Tag Archives: hans sussers opinion

“Green Goddess” – A Healthy Dinner ?

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After  all, cantaloupe and yoghurt is good for you and makes for a light, healthy meal :-)

This is all I needed to finish up this day. It’s a gorgeous evening, light breeze, no humidity and the temperature just right. “Kashmir”  playing on the radio while I am having this drink. Life is Good !
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Green Goddess Cocktail:
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1/2         large cantaloupe melon,
3 cups   creme de menthe,
2 cup     vanilla yoghurt,
2 cup     champagne,
2 cup     ice,
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Blend in mixer until smooth. Cheers !
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“When I was 5 years old my mother always told me that happiness was the key to life.
When I went to school they asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up.
I wrote down, ‘happy’.
They told me I didn’t understand the assignment.
I told them they didn’t understand life”.
- John Lennon

More Led :-)
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Green Goddess Cocktail

Green Goddess Cocktail

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Green Goddess Cocktail

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Green Goddess Cocktail

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Green Goddess Cocktail

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Pigs Tail And Potato Curry, Naan & Cucumber Raita

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Some folks are probably scratching their head, going “WTF” (what he food :-) ) when reading this. But hey, I love pigs tail and curries of any style.

Pigs tails – not everybody’s cup of tea                                read about Pigs Tail
Real curries – everybody loves those                                  read about Real Curries
European style curries – if you grew up with them…….. read about “European Style” Curries

The good thing is that if you don’t love pig’s tails, you can replace them with any other protein or vegetables.
However, here is what went on in my kitchen for today’s lunch:
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Pigs Tail And Potato Curry, Naan & Cucumber Raita

Pigs Tail And Potato Curry, Naan & Cucumber Raita

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Curry :

Pigs tails,   cut into pieces
Potatoes,   peeled, cut into wedges
Bananas,   sliced,
Baby carrots,
Peppers,   diced,
Celery,   sliced
Tomato,   diced
Ginger,   grated
Garlic,   paste
Cilantro,   chopped
Vegetable stock,
Coconut milk,
Turmeric,
Curry powder,
Kosher salt,
Cayenne pepper,
Butter,

Saute pigs tails in butter until lightly browned, add vegetables, banana, garlic and ginger and saute until fragrant. Add curry and turmeric, saute for another minute. Add stock, salt and pepper and very slowly simmer until pigs tails are tender. Add coconut milk and potatoes and simmer until potatoes are done but still firm. Adjust seasoning if necessary. To serve, sprinkle curry with plenty of coarsely chopped cilantro.

Naan :

1/2 cup   water,
1 pck yeast
2.5 cup  a/p  flour,
1/4 cup vegetable oil,
1/3 cup greek yogurt,
1 lg egg
Salt

Combine yeast, sugar and water. Stir to dissolve, let sit for a few minutes or until it is frothy on top. At that point, stir in the oil, yogurt and egg until evenly combined.

In another bowl, combine the flour with the salt. Add the bowl of wet ingredients to the flour/salt mixture and stir until well mixed. Continue adding flour a half cup at a time until you can no longer stir it with a spoon (about 1 to 1.5 cups later).

Turn the ball of dough out onto a well floured counter top. Knead the ball of dough for about 3 minutes, adding flour as necessary to keep the dough from sticking. The dough should be smooth and very soft but not sticky.

Loosely cover the dough and let it rise until double in size (about 45 minutes). After it rises, gently flatten the dough and cut it into 8 equal pieces. Shape each piece into a small ball by stretching the dough back under itself until the top is smooth and round.

Heat a large, heavy bottomed skillet over medium heat and spray lightly with non-stick spray. Working with one ball at a time, roll it out until it is about 1/4 inch thick or approximately 6 inches in diameter. Place the rolled out dough onto the hot skillet and cook until the under side is golden brown and large bubbles have formed on the surface (see photos below). Flip the dough and cook the other side until golden brown as well. Serve plain or brushed with melted butter and sprinkled with herbs!
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For Raita Recipe, click here
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Bon Appetit !   Life is Good !

