let's melt some sugar

The first fancy dessert garnish I remember learning was spun sugar. For me it was brilliant. As a young apprentice I learned an easy but very good looking garnish.

But that was the start of it all. Since pastry was not my forte, I was glad that I could do such work.

The more I practiced and read the more it fascinated me. How simple sugar granules can be converted to something so beautiful and the possibilities were endless.

You start with refined sugar, pure crystalline sweetness, put it in a pan by itself, and turn on the heat. When the sugar rises above 160°C, the solid crystals begin to melt together into a colorless syrup. Then another 10 degrees above that, the syrup begins to turn brown, emits a rich, mouth-watering aroma (I remember butter scotch, will talk about it at length some other time), and adds tart and bitter to its original sweetness. 

That's the magic of cooking front and center: from one odorless, colorless, simply sweet molecule, heat creates hundreds of different molecules, some aromatic and some tasty and some colored.

How does heat turn sugar into caramel? Heat is a kind of energy that makes atoms and molecules move faster. In room-temperature table sugar, the sucrose molecules are jittery but standing in place, held still by the forces of attraction to their neighbours. As the sugar heats up in the pan, its molecules get more and more jittery, to the point that their jitters overcome the attractive forces and they can jump from one set of neighbours to another. The solid crystals thus become a free-flowing liquid. Then, as the temperature of the sugar molecules continues to rise, the force of their jittering and jumping becomes stronger than the forces holding their own atoms together. The molecules break apart into fragments, and the fragments slam into each other hard enough to form new molecules.

That's what I've thought for many years, along with most cooks and confectioners and carbohydrate chemists: heat melts sugar, and then begins to break it apart and create the delicious mixture we call caramel.

And we've all been wrong.

It turns out that, strictly speaking, sugar doesn't actually melt.  And it can caramelize while it's still solid. So proved chemist Shelly Schmidt and her colleagues at the University of Illinois.

It's dismaying to think that so many could be so wrong for so long about such a basic ingredient and process! But it's also a rare opportunity to rethink the possibilities of the basic.

So what I say is the way we found out that things aren’t always the way we have been thinking they are, lets melt some more sugar in various forms of our lives, keep inventing and reinventing. 

Let’s melt some more sugar, and maybe it’ll not need to be melted to make caramel.

Back again.

Hello!

It's good to be back.. its good to write something after a long time. and I hope it's not a once in a year activity. A lot has changed since I last wrote here.

The challenges have grown, what was improbable last year is happening right now.
I'm sure Pepper would agree.

The road ahead is tricky, but as I always tell my mother (for whom I'm just a boy), 'Don't worry, I'll manage.'

We are not getting any younger so it's better to redefine our goals. 30 is a milestone where stop and access, 'How has it been so far?' and 'What next?'

This is the year of answering these questions and planning for the Future.

While I answer these, at the back of my mind I know that, "Life is, what happens to you, when you are busy planning'

Salt

Winds of change!

It has been a while since we wrote here

And as the life goes on, we too have moved on in our careers, the roles have changed. The leadership role comes with a lot of responsibility, where the management entrusts you to make decisions good for the business.

One problem I see in the businesses here in the ME is the resistance to change (maybe not just here). And bring about the change is the only thing that drives me these days, changing the work culture, habits, especially in a company where the management feels the need of change. Which I believe is a good sign.

No longer kitchen space is occupied by lesser fortunate in terms of education and culinary background, but the older guard still seems to be not letting it go. Some seek pleasure in disorganization, the rule of fear and control. Learning takes a back seat in such places. They resist female presence in the kitchen, and despise fresher talent, purely as they feel lazy and fear to work together/compete.

More places I go to I see the need for change, and contribute in the ways I can. Teach, show, guide, and coach. The guard changes slowly, but gradually. We are not here to create a revolution but help in the evolution.

Hidden treasures..

The world is going through a bad phase. and the factors are quite evident. but what there are a few more factors that make it worse. the lack of smiles you see all around. yes the major events in the world do effect people what effects them more is what they go through every day, at Work.

The tedious tasks that they perform 9-5 or more number of hours. Some people spend their entire lives doing something they have no interest in. and doing them without realizing where their real talents lie or if they have any.
and I believe everyone has some talent or the other.
I meet a lot of people who do not enjoy what they do, they just get on with their lives. enduring it more than enjoying it. And wait for the weekend.
but there are some on the other hand, whom I have a pleasure of knowing, who just love what they do(most of them Chefs). if you ask them to stop doing what they do, they would look you as if you have lost it! It is not what they do, it is what who they are. it defines them
 they in real sense live the dream. their jobs might not be as well cash rewarding in the end, but the satisfaction and joy that they get on doing it is more than enough for them.
some times they might feel offended if we ask them about their job, for them its more its a Profession as they(including me) would like to call it. it adds that extra bit of pride to it.
But the latter variety of people are in minority.

