final week

This month I planned to make a cookbook, develop my technical cooking skills and knowledge of flavor, and explore different culture’s foods. I am currently in the progress of assembling my cookbook, but once I finish that I will have successfully accomplished my goals.
The first reason I chose this project was that I wanted to establish some cooking skills before I head off to college. Once I got into it though, the project became more about challenging myself and replicating the amazing flavor profiles I love so much. I made all sorts of food: chicken tikka masala, squid stir fry, gnocchi, baklava, and many others. I liked it so much I will definitely continue my senior project once or twice a week through the summer.
I learned a lot of basic cooking techniques like how to properly dice an onion. I think the most valuable skill I got was the confidence and basic understanding of cooking I achieved from daily practice. Cooking is definitely a skill that you develop by doing over and over again.
I would recommend watching videos over just reading recipes. When you watch videos you learn the technique a lot better and you can watch masters do their thing. I would also recommend doing a decent amount of research for each meal so that you can find a chef that you trust. I was most successful when I watched chefs that were Thai cooking pad thai for example. That way they not only have an intimate understanding of food but their culture as well.



 

Comments

  1. Sue P.June 14, 2021 at 10:29 AM

    Congratulations, Lizzy, on building your cooking confidence over the past month. It's been an eventful time for you athletically and personally, but you remained focused, and took on some ambitious recipes right from the start. I hope that your cookbook, and the experience you've gained in reading recipes, choosing ingredients, making substitutions, and adapting recipes will serve you and your new friends well in college this fall. You've done some great work, Lizzy.

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