#level2chef

【Foodie?】

Finally finished reading @selftaughtgourmet ‘s <LIZ關鍵詞> about foodie and stuff, I actually started reading it last year but stopped after reading few chapters since a lot of the concepts I already knew, I was getting bored. I started to pick it back up since social distancing, learned more about Taiwan’s food culture and its trends, by putting some of the issues into Hong Kong’s shoes, it’s really relatable and intriguing to think about. Now I’m waiting to read @yanwei525 ‘s <The Vanishing Flavours of Cantonese Cuisine> since I’m a Hong Konger and I want to learn more about Cantonese cuisine. It sold out last Christmas and I’ve waited ever since.

【FAQs of a Home cook】

I liked to cook since I was small, so I encountered a lot of questions asked by relatives, friends, and strangers. Sometimes I just get tired of answering the same question as I meet new people. Obviously, affection for cooking and food co-exist, it is merely interdependent and impossible for someone to like cooking but does not like food, only vice versa might not be true. Thus, as the receiving line, I get inquiries about everything, e.g. reason for the passion, recipes, restaurants of choice, terminology explanation etc. I actually don’t mind answering all the questions, it’s fun to share and might arouse the questioner’s interest. So, here it is:

 1.      Why do you like to cook? – Just like everyone with their hobby, it’s fun, challenging sometimes, enable me to gain confidence, end result is enjoyable, and it actually helps me destress.

2.      What is your signature dish? – This is actually a question I find annoying because I like to try different recipes, and seldomly repeats the same dish. Yea I’m weird like that. If I fail, of course I will try making it again until I succeed.

3.      When will you cook for me? –

4.      Which restaurants would you recommend? – For this, I actually answer it differently each time, depending on the person who’s asking. Clearly, the one who’s asking might have a preferred cuisine or dining under certain occasion, so I should reply differently based on their situation. However, that’s not what I meant. I actually answer it differently by how close I am with the person who’s asking, or how likely she/he is going to listen to my recommendation. Why would I go through all the research and think process for a person who I barely know or has absolutely no desire of accepting my suggestion? It’s just common sense.

5.      Can you teach me how to make *certain dish* ? – I love replying to this because I don’t have a lot of friends who’s interested in cooking, so to get people involved in cooking, I will always answer this question in detail and nicely (unlike the usual sassy and sometimes toxic me).

6.      Where do you buy *certain ingredient* ? – I’m a price sensitive person so I do a lot of comparing between supermarkets, wet markets, individually owned stores, and online stores. Not only do I normally know where to buy certain ingredients, I also know where to purchase at a lower price compare to overpriced chained supermarkets in some cases.