Cheating in the Kitchen

[897tgigvib]

...and me!

 

[majorcatfish]

Heres a story you all might like
Since I was a little one have always enjoyed cooking, early 70s was cooking for the family mom taught me well. couple years later I wanted my own phone, dad told me son if you want a phone you need to get a job.
ok was 15 at the time back then you could have a motorcycle license before getting one for a car, so applied for a dishwasher job at Clementines , got the job and kept up my scores up at school, got the phone..big dog on campus. So thats how I got back and forth to school and work
After 2 two years slowly moved up from dishwasher to prep cook to asst cook to head cook in my junior year. Mr. Lieberman was a wonderful person and took the time to teach me.
had all my points so to kill time took home economics <cooking class> Mrs. Heinz was showing how to make a soup, and I ask what if you add this and that, could see that she was ruffled about my question and asked if I would like to do the class<she had no idea what I did in the evening> so I said yes.

The following week made presentation in detail on making a 3 course dinner.

Starter was a Caesar salad with the dressing made from scratch
Main course was shrimp scampi over a bed of chicken and saffron rice
For dessert was a apple crisp with vanilla ice cream

Mrs. Heinz was impressed as well as the whole class. Cynthia bladwin said you know thats what we get down at Clementines, finally fessed up that I what the head cook there. Well of course got a A+ and for course my senior year as well<teacher aide>
.
Too move along a few years<20 years> had the privilege to be trained under some of what I think of the best chefs in the area, was trained in Swiss, German and Italian old school cuisine cooking. Finally have to say but I got burned out on cooking. Became a otr truck driver for a couple year, now the director of maintenance of a tire retread plant, but still to this date I love to cook not professional but at home.

But after 12 years of doing maintenance, lately keep hearing in the back of my mind go back to cooking. You know in the long run its just not worth it, the children coming out of community collage culinary classes, being paper trained have a better chance then myself to get a job, would rather spend all day cooking for my friends and family and have a smile on their face is payment than go back to a 15 hour day.

So yes there is always time to cheat in the kitchen, if you do it right. But there are times you do not want to change it.

By the way you remember ms. Baldwin? We have been married since 1985

and yes there are day's we go comfort food and then there are days stay out of my kitchen ....

 

[Marshallsgirl]

Beginner cooks.... Thanks Marshall for the support. You wait when I start cooking and you'll be the first person to taste all my recipes.

Watch out!

But I am good at some things..

 

[Mickey328]

What a great story! Kudos to you and Ms B

 

[digitS']

Lovely story, Major.

Major is talking oranges & apples, however .

Someone with culinary skill learned well and young, and employed joyously.

Someone who struggles with gastronomic villainy - me .

Steve

 

[bills]

Can someone tell me, how long do you pressure can your stock. My freezer is acting up and I think I'd rather can mine than freeze it and risk losing it all.

Canning it would be a great way to preserve it!
Here is some info on doing soups and stocks, that you will find helpful.

http://www.gopresto.com/recipes/canning/soups.php

One of the simple ways I create a stock, is to pre-boil my pork ribs in a pot of water, before BBQ'ing them, or roasting them in the oven with a sauce. I add some bay leaves, salt, pepper, an onion or two, and simmer the ribs for about 1-2 hours. After, I remove the ribs, and bay leaves, (I use the onions for the ribs), I cool the stock overnight. In the morning, all the fat has risen and formed at the top of the stock, which makes it easy to skim it off.
The stock makes a terrific soup base, but just as often I will use it as a replacement for water when cooking rice, perogies, pasta, and even spuds. Just adds a little zip to them.

 

[bj taylor]

really wonderful messages. it makes me start thinking more about the veggie scraps i've been feeding to the compost pile. i've quit buying the stock at the grocery store because it's too expensive. consequently, i've been going largely stock free in my cooking.
this thread has re-awakened my desire to have stock on hand. i was reading on one of these posts about canning chicken & canning the stock. i have never canned, but - by george, i'm going to learn. then i will have all those lovely jars lined up on the shelf just waiting for whatever concoction i'm thinking of.
i think so much of being a good cook is just not being lazy. it's taking the time to preserve things so they are available for the table.

 

[MontyJ]

One of the simple ways I create a stock, is to pre-boil my pork ribs in a pot of water, before BBQ'ing them,

Oh, say it isn't so...

 

[seedcrazy]

Well when I go to clean vegetables, wash them all up, then those tops you cut off and ends of like onions (even the skins cause they add a nice color to your broth), celery, carrots, turnips, etc. toss them in a big freezer bag. Once your bag is full roast them in the oven with your bones til they have a little color (and did you all know if you put a little vinegar in your stock pot with the bones it pulls more vitamins and minerals out of those bones)? That is what I have been told at least. Those scraps (along with a few handfuls of herbs - even herb stems), really do make a nice flavored broth and well yeah, the prune, I put 4-6 prunes in my big stock pot. Then I strain it all and let chill overnight to get any fat off (of course vege broth you don't have to do that). LOL

 

[seedcrazy]

And you can also just let it all simmer in a crockpot all day long too.