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From Cook To Chef. A Long, Tough & Very Rewarding Journey

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“ Cooking is like love. It should be entered into with abandon or not at all. “

Dear Friends of ChefsOpinion,

When I started this blog in April of 2012, my circle of readers was very small and consisted mostly of friends and colleagues I knew already from other parts of life.
Now, one year later, the situation has changed tremendously, with daily clicks averaging between 400/500, on someday’s far exceeding the 1000 click mark :-)
Lot’s of folks stumble across ChefsOpinion by accident and have no idea about my professional background , where and what I’ve been and what the philosophy of  ChefsOpinion is all about .
So, since I had so many inquiries lately about my professional past, I thought I should re-publish the following article of mine which I wrote mainly to address my students at le cordon bleu . It was first published at  ChefCook.us  about three years ago and was re-published here on ChefsOpinion about a year ago. It will give newcomers to ChefsOpinion a bit of information who they are dealing with when they visit my blog and might even enlighten some others about the possibilities and opportunities  which present them self in our line of work.

Should you just start out as a cook and need a bit of encouragement,  I wish you the best of luck!
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From Cook To Chef. A long, Tough, Rewarding Journey.
An Open Letter To All Young Cooks.

By Chef Hans Susser

So, now that you have established that you want to become a Chef, let’s see how you can get there.
Many established chefs will try to warn you not to join our ranks. This probably comes from chefs who are tired of the position they are in at the moment or who never really made it to the top of our profession or are simply burned out after many years of hard work under less then pretty circumstances.
Keep in mind that for those chefs , in order to get to where they are now, at one point they had to be as enthusiastic, positive and full of dreams as you are at this moment.
The first question that pops up is usually: ” Should I go to culinary school?”
Until a few years ago I would have told everybody that this is a waste of time and money. Unfortunately these day’s, without a piece of paper which proves that you attended school for a certain amount of time, your life/professional expertise is useless in this country and many others. These day’s it is nearly impossible to get to a management position without proof of a degree or at least a diploma from a prestigious school, no matter how much actual experience and skills you possess.
On the other hand, one has to realize that to be a very good cook will only be the minimum requirement once you reach the Executive Chefs position. You must also be very knowledgeable in human resource matters, food cost, labor cost, design, union rules, cleaning, public relations and a myriad of other such things. Most places will hire you to fix those things, not to teach them to you. There is a reason the other chef is not there anymore. A wealth of knowledge and skills, patience and diplomacy is expected from you when you walk in the door. Most of this you cannot learn in a school. It will take years off acquired skills and knowledge to become the Chef that you aspire to be. So here it is : You first need to get your papers (diploma) THEN  (maybe) you will be given the chance to actually learn, experience and practice what you already are “licensed” to do. “Catch 22″,  really.
Don’t be discouraged if things seem to go slow and tedious at the beginning. Think of your culinary career as a kind of snowball:
Lay a small snowball (your Career) on a snowy hill and see what happens: Nothing! But push, push, push and it starts to slowly roll down the hill and after a short time it will start to gain momentum all by itself and off it goes to become a giant snowball ( your Career).

Here now, in a few words, is how the snowball of my career rolled for me:

I started as an apprentice when I was thirteen and a half years old, in a small hotel in the black forest in Germany  (Hotel Wiedenfelsen in Buehlertal). Tough times. Hard work. Long hours, sometimes no day off for many weeks. At that time there were no “shifts”  you were assigned to. It was normal for everybody to work breakfast, lunch and dinner. Eight hour workdays ?! Go work at a bank! During my first year I earned room and board and approximately $20 cash a month. Second year about $60 a month and during the third year probably around $100. From the second year on, an apprentice was expected to run his or her own station. (VERY few girls in the kitchen at that time, 1967). My secret dream at that time was to become a disc jockey as soon as I’d finish my apprenticeship. Thanks God my dad found out and gave me a few fresh ones to set my head straight. The next stations on my journey, as much as I remember now, were as follows:

One winter season as a Commis de Cuisine during winter season in Austria. (Hotel Alpenhof, Jungholz, Tyrol)

One summer season as a Commis de cuisine at the German seaboard. (Hotel See Schloesschen, Timmendorfer Strand).

