3 things I find odd about professional cooking

I do believe that I already established that I work in a restaurant and you can see how my work goes, in my post “10 facts about working in a restaurant”. However, today I’ll talk about “professional” cooking and those who blog recipes. Yes, there are some things that I find absolutely odd.

1) The recipe

I understand that you need to follow a recipe if you want to later present what you’re cooking in a blog post, as an example, but I find following a recipe the oddest thing ever. I mean the measurements, not the ingredients.  It’s so odd to me because I’m used to “go with the gut feeling” when I’m cooking. Every woman I know and who participated in teaching me how to cook never in their life used a scale or a measuring bowl. Even the chef where I work (who’s a female) ALWAYS goes with the gut feeling, while the male part of the staff always religiously follows the recipe.

2) Fancy ingredients no one has

I noticed that many bloggers use fancy ingredients or spice mixes that no one knows what they are. If you do that, why not at least state what the thing is, or how to make/substitute it in case the person doesn’t have it or can’t buy it. With this, I don’t mean any sort of oriental food!

3) Phrases and names

Ever noticed a recipe that had a bunch of words that you couldn’t understand? It’s probably because the author believed it’s a good idea to use ingredients or cooking techniques that only pro cooks know. Like c’mon, just tell it simple and if you’re using a tomato tell it’s a tomato not use the brand name of it. Or do it AFTER you specify that it’s a tomato. Use simple words for simple people. Talk your French with others who’re more educated around the cooking techniques.

Cooking is a self-expression in a sense. Just do it, don’t try to pull fancy stunts that no one cares about. If you’re presenting your recipe, make it so people can actually use it.