Wil , could not agree more re Thom Eagle’s book , it is a beautiful treatise on how to cook and liberating yourself from recipe following . A recipe is an idea nothing more and should be taken as a source of ideas not as something to be slavishly followed
Totally agree. Was curious if there'd be pushback on this idea but I think there's a more nuanced recipe form that doesn't deal so rigidly in teaspoons and cups and so on. Might be more fun for everyone.
I’m most annoyed by recipes that demand that I have strict measurements and good posture, then go on to such as “1 large egg,” completely ruining the process my rigid Swiss genes had been celebrating. No, thank god I’m not a Virgo.
Often (atleast in Indian cooking) it’s more about the ratio of ingredients than exact measures. Like when i read that for a good roti dough you need 80% hydration my mind was blown. I’d tried about 40 recipes for roti before but they were too dry/too soft/too meh. Once i knew the ratio it was like uncovering some hidden secret
I would eat these crammed with almond paste *and* jam, even if that means having to eat them on a raft in the middle of the Gulf of Bothnia.
P.S. I studied Mayan glyphs in the run up to my art history degree. Also, Professor Hawking once came to my restaurant a million years ago. I was so curious to know what he could eat and how he would manage it, but decided it would be rude to stare and therefore stayed away from the table. Oh, the limiting power of politeness!
Update: The house smells faintly of cardamom and the two grouchy teenagers in residence smiled today. We tried 🇫🇮 and 🇸🇪 variations and despite opening a glass of homemade fig jam for the occasion, we are all team almond paste.
Regarding recipes, I loved your side notes, Wil. When I write out recipes for people, I tend to ramble in a similar fashion; probably it’s just the way I think.
I grew up learning family recipes with “stir until good” or “bake in hot oven until done” so vague-ish directions don’t faze me. If one cooks enough, it all becomes clear. (Baking being the exception, as you rightfully point out.)
My spouse the engineer cannot cook without explicit instructions and measurements. I actually populated an old iPad with “favorite recipes” that include measurements, potential substitutions, what is okay to leave out, and cooking notes. A labor of love, or just self-preservation?
Now I need to preface my comment with “I’m not a chef, but”, I do know how to cook. I understand flavours, seasons, traditions of all sorts and many techniques.
I’ve never been that into baking so there’s a gap there, so I need more guidance with this.
I really understand what you are saying Wil, but I think people without a reasonable degree of mastery of cooking just wouldn’t get it.
Here’s the litmus test. Me as a baker would need more information, me as any other cooking I am totally with you.
I teach some cooking classes, different cuisines, lots of work, bit of fun especially if my guests already know a bit about food/cooking. It’s not so much fun if they are real beginners, without the intuitive understanding that’s comes with experience.
Maybe there are books and writers for people who know how to cook, like the one Will Cooper will write and perhaps you Wil. These books invite you into the mind, field and market of a cook, showing possibilities and creations.
Maybe these books are read in the early hours of Saturday morning before the growers market for some inspiration to weave into the days harvest.
Thanks for another wonderful post Wil. You always give me something to think about, a bit of a laugh and a good recipe.
Good points, Lisa, thanks as always. I'm fascinated by potential new forms recipes might take. The given structure we're used to is important, like you say, especially for anyone who needs every detail made specific. But what else is possible? I'm interested in that.
No recipe recipes seems like one such book? I read most of my cookbooks while planning the week to inspire me out of a rut. You’re right more cookbooks for those who know the basics aka the people who keep spending $$$ on cookbooks would be lovely
Wil, this title made me cackle 😂 I’ve heard the suggestion about shoving inordinate amounts of butter under chicken skin, but have never tried and now I know better lol. Personally, I use recipes as guides rather than orders. For some recipes, I can just tell by looking at them that I’ll have to double the amount of seasonings or spices to get any semblance of flavor.
THANK YOU! you're the first person to comment on the title and I was getting very disappointed by the lack of appreciation. 😉 Yeah, the way you use recipes sounds very familiar. Nice to hear from you and thanks for reading!!
A colleague told me about these buns and emphasised I needed fresh yeast which I bought but I’m yet to make it. Maybe now is the time to make them. Fascinating read
Needing fresh yeast sounds like one of those preferences I mentioned in the article. Dry works perfectly for this recipe, I promise, but if you're using fresh, just double the quantity by weight.
I've just recently started having a bit more of a food focus and avoided the kitchen based on my perception of making more feminist choices but am now quite interested in food as a very important part of successfully continuing to live in the same body for a long time and how to get the real fresh stuff that is actually good.
I really like what you're saying about recipes and wish that all of them contained more of the ideas or effects you're looking for at various steps at least in addition to plain instructions but agreed that I can't use the 'follow your inspiration' method too much on things I don't have experience making or using very similar techniques.