One summer and winter (1972 summer olympics) as the lone cook with two helpers in a small restaurant and banquet facility in Munich (Gaststaette Zunfthaus).

One year during which I was promoted from Chef Tournant to Executive Chef at a Congress Center in Germany (Congresshalle Boeblingen)  The Chef got sick and I had to take over – there it was, my first big chance.

After that I took a year off to live in Hollywood, California. (A whole different story)
Then, 5 years as a Chef de Partie with Royal Viking Line, traveling around the world. Working hard, partying harder. Making tons of money . Spending tons of money.

After that, back to Germany for some time, working in a five-star restaurant as Chef de Partie (Ratskeller Ludwigsburg) and then going back as Executive Chef to the Congress Center in Boeblingen.

At around 1980 I took a position as Sous Chef at the Manila Midtown Hotel in  Manila, Philippines. I stayed there for a few years and was promoted to my first international position as Executive Chef.

From Manila I moved to Singapore (Excelsior Hotel) and Thailand (VERY extended vacation :-)   ) and eventually to Miami where I joined Royal Caribbean Cruise Line. During my time there as Senior Executive Chef I met my lovely wife Maria who also worked for RCCL.

For the next 15 years Maria and I traveled the world, living and working in a variety of Countries.

During my career in the hospitality industry I have held the positions of:
Apprentice, Commis de Cuisine, Chef de Partie, Sous Chef, Executive Sous Chef, Executive Chef, Senior Executive Chef, Area Executive Chef, F&B Manager, Owner, Chef Instructor, Program Chair for the English Program at a Culinary College, Program Chair for the Spanish Program at a Culinary College.

I have worked in restaurants, hotels and cruise ships.

I worked in places where I was the only cook, in places where I was leading a staff of a few hundred and in places of any size in between.

I have lived and worked in such places as: Germany, United States, Jamaica, Grenada, US Virgin Islands, Pakistan, Brazil, Argentina, Sweden, Portugal, Italy, France, Singapore, Thailand, Hong Kong, and probably a few more which I cannot remember right now. According to my wife Maria who keeps track of those things, I have lived, worked and/or visited 128 countries in total.

Not bad for a kid who left school before he was 14 years old and, after apprenticeship,  had no further formal education.

During the past 25 years in the hospitality industry my specialty for which companies hired me was to open new ventures or to bring back the former glory that many places had lost. This made for some very hectic and stressful but nevertheless beautiful and exciting years, which I would not want to miss for anything. (The money was great too). I lived mostly in five-star hotels or other high-class accommodations, provided by the companies I worked for. If one works at this level, most companies provide a high-class expatriate package, which can include great amenities for the whole family such as free travel, maid service, company car and chauffeur, free food, drinks, laundry, medical service, etc, etc.

During the past seven years I have worked as a chef instructor at a local culinary college (Le Cordon Bleu, Miami). Life is good, even without the stress and hectic. Sometimes I miss the crazy action, most times I don’t.

Well folks, there you have it. It is all out there, just waiting for you !
All you have to do is work hard, never give up and understand that all beginnings are tough.

Good Luck !  Life is Good !
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Link to pictures of some of the places I worked at over the years.
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Link to more professional background of chef Susser

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hans susser..... 

hans susser 

hans susser five star diamond award 

hans susser, ca 1987 

hans susser, ca 1988 

hans susser, singapore, ca 1984 

hans susser. 1985 

hans susser. buenos aires 

hans susser. ca 1986 

hans susser. rare vacation. at home in cologne. ca 1987 

hans susser. rio de janeiro 

 
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It’s a Chef’s Life ….

