The secrets to being a great home chef
We could all be better cooks at home and it’s not always as difficult as we imagine it to be.
What differentiates a cook from a chef, apart from three different letters, are the little details and kitchen habits.
Yes, having extensive knowledge of herbs, spices, sauces, meats, textures and flavours that complement each other does make a huge difference as well.
But, as you progress in your home-chef journey, you’ll figure all of that out.
Let’s focus, rather, on the changes you can start making today. And it’s not always about throwing the best dinner parties, there comes a time when macaroni cheese has reached its peak and your palate is craving something new.
Organised cabinets
You must be wondering what organised cabinets have to do with being a great home chef… and you’ll probably be asking yourself that same question as you continue reading this article, but it all plays a part in the bigger picture. Remember, it’s in the little details and kitchen habits.
Having organised cabinets and an organised kitchen makes the cooking process a smooth one. Frustration doesn’t taste good and the time you spend sifting through drawers and unpacking cabinets is precious cooking time that might lead to an over or under-cooked meal. Also, working in a cluttered environment doesn’t place you in a “made with love” headspace, and a great chef always work their passion and love for food into their meals.
Clean as you go
It’s a simple concept really: peel the potatoes, throw the shavings away (or start a compost heap with your trimmings to help your garden out), and move on. Having off-cuts, shavings, measuring cups, egg shells, mixing bowls, pots and pans lying around while you’re trying to put a dish together just doesn’t work.
Rather take the extra second to put away what you’re finished using and wipe down your working area before you move on to the next element. You won’t feel as flustered during the cook and the final clean up at the end of the meal will be less daunting.
Top of the range appliances
If you really want to see a difference in your home cooking, then you need to make sure you have top of the range appliances. Let’s start with the basics: you’re going to need an oven. Preferably one that doesn’t make you look at a cooking time limit and say “Okay, so that’s an extra 30 minutes in my oven”. The top ovens on the market are energy efficient, have even heat distribution technology and, quite simply, look beautiful.
To give you an idea of the kind of oven you should be looking at – the Bosch Serie 8 HBG634BS1 Multifunction Oven is a great way to go. And it must be your lucky day because Bosch is having a #CookLikeABosch promotion on their Serie 8 ovens. Buy one of the Serie 8 ovens NOW and you will receive (not “possibly win” but “will definitely get”) a 40-functions-and-more Bosch food processor! Two top appliances in one buy, now that’s a really good deal.
Sometimes the only trick you need to be a great home chef is appliances that can do 90% of the work for you.
All of the thingamabobs
So, there are some must-haves on the list of utensils and thingamabobs that every home-chef should have and then there’s a list of extra things that you may not realise you need until you need it. And, generally, by then it’s too late and your cake is the one which suffers.
Firstly, you need a knife set and a knife sharpener. You can’t expect to achieve the perfect julienne-style carrots with a blunt serrated knife when what you really need is a sharp cook’s knife. Then you need wooden spoons, a spatula, cutting boards for different food categories, a vegetable peeler, can opener, potato masher, garlic press (definitely!), grater, different sized mixing bowls and a whisk.
That isn’t the most comprehensive list out there, but you get the idea. Specific tools for specific cooking jobs, otherwise, you’ll just be making your life difficult by trying to makeshift or repurpose utensils and tools. Next time you’re in a home store, if you see something and wonder what it is or if you’d use it – trust that you need it, you will use it and you shouldn’t have to justify your spending on kitchen items. You’re working towards being a great home-chef at the end of the day, and everyone at home will appreciate that.
Personalised recipe book
Then, all great chef’s have a recipe book. But you’re not cooking for the masses, just for yourself and the rest of the family. But that shouldn’t stop you from putting together your own, personalised, recipe book.
It can be a combination of hand-written notes based on when a proved-recipe worked and didn’t work for you, changes you’ve made, new dishes you’ve tried and “created”, and anything else related to your cooking journey. Have fun with it and try new things. Take your macaroni cheese and experiment to make it more interesting and nutritional.
It’s a great way to watch your transformation from home-cook to home-chef.