Attitude on cooking
Cooking is an attitude. Let me explain.
Your attitude towards making food or nutrition is mostly based on culture. It takes into account experiences that you had growing up. What you liked and did not like should now, as an adult or grown child, take shape.
The continuity of traditions is carried through with the repetitive practice.
I like traditions.
I respect traditions.
However, I value questioning the status quo.
Like explorers that sailed to find the edge of the world proved that the earth is round. Like the first person who ate an oyster (https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=15391834) and discovered that it was edible. Their attitude towards discovery and experimentation has brought new traditions and new ingredients that humans can enjoy.
This is the same attitude that I want to implore in discovering new ways of preparing traditional foods into a modern cuisine that is exciting. I may fail or I may succeed. But, I will try.
Take for example this salad. The salted egg and parsley salad is an influence from my mother. She would do a tomato and salted egg side dish. I wanted to recreate that with a new twist. I added parsely salad for fresh flavor dressed in olive oil and lemon. The salted duck egg is then laid on a sliced tomato and topped with horseradish cream.
in its heart, it is the same dish as my mother made. Making it into a salad enhances the flavor of the egg and the horseradish cream brightens up the flavor.
Salted Egg and Tomato
Not being afraid of changing old recipes and creating new flavors is a good attitude to have. Unleash some creativity and create something new. It is discovery. It is exciting.
I think of traditions as a template. How you color it or design it is your call.
This is why I adore creative people. They are not afraid of looking at something differently and making odd connections to make something totally great.
This is how sisig was made. The ingredients of sisig do not make sense at all. Mayonaise, pork cartilage, chicken liver all of these are great... separately! But something magical happened. Aling Lucing made something great.
So the attitude of discovery should be applied in cooking and eating. This is where fun in eating and appreciation starts.
Sisig
Thank you Aling Lucing.
