Why I love to teach and share.
To share my passion and knowledge that I have learnt and gathered over the many years of being a chef is a pleasure beyond belief. To think I can personally inspire anyone to put ingredients together, to create, mix stir, baste, cook, steam, their own culinary taste sensation is well, no, there are no words, just absolute pleasure. Yes it’s my passion, what makes me tick, what excites me. It’s like it flows through my veins. Cooking, creating, learning and understanding the connection between foods, culture, good times, sharing moments and a good old family get together, to me is priceless. I am just so lucky to have a situation where this can be shared in my classes and I LOVE it! From Tapas to Sushi, from Mexican to risotto, from Ice cream to Moroccan, from street food to spices, to name a few, all I have enjoyed so much and can’t wait to create some more, and also relive these.
Learning some basics, can take you on some amazing culinary journeys. In my time I have and continue daily to learn so much. Understanding how the cooking techniques and ingredients come together can be, and is for me, truly magical. Taking that first loaf of bread out from the oven. Slicing the perfectly cooked bistecca steak. Pouring the creamy gloss of a béchamel over your Mornay dish. Shredding the soft, tender, juicy pulled pork that’s be slow braising for the last 4 hours. The crispy crunch of you pastry tart and the knife cuts through. These moments and there are so many are truly rewarding
As I try to explain in my cooking classes, become friends with food, the recipes and cooking techniques. The more you relax and enjoy, the more your individual passion will grow. So teaching, isn’t as much as teaching, it’s trying to ignite the passionate flame that is already there, sharing a few pointers and then just letting it forever burn. Your passion and your creations. A few basic techniques, common sense and more than anything the love that is put into a dish is what will make all the difference.
Then there is the sharing aspect. Not only the eating, the finale of the creations performance but actually sharing your creations stepping stones with friends and family. The pure joy in sharing what you have made for them, sharing the love and time you put in to these dishes. Sharing the knowledge, the recipes and the joy in the making. One of my wonderful moments is when someone who has attended a class shares their dish. A photo, a description any feedback, will make my day. Then there are the smiles, giggles and very excited faces of sharing the art of cooking with the younger generations. So magical.
An experience I have had the pleasure of having in some classes and with my nephew’s two sons. What a joy and amazing stepping stones for them.
As I keep saying, food, it just never stops giving. So come on, join in, start cooking and exploring the foodie world and don’t miss out.
Sharing is what it’s all about. I think this explains my obsession with cook books and cooking magazines. To me this is someone sharing and I just can’t get enough. The junkies hit. So as you can imagine I do though, find it very hard to understand when chef doesn’t wish to share their knowledge, I mean why?? Over precious I call it. I mean that’s how we as chefs keep learning and how culinary trends develop. When chefs do come together in the so called test kitchen of any restaurant the flavorsome sparks that fly are astronomical. True culinary sensations are made. Too much fun for a girl like me.
Years ago I had a young trainee chef working for me in a pub in London that I managed. As always I so enjoyed sharing my knowledge and teaching her all that I could. She often thanked me for all she was learning and for this I was truly grateful, my kinda thing. One day when I ask her once for a recipe that she had, a very delightful sauce and she refused. Anyways cut a long story short, one night, when all were asleep, I made my way down to the kitchen, found the recipe and nicked it. It’s now a sauce I have shared, with pleasure, with many, and shall continue to do so. I refer to it as my stolen sauce. It is also my pleasure to share it now with you. I have no real name for this sauce but it really rocks with all seafood, from oysters, scallops, prawns and fish fillets. Also perfect with chicken, pork and lamb. Stunning over grilled vegetables. You can use it as a base and flavour with peppercorns, blanched and chopped spinach, orange segments, nori, miso and the list goes on. A bloody good all-rounder. Must be served at room temperature, otherwise will set, so best on the day. If you do have some left over, bring to room temp. Then whisk back together, good chance it will of split. If you want a name the closest I can come up with is like a verjuice butter. No verjuice I know but similar flavour, only way I can describe it except for yum. Make, share and enjoy!
Verjuice butter
Ingredients
- 2 eggs
- 100ml white wine vinegar
- 1/8 cup sugar
- 250g butter
Method
In a saucepan melt butter.
In a separate bowl whisked sugar and vinegar together till sugar has dissolved.
Add to the melted butter and allow to cool slightly. If too hot the eggs will scramble.
In separate bowl whisk the eggs together and then whilst whisking add the eggs to the butter and sugar mix. Return to very low heat stirring with a wooden spoon till lightly thickened. If the egg does scramble a little and it easy to do, trust me. Then just strain through a fine strainer. Serve at room temperature, as is or flavour it as I mentioned before.
Sauce infused with seeded mustard and used as dressing for smoked salmon salad and scented with crispy chorizo and miso for seared scallops.
I can’t recommend enough, sign up to a cooking class near you, buy a cook book, maybe of cuisine you know nothing about or subscribe to one of the many amazing cooking magazines out there. Get, reading, learning, cooking and create your masterpieces. Then share the foodie love.
Buon appetito