Now we're cooking

Good morning, and happy Tuesday, everyone.

Was thinking not long ago about how common it is for people to start food blogs and post pictures of items that they've whipped up in their own kitchens.  I don't do that, although I'm not above bragging about a really enticing plate of food at a restaurant with a photo and a description for a friend or two!

But I confess here and now that I've always enjoyed playing around in the kitchen, from the time I was a kid--and that was in a house with a gas stove!  This is true....my mom used to let me make my own lunch sometimes, and it was usually a can of pork and beans that I would "doctor up," as she would say, with brown sugar, ketchup and occasionally some meat, usually a cut-up hot dog or some Spam.  

Humble beginnings.

My wife did all of the cooking when we met, but she taught me a few things about grilling and during the warmer months we grilled regularly, first on a traditional charcoal kettle grill and later on a gas grill.  And that sort of set me off on the cooking path.  

A little later, we happened to eat at a Benihana hibachi restaurant in Cincinnati with our kids, and we were all very impressed by what we watched and then ate!  It didn't hurt that we had been to a Reds game earlier in the day and a big play by second baseman Mariano Duncan helped win the game for the home team.  And that night he was there, eating at Benihana!  Signed an autograph for our son!

But I studied the chef and his movements and decided that I could cook like he did on his massive grill, but in a wok.  So I got a wok as a birthday present, and was set loose in the kitchen about once a week.

Our whole family enjoyed our stir-frying experiments, sticking mostly to chicken with broccoli but eventually including steak and even shrimp, even though my wife and daughter don't care much for seafood.

As time progressed I watched some cooking shows, before the arrival of the Food Network, and learned some technique from an Italian chef named Pasquale.  His show was called Pasquale's Kitchen Express and many years later I began to think of him and Googled him, and it turns out that he was a singing chef somewhere in Canada and was discovered for a daily cooking show.  He would sing opera pieces a cappella while he cooked, no mean feat, and I have to say that I learned some things from him.  Namely, how to steam sauté meats to keep them juicy.

I'll add the Frugal Gourmet, Jeff Smith, to the list of early influences, and there were a number of things I learned from him.  But the one that I use to this day is when cooking in a wok (still my favorite vessel for just about anything) he advised this:  hot wok, cold oil, food won't stick.  And he was right!

Then the Food Network was added to our cable lineup and we watched Emeril Live with Massachusetts native and New Orleans chef Emeril Lagasse. He was loud, flamboyant and way over the top.  But I learned more.

Today I do just about all of the cooking in our house, at least when I'm home.  In the past year we added an Instant Pot to our equipment and it's a big help in baking potatoes and sweet potatoes quickly, and we also use it as a slow cooker and an air fryer.  Just last night I grilled pork chops, with sweet potatoes from the Instant Pot and sautéed a small can of green beans in my wok.  It was pretty good.

I also enjoy the challenge of repurposing leftovers.  Turns out one of my wife's favorite dishes started with leftover spaghetti--just the noodles.  I stir fry steak that's been carefully trimmed with onion and green pepper, add teriyaki sauce and then the spaghetti.  For something we tried on a lark, we certainly have it quite often!

That's all I have from headquarters this morning.  Today's my 61st birthday, so I have a lot to do!