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| Thing I made |
I've always cooked for myself since I moved to my flat. Bought a non-stick fry pan, a sauce pan, then, came Christmas Season of that year, asked my Office Secret Santa for a rice cooker. Pretty much every home-made meal were made with those plus an induction cooktop and toaster oven, which I took from our old house.
Anyone who knows me knows that I take my time at the table. A friend once remarked that in our group I eat the slowest but consume the most.
For more than three years, however, cooking has turned into another chore. But something's changed this year. Maybe it's discovering Judy Ann's Kitchen, seeing someone who makes a lot of mistakes in front of the stove — and who speaks my language; maybe it's finally getting to that one Gordon Ramsay dish, which ingredients are ridiculously easy to find and is unbelievably easy to do that you have no excuse not to try it; maybe it's having to replace your silicone turner after manhandling it and then figuring might as well get rid of your knackered cheap pan.
So I bought a new turner, skimmer, and fry pan — all stainless steel. And for some reason I'm inspired. For the first time since I started cooking, I actively search for recipes. And experiment.
They say the more you do something, the more you become confident. When it comes to playing the piano and learning a language, you get a high from understanding patterns and how they combine to make a meaningful whole. Like what goes on in a sentence structure or a musical phrase.
When it comes to cooking, the pleasure comes in knowing that you've made small good decisions along the way. Like when to put the protein at what temperature, which seasoning goes better with what, lid on or lid off.
This week I'm very happy because I made the perfect egg, sunny-side up. This is only the beginning.
