Last week, as my grown son was enjoying my pistachio-crusted Chilean sea bass, I overheard him telling a guest that everything his mother makes turns to gold. I was surprised, considering I hardly cooked while he was growing up. In the business of raising young twins, I prepared simple health foods. I found it intimidating to follow a recipe and thought I could not cook. Yet somehow I had been transformed into a chef! And I began to reflect on how this happened.
I once had no interest in food. I grew up eating whatever was on the table or filled up on junk food. My cooking was limited to spaghetti and tomato sauce from a jar until one night my talented friend Shari had me over for dinner. I sat in the kitchen and watched her make spicy lamb chops, and she explained what she was doing. It was really quite simple, she said.
I still wasn’t confident, and one night I had a chef deliver food to my home so I could impress a certain someone (not a good idea after all). She happened to prepare Chilean sea bass. All I had to do was put the fish in the oven, but she didn’t tell me how long to cook it. I left it there for over an hour and had to serve a very dry fish. Fortunately, the sea bass could tolerate long cooking.
I now see that the worst mistake for a fledgling cook is not to try cooking.
I often wished I could bring back the melt-in-your-mouth goodness of my mother’s old-world brisket. My sister gave me the recipe and it looked so easy. All I had to do was bake the brisket, partly submerged in broth, until it was tender. I didn’t have beginner’s luck. The meat was tough and dry. The next time I went to the butcher, I asked him why the brisket wasn’t tender. He told me brisket is a tough cut, and the longer it cooks, the tenderer it will be, as long as the oven is kept low. He said bake it at 250 degrees F for about 8 hours, slicing it after a few hours and laying it in the juices to continue cooking.
I realized I had made several mistakes. I had cooked the brisket at a higher heat for a shorter time. When I tasted the tough, dry meat, I thought it was overcooked. It was actually undercooked. When I cut the meat along the grain, I was left with shreds. The butcher said it should be cut at a 90-degree angle against the grain. I was becoming a cook!
When I followed recipes, they seldom turned out, so I adjusted them to my taste. Cooking became easier. I tested my limits and experimented without boundaries. I wasn’t afraid to imitate restaurant delicacies.
The last two years have brought my cooking to a much higher level, partly because of Covid lockdowns. The pandemic forced me to cook more at home. Restaurants and businesses were shuttered and the streets were empty, so cooking became a form of entertainment. The kitchen was my classroom—I watched YouTube, read cooking tips, and learned by trial and error. I’ve also learned to use the right kitchen utensils, read ingredient labels, make my own sauces and dressings, and substitute coconut or nut milk for dairy milk.
I discovered how important it is to use the finest ingredients. Two olive oils are not the same. They differ in quality and in the way they are processed. It would be hard to match the exclusive, award-winning oils and vinegars I buy at a friend’s olive oil shop in Ojai Valley, California. I purchase my spices at a highly specialized spice store that flies them in from all over the world: garlic powder from Turkey, saffron from Iran, green jalapeno powder from South America, garam masala from India. You can buy them in bulk and give them as gifts—my friends are crazy about them! Once you try such spices, you cannot go back to store-bought.
I can say with certainty that the quality of ingredients makes the difference between a boring, unappealing dish and an exciting dish. For example, with only two or three ingredients you can make a clean, simple salad that is truly exceptional. One of my favorites is a dish of sliced tomatoes with an avocado, organic aged Kourellas Barrel Feta Cheese made of goat milk, and pine nuts—dressed with an award-winning olive oil, 25-year-old Barrel Aged Balsamic Vinegar (both from Caroline Gramm’s Ojai Tasting Room in Ojai, California), and a drop of apple cider vinegar. I can eat this salad all day long!
You can invent amazing dishes by using custom-blended spices. Many times, I will complete a recipe and then sprinkle a little more and taste repeatedly. While cooped up inside I combined spices to create a meltingly delicious recipe for potatoes. Try my Duchess potato cupcakes: spiced mashed potatoes baked to crunchy perfection on top and whipped consistency inside. Or you can add your personal touch to my asparagus soufflé–a good way to get your kids to eat their vegetables.
During the pandemic I snacked on this sublime chocolate cake:
Where I live, most restaurants did not survive, but I would rather cook and eat at home than go to the finest restaurant. I pick up organic ingredients and prepare a meals on impulse. I can dine in luxury seven days a week. You can do the same! Take a good recipe and tweak it, emphasizing your own favorite spices. In this way you will bring the world to your kitchen.
In cooking, experience is the best teacher. What has made the biggest difference, though, is actually loving it.
Food makes me happy. It’s as if I have fallen in love with cooking. In my kitchen I feel balanced, at home. Cooking takes my thoughts anywhere and everywhere as I solve the world’s problems. It’s an artistic process—you start with a blank canvas and a palette of colors. Each food and spice helps refine a dish and bring it to its highest level, full of layers of flavors and textures. I love adding a little of this and a little of that—and I’m not shy about it. No bland or processed foods in my kitchen. My dishes are dramatic and flavorful. There are no rules! It’s as if I am on vacation—I create with total abandon. I can add whatever I intuit. And when my dishes are ready for presentation, I take pride in my creations and hope that my guests will love it.
Happy Cooking!
Sherry Plum
If someone like me can cook, I’m sure anyone can. And if I can make Chilean sea bass, asparagus soufflé, duchess potatoes, avocado surprise, and chocolate cake from scratch, you can too.