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I saw this post by Mark Dale on FB and wanted to share it with you all :-)
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Chef Hans Susser

Chef Hans Susser

 

It’s a Chef’s Life ….
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What you can expect from making a living in a professional kitchen:
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1 You’ll almost always have open wounds on your hands and arms.

2 You’ll never meet new people because your social life deteriorates into non-existence.3 You’ll find it hard to start relationships because alone time will become a precious thing.

4 You’ll lose your social skills.

5 Your sense of humor will degrade into the politically incorrect and socially unacceptable

6 You’ll eventually start swearing like a sailor and you won’t even notice yourself doing it.

7 You’ll turn into an anorak/monomaniac and always turn all conversations back to food.

8 You’ll earn a pittance for years/decades.

9 You’ll either lose a vast amount of weight or gain a vast amount of weight.

10 You’ll never ever have a tan ever again.

11 You won’t become famous.

12 You’ll develop a habit, whether it be coffee, cigarettes, alcohol, gambling, cannabis, cocaine, or even red bull.

13 Your feet will get destroyed.

14 Your back will get destroyed.

15 Your hands will get destroyed.

16 You’ll live in a constant state of sleep deprivation, indefinitely.

17 You’ll have to ask your friends to plan everything around your schedule, which is incomplete opposition with their availability, because you never know your days off in advance and you probably won’t be able to change it.

18 You’ll become of a very highly strung nature

19 You’ll become more prone to temper flare ups

20 Your awareness of other people’s lack of efficiency and common sense will increase and your tolerance of it will decrease.

21 You’ll spend the largest part of your life cooped up in a small, undecorated room with poor ventilation, high temperatures, a lot of noise, humidity, no natural light and no windows, with a small group of people who will become your only social interactions.

22 You will work longer hours than you ever imagined possible or thought legal.

23 You will spend all your waking hours on your feet, never getting a chance to sit down even for 5 minutes.

24 Your shortest work days will be longer than most people’s longest, and your longer workdays, which make up about half of your working week, will be longer than the average person is awake in a day.

25 You will not cook gourmet dinners at home. You’ll be too tired, and too fed up of cooking.

26 You will probably start eating mostly fast food and cheap instant noodles.

27 You will be the subject of abuse, whether physical or emotional. Officially, it will be as a test of character. In reality, it will be as a form of entertainment.

28 You will end up spending so much time at work that your colleagues will know you better than your partner/family/friends do.

29 You will meet and form strong bonds with types of people whom you’d previously never even have imagined sharing conversations with.

30 You will be in a constant state of stress.

31 You will never be irreplaceable and will be expected to constantly give 110%.

32 You will always be exhausted.

33 You will not be allowed to call in sick for a hangover.

34 You will be expected to place your work before any other part of your life in your list of priorities.

35 You will never be congratulated on your work.

36 You will be expected to treat your superiors as absolute masters and never answer back, try to explain yourself, start a conversation, or show any other type of insubordination, even if you know that they are in the wrong or feel as if their behavior towards you is unacceptable.

37 It will become very difficult to watch friends cook.

38 Your mum will stop cooking for you because she feels embarrassed.

39 You will be expected to cook for family gatherings such as Christmas EVERY SINGLE YEAR. Luckily, at least one year out of two, you will be working on Christmas.

40 At least one year out of two, and maybe every year, you will work Christmas, New Year‘s Eve, Easter, Valentine’s day, Mother’s day, Father’s day, bank holidays, Halloween, your birthday, and pretty much every other day of celebration on the calendar.

41 You will have to work many years in menial positions before attaining any level of authority in the workplace.

42 The better the restaurant is, the longer the work hours become, the more pressure you end up under, the more unhealthy your lifestyle will become, the more likely you will be to develop a habit, the more competitive the people around you will become, the less sleep you’ll get, the less you’ll eat etc.