I do find it tricky being an eater who is also learning to make better food for myself, writing to other mere mortals. Writing a recipe takes a lot of practice and possibly professional experience in some cases but looking for textures and learning basic techniques you can build on, that is where I find I can start to get just a bit of a foot into the door of what you're talking about, which is lovely.
Also thank you for calling out the BS for those of us who might not know. I'm a software engineer so I've seen plenty of them in that context but in some ways it's reassuring to know that people can be pretentious like that in every field so maybe I already have a bit of the skill to recognize it in the human sense.
Thank you for attending my Ted talk 😆 and thanks for this article
this ‘rant’ on recipes (actually, the marks are not warranted lol) was just fabulous — loved the pictures/examples, the descriptions and explanations —all of it!
I think my “favorite” celebrity chef salt moment was, I believe, Rachel Ray educating the audience that Asians use soy sauce “just like salt.” Maybe that’s why it often contains a ton of salt?
Jam on my laskiaispulla, please, and I hope I got all those vowels in the right place.
I’d love to see more cookbooks on techniques/loose recipes too but i doubt publishers want to support the publishing of these.
For Indian food once you master the basics such as tadka, dry roasting, balancing sweet and sour, the rest is mostly ad-libbing and I’d love to leave my reader more confident in the kitchen than wanting exact times and measures.
Ofcourse i say this after years of needing exact recipes to even consider making a curry or gassi.
That’s how my mum cooked and my grandmothers. A generation of cooks relied purely on their senses to make delicious dishes. I made the fluffiest pancakes on Shrove Tuesday without measuring anything.
There’s experimenting, trusting our instincts and our senses. Of course there are times when recipes are a must such as pastry making.
Wil , could not agree more re Thom Eagle’s book , it is a beautiful treatise on how to cook and liberating yourself from recipe following . A recipe is an idea nothing more and should be taken as a source of ideas not as something to be slavishly followed
Totally agree. Was curious if there'd be pushback on this idea but I think there's a more nuanced recipe form that doesn't deal so rigidly in teaspoons and cups and so on. Might be more fun for everyone.
I’m most annoyed by recipes that demand that I have strict measurements and good posture, then go on to such as “1 large egg,” completely ruining the process my rigid Swiss genes had been celebrating. No, thank god I’m not a Virgo.
Haha, this made me smile.
Often (atleast in Indian cooking) it’s more about the ratio of ingredients than exact measures. Like when i read that for a good roti dough you need 80% hydration my mind was blown. I’d tried about 40 recipes for roti before but they were too dry/too soft/too meh. Once i knew the ratio it was like uncovering some hidden secret
This is a great point: ratios. I wonder if this is more helpful to all kinds of cooks, beginner and experienced alike.
I agree and have found the ratio approach also works very well with mole.
I would eat these crammed with almond paste *and* jam, even if that means having to eat them on a raft in the middle of the Gulf of Bothnia.
P.S. I studied Mayan glyphs in the run up to my art history degree. Also, Professor Hawking once came to my restaurant a million years ago. I was so curious to know what he could eat and how he would manage it, but decided it would be rude to stare and therefore stayed away from the table. Oh, the limiting power of politeness!
I should've expected this kind of filth from you. Jam AND almond indeed.
As for the other information in this densely packed comment, I need more time to process.
I’m still processing the information myself.
Update: The house smells faintly of cardamom and the two grouchy teenagers in residence smiled today. We tried 🇫🇮 and 🇸🇪 variations and despite opening a glass of homemade fig jam for the occasion, we are all team almond paste.
Regarding recipes, I loved your side notes, Wil. When I write out recipes for people, I tend to ramble in a similar fashion; probably it’s just the way I think.
I grew up learning family recipes with “stir until good” or “bake in hot oven until done” so vague-ish directions don’t faze me. If one cooks enough, it all becomes clear. (Baking being the exception, as you rightfully point out.)
My spouse the engineer cannot cook without explicit instructions and measurements. I actually populated an old iPad with “favorite recipes” that include measurements, potential substitutions, what is okay to leave out, and cooking notes. A labor of love, or just self-preservation?
So excited for this recipe. I love the Wil-ness of it - the quips, the baking notes, and variation suggestions.
For whatever it's worth, I will never be in any position to argue black hole radiation, or even much beyond basic physics with anybody! 🙂
Ah, thanks so much Robyn. Let me know if you try it out.
Now I need to preface my comment with “I’m not a chef, but”, I do know how to cook. I understand flavours, seasons, traditions of all sorts and many techniques.
I’ve never been that into baking so there’s a gap there, so I need more guidance with this.
I really understand what you are saying Wil, but I think people without a reasonable degree of mastery of cooking just wouldn’t get it.
Here’s the litmus test. Me as a baker would need more information, me as any other cooking I am totally with you.
I teach some cooking classes, different cuisines, lots of work, bit of fun especially if my guests already know a bit about food/cooking. It’s not so much fun if they are real beginners, without the intuitive understanding that’s comes with experience.