And the heart of the problem is the education systems all around. everyone wants their kids to be the following
Doctors
Engineers,
Chartered accountants,
Pilots, and worse to
lead their family business.

If every kid in the world follows those careers then who will become an army man, a photographer, a painter, and most importantly a CHEF!!!!

this world as we know depends on diversity of talent. not singularity. and this is where we need to redefine ability and talent. it not only the child/man/women who scores good in mathematics who is intelligent but anyone who can express their talents in a way that is unique must be considered intelligent.
we have modeled our education system on the model of fast food.
the fast food model is based on the conformity, quality assurance.
on the other hand we have fine dining restaurants where its about quality assurance along with customization.
but what is evident that we have sold ourselves to the fast food model. and as most people would agree that fast food ain't that good for your body(mind and soul).

it is time that we shift from the this factory style setup of educating people and transforming the into machines(with feelings) to a very organic style of education where we adapt and customize education. we create conditions where talents can flourish. the results may not be very instant. you might not be to score them on talent. but what I believe that this would lead to much more fulfilling careers for many.

talent like another natural resource is a not always present on the surface. it is generally embedded deep. and we need to dig deep to bring our talents out. we need to provide the right conditions for it to shine. And once it does shine, may will get a purpose in life.
And even the weekdays will be fun.

Adios

Salt

 

Educating for the future.. are we killing creativity?

I have an interest in education. I guess everyone has interest in education. it is one of those things like religion and money.

which is quite evident with the way we react to the college cut off percentages, even though we might not know anyone who will be going to that particular college or university. we are fascinated with the MIT's and IIT's so much even though our interests may lie in arts or commerce.

I believe this is so because of our believes that it is education that will take us into the future. the future we know nothing about. we don't even know how the world will look 6 months from now, especially with the US and French interest in Syrian people(read: oil).
But it is the children that we educate today who will be a part of the leadership in about 25-30 years from now. The world has changed so dramatically over the past 10 years and it was just picking the speed at that time. So how can we continue to use the methods that British started to use in the early 19^th century to train a standardized work force that would later work in the industries that fuelled their economy. The entire setup is so archaic but all we try to do is to evolve it to meet the present world issues. And that is not good enough. Not any longer.

The motto of our current education system seems to be STANDARDISATION 

Standardization is good. Who does not like Pringle chips? Standard, uniform and all taste the same. I love binging on them(that is quite evident now). But if you were told that you can have your children the same way. They will your look talk think and act the same way. Just like Pringle chips. How would you feel now? Would you still go for it?

If you have ever been around children (small people), yours or someone else’s. You would have noticed that they are all different. No two kids are the same. They are all so unique, smart and creative. My 5 year old niece is so good in painting. But what I have realized is that ever since she started to go to the school her paintings have changed. There is more of uniformity in her approach. Now she her drawings have got a structure. And I guess at her tender age she has been exposed to the norms of the world. And now I can bet even though she is an awesome painter most of the kids in her class would be making similar paintings.

The point that I want to make is that in the modern education set up most of the kids are slowly but steadily drawn away from their creative selves.

All over the world I see that kids are being trained to compete in the rat race by their parents. Even without realizing that at the end of the race the winners are still rats.
The maximum emphasis given by teachers and parents are on the subjects of mathematics and sciences.
I wish equal weightage was given to arts and sports. There should be more dedicated arts classes (music, dance, painting, etc.) where kids get a chance to get chance to express themselves and be creative.
Especially in India we do not give chances for kids to think on their own. Most parents take decisions for their kids and it’s the kids’ responsibility to follow what has been told.
Luckily for me my parents never stopped me from choosing my career, they were all the more supporting and  let me choose the path I want to take for my future. They definitely guided me and help me choose the Best college for my graduation.(Pepper, I hope you understand what I mean by BEST). And now I can’t think of what else I would have been if I were not a Chef. that defines me now.

The education system does not need evolution it needs a revolution. Yes mathematics and sciences are important. But what is more important is have an organic development for our kids.  if a kid is poor in numbers does not mean that he/she is a duffer. intelligence has different forms. the kid might be good in something else like music, sports etc. creativity in all forms should be respected and nurtured.
By the way Pablo Picasso was dyslexic, imagine if he had listened to all the people who said that he was not smart enough... and so is Richard Branson...

I believe that creativity is and will be even more bigger deciding factor to where we will take our country/world. 
Lets educate our children in a way that we can customize their education as per their needs and bring out the creative bests in them. it may not be possible in schools but let's do it at our homes for them.

As Mark twain once famously said, "I have never let my schooling interfere with my education."

Salt

India... Superpower??

Is India the next 21st century super power/the next world leader?

That's what everyone says the world over. But is it? And if yes then why?

