.....how we cook????
In light of the recent discussion on personality-tests, I propose the following:
our cooking-styles reflect our personality quite accurately.
(no, I haven´t lost my mind. and, yes, Daniel, I know that you will probably think this is rubbish).
Leth was discussing the Myers-Briggs test, and I happen to be headed to a M-B seminar this morning: a friend of mine (member of my mothering-group) is a licensed consultant of the test, and she will explain how our "type" affects our mothering, particularly.
Anyhow, I am taking the test AGAIN (for the sixth time in 5 years, I think) right now, and I couldn´t help but think of my cooking-style, while answering the questions.
Consider all the questions that regard adherence to "the accepted way" of doing things. As much as I care about "normalcy," I generally prefer to invent new ways of doing things. But it´s not so straightforward. Thus, I never quite know which option to choose, and wish the test allowed for side-notes and explanations.
My cooking-habits came to mind. Yesterday, I decided to make sesame/honey- roasted pork. I´ve been trying to introduce some new meals into our diet, because we´re all getting a little tired of "pasta with white sauce and zucchini", or "chicken/pineapple-curry". I found a bag of sesame-seeds in my kitchen and took some pork out of the freezer. Here comes the part that relates to the personality-question:
-First, I looked up recipes that called for a combination of pork and sesame.
-Then, I used every ingredient on the list.
-Finally, I added some other ingredients (asparagus....strange, huh?), and mixed it all together without much attention to the instructions.
I cooked the sesame-pork as I cook everything else: inspired by someone else´s recipe, with a twist. Mostly, in a very messy way. Messy, as in unpredictable, not untidily.
My cooking-style is creative and impulsive. This results in some meal-surprises, some good, and others bad.
Consider Daniel´s style, then. One of the reasons I prefer to do the cooking myself is this:
Daniel thinks for a long while about every last grain of salt that he is planning to put into the pan. Then, he thinks even longer about how each ingredient should be cut, washed, and placed into the pan. And that´s just how he decides on a meal. He then proceeds in very much the same manner: putting a lot of care into every last detail of the meal. Cutting the veggies just so, stirring every so many minutes, and adding just enough of the perfect and pre-elected spices. It takes an eternity. Of course, the end result is usually fabulous. (and, it´s safe to say that Daniel is every bit as creative as I am, if not more, but he is more of a craftsman...)
My meals are prepared very differently. In general, I cook three times faster than Daniel. But I have a lot more accidents in the kitchen, and my meals are not always edible, especially when I´ve been a tad too impulsive.
See my point?
* Of course, Daniel would never agree that his kitchen-habits have anything to do with his personality. In fact, he would never agree that he has a "type" at all. :-)
Eef, here I'm going to have to more-or-less disagree with you. I learned to cook from my mother, who is an INFP. Her cooking style involves almost no measuring and much substitution of ingredients (partially due to personal creativity/taste and partially due to many, many years living in countries where she couldn't acquire the right ingredients). So I never learned the "proper" way of following a recipe. That continues to this day. And all three of us girls cook the same way, even though we all have very different personalities.
ReplyDeleteAs for the Daniel cooking thing, I wonder how comfortable he feels cooking. The more Charles has taken over duties in the kitchen the less "tidy" he has become. He used to only be able to do ONE thing at a time and do it exactly properly (cutting one stalk of asparagus at at time!!!). Now that he realizes what it takes to get a meal on the table every day he is more haphazard about meal preparation. But that same thing may not hold true for Daniel. I don't really know how much time he spends in the kitchen.
Jenn,
ReplyDeleteYes, about an hour after writing that this morning, I realized that I hadn´t thought it through well. How typical! I had just woken up, thought of some of these similarities between my cooking-style and my type....and, before thinking it through, there was the post! By the way, I love your mom´s cooking: I was always really excited to eat at your house :-) Favorite: black bean soup, and mole. Neither of which I have ever managed to make !
I wonder how comfortable Daniel feels cooking. I´ll ask. He´ll probably say something like:
"I just like to do things well, Eef. There´s no need to make a mess.."
But you have a point there.
Oh... how I loved Margi's black bean soup! I've tried to make it myself several times and have tried it at different restaurants but it is never as good! So good!
ReplyDelete