Master Techniques Before Recipes
When I worked at Gourmet, I made it my business to use every penny of my annual tuition money by taking hands on cooking classes throughout New York City.
During the nearly six years I worked at the magazine, I learned recipes, tips, and techniques directly from such legendary cookbook authors as Jacques Pepin, Julie Sahni, Eileen Yin-Fei Lo, and Giuliano Bugialli.
I also attended dozens of hands on classes at Peter Kump’s New York Cooking School. Now called The Institute of Culinary Education, or ICE, the school gave me an amazing foundation. I clearly remember my first class there in 1989. It was taught by Peter Kump himself, and my first lesson remains one of my most memorable.
While sitting at the end of a long table, Peter lectured us at the end of class. It was nearly midnight, and he explained why it was more important to master knife skills and techniques than recipes. He told us we would learn basic techniques, such as slicing, dicing and sauteing in his class entitled "The Techniques of French Cooking 1." And, he assured us that culinary creativity and success would follow.
For example, he told us that once we learned how to sauté a chicken breast or a lamb chop, we could then apply that technique to a fillet of fish or a pork chop. He explained that once we mastered a technique, we would become more frugal shoppers because we could purchase what was on sale that week and apply that technique to the economical ingredients at hand. I glommed on to this approach because it seemed to unlock the mysteries of cooking for me.
Although I no longer have my blotted and scribbled recipe booklets from those classes taken more than twenty years ago, I do have a clear understanding of French techniques. For those of you who can’t attend a hands on cooking class at ICE or who simply want to tinker with the techniques at home, I recommend The Way to Cook by Julia Child. Published by Alfred A. Knopf in 1989 and edited by Judith Jones, the book is a treasure trove of techniques, photos, and variations. I've used the book countless times for many years now.
As a mother, food writer, and home cook, I think the ability to master culinary techniques is more important than ever. As our national economy continues to slump and stall, it’s critical for home cooks to adapt and adjust menus and recipes according to what’s on sale, in season, and on hand. To me, it's an intelligent approach that makes cents. I now intuitively use it whether I'm harvesting tomatoes from my organic kitchen garden or I'm shopping at the grocery store, the farmers market, or the fishmonger.
What’s your opinion? And, what are some of your favorite resources for learning culinary techniques at home?
Photo by Melissa A. Trainer
--Melissa A. Trainer
Rick T. on March 02, 2010 at 06:46 AM
Totally agree. If you learn a few basic techniques, can season properly, and know when a product is at the correct stage of doneness, you are more than halfway to becoming a competent home cook.
Becky on March 02, 2010 at 07:12 AM
I agree also and would add that proper techniques and discussion include how to safely store food, and things as simple as handling chicken properly to avoid food poisoning. When my husband moved away from home, his mother sent him home canned food, that he thought you could open, eat a little and put back on the shelf. Hard lesson for him, and he ended up surviving on pizza and beer while single.
Wacky Hermit on March 02, 2010 at 07:14 AM
I love "How To Cook Everything" by Mark Bittman. He illustrates all kinds of techniques in great detail.
It is one of my favorite and most well-worn cookbooks, even though my dad says its name is deceptive because it has no instructions whatsoever on how to cook armadillos.
BlogDog on March 02, 2010 at 07:21 AM
I find Alton Brown's explication and demonstration of technique along with the science behind the cooking to be particularly instructive. Good eats. You betcha.
Christy on March 02, 2010 at 07:27 AM
What about on-line videos? It's not slicing and dicing, but I learned how to fold chimichangas by watching a video. The little extra step after the first fold-overs of pushing down on either side of the filling before the final fold has made all the difference. And see, I cannot properly describe it, but the video made the technique crystal clear. A techique that I would have never come up with on my own.
michael Edelman on March 02, 2010 at 07:36 AM
And before you learn technique, learn how how food tastes, and how flavors combine. Even if you only known a few techniques- how to chop and saute- understanding how flavors combine will allow you to create an unlimited number of dishes. A lot of today's enfant terrible chefs are long on technique and creativity, and short on creating flavorful, satisfying dishes.
David on March 02, 2010 at 07:37 AM
This is self-evident. You'll never be able to cook a pie (from scratch), unless you know how to make a crust. To make a crust, well, you might as well learn your pastry techniques. Etc. etc.
Kalle Kock on March 02, 2010 at 09:14 AM
Jacques Pepin's book and tv series on PBS (available on dvd) called La Technique. Essential.
Andrea on March 02, 2010 at 10:37 AM
As one who tries to pay close attention to nutrition and works in many servings of fruits & vegetables into my diet, I have my doubts about the much-vaunted French technique. All that peeling & blanching of vegetables before the real cooking begins (usually adding lots of cream and butter) discards a lot of fiber and nutrients. I never peel potatoes, eggplant, pears, peaches, apples or carrots anymore. A quick saute in olive oil or a zap in the microwave surely retains more of the goodies.
Tagore Smith on March 02, 2010 at 11:30 AM
I definitely agree. But it's possible to learn techniques alongside recipes. For instance I first learned to temper eggs when learning to make a fricasee of chicken. This year I came up with a sort of potato/onion/bacon/parmesan in custard dish that I like quite a bit, just because that's what I had in the house at the time. But I had to know how to temper an egg to come up with it.
I also agree with Michael Edelman. I've come to think that one of the most important things in being able to cook "free form" is imagination. I don't mean it in quite as lofty a way as that word is often used when describing cooking. I just mean having enough experience that you can imagine what the results of taking certain ingredients and applying certain techniques to them will be before you do it. And preparing a lot of classic recipes in which people have already figured out the ideal combinations and ratios of ingredients, and the best techniques to use with them, is good for developing that experience.
Jamie on March 02, 2010 at 03:53 PM
The New Making of a Cook, by Madeleine Kamman... awesome. One of my three favorite "cookbooks" ever, two out of three of which are actually much more technique-oriented than recipe-oriented. My husband got it for me for my birthday some years back; for my next birthday I asked for a whole day free of our kids, so I could practice making puff pastry, croissants, and homemade phyllo (I really like her baking chapter!)
Of course, what I learned from THAT birthday was that buying puff pastry, croissants, and phyllo is a whooooole lot easier. And that you can't make croissants in one day very well. But just experimenting with gluten development was an education in itself!
K Scruggs on March 02, 2010 at 06:13 PM
I agree re: learning the techniques. My first cooking lesson came at 8 years old while trying to earn a girl scout cooking badge. We made homemade vanilla pudding. Measuring dry and liquid ingredients, maintaining the proper temperature, tempering the eggs, stirring and stirring and stirring...all to turn out deliciousness. It was fun and the start of a lifetime enjoyment of cooking.
Sean on March 07, 2010 at 09:14 AM
It's basically much like anything else, if you can do the fundamentals then everything else should be pretty easy.
Melanie on October 22, 2010 at 01:03 PM
Why is it that today's parents send their children to piano lessons, guitar lessons, art lessons, ballet lessons, tennis lessons, golf lessons etc., and do not take the responsibility to send them to cooking lessons???
I am a 56 year old cooking instructor who raised 3 sons who can chop an onion and fillet a fish. When they each moved into their respective bachelor pads, they got a set of Sabatier's from dear old mom. I've had 3 daughter-in-laws who couldn't/wouldn't do anything but polish their fingernails. The "new batch" (ha, ha) can all cook, and I've even become a grandmother... twice!