What constitutes to being a super power?

Is it the population? Then yes we are on course to  top the charts. We will overtake China very soon(2034).
Or is it military? we have 4th largest army in the world. we have the nuclear weapons as well.

But if you look carefully these have been with India for a long time. So there must be something else that has that has brought about that shift in India's position in the modern world.
I was wondering that how come India with all the trouble it has managed to be considered a super power.

The very first world impression I got about my own country came about 18 yrs back, from my aunt, who had recently come back to Delhi after living an year in Mexico. She had narrated to me that while she was travelling in a bus in Mexico city, she was asked by a fellow passenger if we had any busses in India? or we still used to travel to our offices in bullock carts or on elephants. and if she knew the rope trick. This was amusing then, on how little knowledge people had about India.
Fast forward to today, if you ask any one in the West almost everyone knows what India is.
the general impressions about India are following
INDIA is the place where all there jobs have gone.
it is the place where all 1800(toll free) calls are answered.
its the land of software gurus, business tycoons and slum dog millionaire

So how did this all change?
what is significant is the spread of internet in this period.
the flow of information has been enormous, even if Indian Government wanted to spread this information or not.

But what I believe have been the real causes in the shift are the things that actually happened without anyone knowing it.
Bollywood (hindi cinema) and Indian Cuisine.

I have been living in the UAE for almost 4 years now and whenever I go to a theatre to watch a Hindi movie I see more Locals watching them than Indians. majority of them young adults. Not just here that is the case all over the world. Americas, Europe , South east Asia and even Africa. people watch such movies without comprehending a word that is spoken, in many cases even the sub titles are not in their native languages. anyways these movies are made to be understood without all sorts of handicap. After the 2 and half hours of song, dance and drama. they walk out of the theatres with stars in their eyes and India in their hearts.

And the same is true about Indian cuisine. With the growth of the middle class around the world, eating out has become a habit for many around the world. and that's where Indian restaurants do there trick. the proliferation of Indian restaurants around the world is such that you cant go to a medium sized town in Europe/Americas and not have an Indian restaurant there. it might not be a very good one, but they are there. Indian restaurants in Europe and US have been awarded Michelin stars.
and you have extremely good restaurants all over. the spice of Indian food ensures that people don't forget India after their meal or not at least till the next day morning.
Indian restaurants in Britain employ more people that coal mining, ship building and iron & steel industries combined. And that is a fact.

As a Chef I consider it my honour to showcase my country on a plate. And being the talkative one I love talking to people and share my culture and my country with them.

what I have concluded is that its not about which country has the biggest military muscle or the financial power. in this century the country with the better story will be the NEXT SUPER POWER.
Governments aren't the best at telling stories(especially ours where the leader refuses to speak up). But as I write here the story is being told all by the medium of art, culture, costume, custom, cuisine and consonant.

Many also say that India is a super power and super poor. How can we be both?
India has the software of growth but not the hardware of growth. but as you read the country is fighting to overcome the challenges of poverty, illiteracy, roads, electricity and much more. Even Rome was not built in a day and India is thousands time bigger than Rome. All  it needs is the correct governance and a strong leadership/ownership and a bit of dictatorship (which can happen in the next general elections) to put it on track of hardware acquisition.

India has done its mis en place to prepare an amazing dish. it is just waiting for the Chef to cook it well and serve it to its people and to the World. and take the honours of being the next superpower.


And for me that is a better story.

......
Salt








 

Food is not the same anymore!!

Today I ask you to... Reimagine Food!

Pepper would agree that we the crazy ones are passionate about food. The base of our passion coming from the hotel school, where we learned the basics about food, culinary techniques, concepts and similar terms. We read books, went through practical cooking classes. All these factors came together and gave our perspective of food at that early stage.
But it was later that I started working in professional kitchens that i realised the perspective that I had built was based on books written many decades ago. And I had started to envision, learn and write about food was based on those old texts.
Since last 20 years more emphasis has been given to link food closely to science(chemistry/physics of food)
Chefs around the world are going much ahead in creating newer techniques and aesthetics of doing food. And in order to learn them I needed to open my mind. Study not just cuisine but science behind the cuisine and create my own culinary aesthetic. It is time that we go byond the 'Authentic' and recreate it in a way I would love to have it. Combining the best of cooking techniques with the best of ingredients and creating food which redefines it's identity. Putting my identity on the plate. Let's not follow the pattern, open our paradigms and think different(apple). As old way of doing things is indeed the OLD way of doing things.
But does that mean what was done before was wrong? Not at all, that was right for that time and will continue to appeal many. I would still like my butter chicken with garlic naan. But how can I make the butter chicken even better? shall I cook the chicken sous vide or shall I use plum tomatoes for my sauce? That is for me to work on and conclude what is the best(for me)?
Coz I believe, food is not the same anymore!!