You know, for someone who works in a top-rated restaurant, I don’t eat very…adventurously. Basically every morning is porridge. Sometimes I go totally wild for lunch and have a Caesar salad wrap. And then for dinner…well, I’m in so late that often if I’m cooking at all, it’s a stir-fry. Can’t go wrong with a good old stir fry.
Here’s me serving beautiful meals, all very elegant and wonderfully presented, and I just go home and have a bowl of vegetables and meat. Doesn’t feel right. Then again, it’s not like I have a commercial oven at home to be able to set intricate timers and whatever else. I’m just used to working with commercial kitchen equipment, basically. I can only do huge stuff, and meals for restaurant patrons, and not stuff for just myself. Maybe I need to learn to downsize…?
I guess I do. If I can barely operate a wok but a commercial wok burner is no problem, that IS a problem. Last time I went to a barbecue and I was put in charge of the grill, it did not go well. Got distracted and ended up searing the steak. That never happens at work, for the record…my steaks are pretty legendary. So I’m thinking the only solution is to totally upgrade my kitchen at home to be like a kitchen in a professional, top-rated restaurant, no matter how much it costs or how much space I have to sacrifice to make it happen. No, not really…but still, I bet it WOULD help, having commercial-grade equipment. Even just having a commercial steamer in front of my encourages me to make delicious, tender vegetables instead of just throwing on some brussel sprouts from a freezer bag. If the people at work knew I did that, they’d find it properly shameful. Still, that’s a high-pressure environment for you. Brings out the best, when just my own taste buds don’t cut it. They’re not the harsh critics they should be.
-Jacque