake up people who are spellbound by convenience?
nice advice!!! i just got given some nice salt from Saga…. little bag was 500 yen…. she said it's good on tempura and stuff…. long long ago, i tried cooking with less salt, to be "healthy" and man oh man was all that food BAD…… later i just started salting stuff normally and what a huge improvement!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Don't forget whole white peppecorns; they provide an entirely different peppery flavour and I regard them as an essential as much as the black variety.
I think it is important to mention that reports about people consuming too much salt is not necessarily so. After having a nutritional analysis done my doctor told me I was 'salt deficient'. And I was not even trying to reduce my salt intake. Mom always told me "you need salt"!
Yeah, I'm convinced the whole "reduce your salt intake!" movement actually refers to people who eat little but processed foods, which DO contain assloads of salt. But if you cook for yourself, you absolutely need to salt your food, and you'll STILL be using way less salt than the processed food people. Reason number five billion to cook for yourself!
I am making a basket for my sister in law to be.. for her wedding shower and I am going to make a beginners cooking basket. I will definitely add some kosher salt, sea salt and peppercorns for her to use. She’s a beginner for sure, so I’m looking for a great starter’s cookbook!
-Kenzie
Deep Fryers
Cooking never liked me. But I'm willing to make it work for my family's health. These tips sounds really great!
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