Maybe there are books and writers for people who know how to cook, like the one Will Cooper will write and perhaps you Wil. These books invite you into the mind, field and market of a cook, showing possibilities and creations.
Maybe these books are read in the early hours of Saturday morning before the growers market for some inspiration to weave into the days harvest.
Thanks for another wonderful post Wil. You always give me something to think about, a bit of a laugh and a good recipe.
Good points, Lisa, thanks as always. I'm fascinated by potential new forms recipes might take. The given structure we're used to is important, like you say, especially for anyone who needs every detail made specific. But what else is possible? I'm interested in that.
No recipe recipes seems like one such book? I read most of my cookbooks while planning the week to inspire me out of a rut. You’re right more cookbooks for those who know the basics aka the people who keep spending $$$ on cookbooks would be lovely
Wil, this title made me cackle 😂 I’ve heard the suggestion about shoving inordinate amounts of butter under chicken skin, but have never tried and now I know better lol. Personally, I use recipes as guides rather than orders. For some recipes, I can just tell by looking at them that I’ll have to double the amount of seasonings or spices to get any semblance of flavor.
THANK YOU! you're the first person to comment on the title and I was getting very disappointed by the lack of appreciation. 😉 Yeah, the way you use recipes sounds very familiar. Nice to hear from you and thanks for reading!!
I was shocked that no one else was saying anything about it, so I had to 😂
I am sat here in Finland appreciating you very much. Thank you again!
A colleague told me about these buns and emphasised I needed fresh yeast which I bought but I’m yet to make it. Maybe now is the time to make them. Fascinating read
Needing fresh yeast sounds like one of those preferences I mentioned in the article. Dry works perfectly for this recipe, I promise, but if you're using fresh, just double the quantity by weight.
Thanks for the tip.
I’ve eaten my semla for fika today…and I’m definitely Team Almond Paste (that’s the best part!!).
❤️
Nice work. I have some buns in the freezer from my recipe testing last week. I'll be getting them out soon. #teamalmond4life
Enjoy!!!
I've just recently started having a bit more of a food focus and avoided the kitchen based on my perception of making more feminist choices but am now quite interested in food as a very important part of successfully continuing to live in the same body for a long time and how to get the real fresh stuff that is actually good.
I really like what you're saying about recipes and wish that all of them contained more of the ideas or effects you're looking for at various steps at least in addition to plain instructions but agreed that I can't use the 'follow your inspiration' method too much on things I don't have experience making or using very similar techniques.
I do find it tricky being an eater who is also learning to make better food for myself, writing to other mere mortals. Writing a recipe takes a lot of practice and possibly professional experience in some cases but looking for textures and learning basic techniques you can build on, that is where I find I can start to get just a bit of a foot into the door of what you're talking about, which is lovely.
Also thank you for calling out the BS for those of us who might not know. I'm a software engineer so I've seen plenty of them in that context but in some ways it's reassuring to know that people can be pretentious like that in every field so maybe I already have a bit of the skill to recognize it in the human sense.
Thank you for attending my Ted talk 😆 and thanks for this article
Well, I'm very grateful for the TED talk, thanks. Great to hear youre finding such a great relationship with food for health. And what you say about recipes is something I really relate to. Hate to self promote but I'd love you to check out this other piece I wrote about the subject. Finding great ways of writing recipes is really important to me and I expand in that here: https://www.recoveringlinecook.com/p/a-line-cooks-rant-about-recipes?r=ab6j9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
this ‘rant’ on recipes (actually, the marks are not warranted lol) was just fabulous — loved the pictures/examples, the descriptions and explanations —all of it!
I found out yesterday you can buy ‘Biscoff spread’ mmmmm I think that would work as well . I’ll make them and let you know 😍
That's the spirit
I think my “favorite” celebrity chef salt moment was, I believe, Rachel Ray educating the audience that Asians use soy sauce “just like salt.” Maybe that’s why it often contains a ton of salt?
Jam on my laskiaispulla, please, and I hope I got all those vowels in the right place.
The vowels look good, nice work Johnny.
Now I will bring forth my Scandinavian cookbooks! These look divine. Thank you!
You're very welcome, Shauna. Thanks for reading and your support of the newsletter!!
Weekend!!! thanks Wil
Pleasure is mine, Caroline! Have a good one!!
I’d love to see more cookbooks on techniques/loose recipes too but i doubt publishers want to support the publishing of these.
For Indian food once you master the basics such as tadka, dry roasting, balancing sweet and sour, the rest is mostly ad-libbing and I’d love to leave my reader more confident in the kitchen than wanting exact times and measures.
Ofcourse i say this after years of needing exact recipes to even consider making a curry or gassi.
That’s how my mum cooked and my grandmothers. A generation of cooks relied purely on their senses to make delicious dishes. I made the fluffiest pancakes on Shrove Tuesday without measuring anything.
There’s experimenting, trusting our instincts and our senses. Of course there are times when recipes are a must such as pastry making.