Comments on: Diamond Juice

By: cookiemonster

cookiemonster — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 18:54:34 +0000

cooking food and eating can be about memories –
invoking cherished old ones and creating fond new ones.
when all you want to do is scrub your mind
of the day you’ve had and the torturous profession you have chosen it can be hard to remember.
we are all at heart perfectionists and anything less will torment us
so be comfortable with the journey – it is the destination

By: matt R.

matt R. — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 08:16:59 +0000

You are so wrong about Higgins.

By: Natalie

Natalie — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 00:29:50 +0000

Sounds like Diamond Juice might just be a Metaphor for Cocaine…long hours, high alcohol consumption, looking old.

By: bc

bc — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 18:32:16 +0000

Nicely done.

Though Matt, I would much prefer if Higgins was cooking.

By: matt R.

matt R. — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 05:20:19 +0000

.. or grow a moustache. Makes your own food taste different, and because people think Magnum P.I. cooked it, they think it tastes different too!!!

Great piece.

By: TFA

TFA — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 01:40:11 +0000

Buy a new apron.

Works every time.

By: Irishgirl

Irishgirl — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 00:00:08 +0000

I echo Paul’s statement, Jake. This is a fabulous piece which echos a lot of complaints from young cooks.

The trick to relieving boredom in the workplace, is to continue to learn and challenge yourself (whether it be trying to beat your last record on frenching a case of lamb racks, or trying to find a better way to french them in an efficient manner)…..and not relying on your employer to provide this, but fostering the inner drive towards self-directed learning in your workplace and at home during your spare moments.

The lure of dabbling in molecular gastronomy is strong for a lot of cooks when they become bored with their work. I can see why. There are a lot of cool toys and chemicals to play with, and it feels good to do something “different”, but I don’t know how much the discipline advances the experience of eating good food for the consumer if the basic principles of balance, seasoning, flavour pairing, and techniques aren’t already mastered by the person who is doing the dabbling.

It is also very possible to over-think dishes when you are loathe to let them go. Sometimes simplifying things makes them a whole lot better.

Good luck with your continued adventure! And thank you for your interesting insights.

By: paulkamon

paulkamon — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 23:23:30 +0000

Thanks for making my day, Jake.