There are chefs I admire and then there are chefs I have yet
to admire. Today I met a chef from New Orleans and he’s pretty big time. Sure, I’ve
heard of him, I’ve seen him on TV, I’ve even drooled over his dishes. Yet, I
hadn’t truly appreciated him. This time, I speak of John Besh. He’s one of the
most humbled and down to soil celebrity chefs I’ve met. Listening to this man
is more like listening to your favorite uncle than listening to some sort
of know-it-all master chef. I appreciate that extensively. Thank you Chef Besh.
I got my hands on his newest book called,
My Family Table. I like this book. It’s not only because it is personally
autographed to me, but mostly because his soulful voice jumps out of every page
like a picture book. There is especially one line that struck me personally. He
says he spent most of his career manipulating food into things they inherently
were not.
I have to admit, reading that sentence gave me a sense of
gratitude. I'm beginning to recognize the evolution of my food style and I appreciate it. This is raw.
This is real. This is fundamental. I am freaking out and I want more!
If there is one thing I know right now, one thing I can be
certain about, it's that I uphold each ingredient to it's highest value. I vow to never attempt to make an apple taste like a
strawberry. I vow to obsess over the
essence that makes each ingredient as special as it is. I vow to only make a cantaloupe
taste even more like a cantaloupe. If I ever deviate from this philosophy, then
I will happily go back to accounting.
This is my vow and I dedicate it to my cuisine, my agriculture,
and my kitchen table.
No comments:
Post a Comment