43 You will constantly make mistakes, and every time you do make a mistake, someone will notice it and make you understand that you are clearly a subhuman because only a subhuman could make such a mistake.

44 If you are a woman, you will constantly be the subject of misogynist remarks and jokes, sexual harassment, belittlement and remarks about your menstrual cycle.

45 None of your friends or family will understand what is involved in your work and you will never be able to make them understand.

46 You will spend vast amounts of money on equipment, books, eating in good restaurants etc, which will leave you with not much money for other things.

47 You will develop a creepy obsession with knives.

48 If you are a pastry chef, you will develop a creepy obsession with spoons.

49 You will get a rash in your arse crack from the mixture of heat, sweat and friction that will not heal well, sometimes get infected, will mostly always be slimy and itchy and will be there most of the time.

50 If you are the right type of person, you will thank your lucky star every single day for the rest of your life for making you take the best decision you ever did and become a chef. And you will fall in love with your job and never look back.

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So, would I choose this profession again ?  YEP !
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Would You ???
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” Ojinguh Bokkeum ” Korean Style Stir Fried Squid

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Traditionally  in Korea , one uses much larger squid and scores the surface in a criss cross pattern. I personally prefer the smaller squid I used here today, the texture is so much different and, dare I say, better.  It is  a simple stir fry preparation.  Please make sure your pan is very hot and please don’t boil your squid.  A few short seconds  simmering in the sauce will suffice. I also suggest that you mix all the Ingredients for the sauce and check the taste before you add it to the pan so your squid get in and out of the pan as quickly as possible. >
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" Ojinguh Bokkeum " Korean Style Stir Fried Squid

” Ojinguh Bokkeum ” Korean Style Stir Fried Squid>

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Ingredient’s :

Squid,   cleaned, cut to size, including tentacles
Chilis,   medium hot, sliced
Scallions,   cut into one inch length
Onion,   cut into paysanne
Garlic,   paste
Ginger,   grated
Oyster sauce,
Soy sauce,
Sesame oil,
Chili flakes,
Peanut oil,
Sesame seeds,
Sriracha,
Ketchup, (for color and a touch of sweetness)
Kosher salt,
Cayenne pepper,


Method :

Season all vegetables and squid with salt and pepper. Saute onion , garlic and ginger until fragrant, add vegetables, saute for a few second, add squid, saute for a few seconds. Add sauce, bring to a simmer, remove from heat at once. Adjust seasoning if necessary. Serve with rice, sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds.

Bon Appetit !   Life is Good ! . . . .
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Too Much “Freshness” ???

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Too Much "Freshness" ???

Too Much “Freshness” ???

Watch the  VIDEO HERE
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When is too much too much ?
Do you think this is eaten in this way because of the ultimate freshness ?
Or for the novelty effect ? ( Probably)

You’ll be the judge :-( :-)
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All over the world, same crap……..

I think she is pissed and I agree with her………………
Alan Simpson, the Senator from Wyoming, calls senior citizens the Greediest Generation as he compared Social Security to a milk cow with 310 million teats.
Here’s a response in a letter from PATTY MYERS in Montana … I think she is a little ticked off! She also tells it like it is!
“Hey Alan, let’s get a few things straight!!!!!1. As a career politician, you have been on the public dole (tit) for FIFTY YEARS.

2. I have been paying Social Security taxes for 48 YEARS (since I was 15 years old. I am now 63).

3. My Social Security payments, and those of millions of other Americans, were safely tucked away in an interest bearing account for decades until you political pukes decided to raid the account and give OUR money to a bunch of zero losers in return for votes, thus bankrupting the system and turning Social Security into a Ponzi scheme that would make Bernie Madoff proud.

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Recently, just like Lucy & Charlie Brown, you and “your ilk” pulled the proverbial football away from millions of American seniors nearing retirement and moved the goalposts for full retirement from age 65 to age, 67. NOW, you and your “shill commission” are proposing to move the goalposts YET AGAIN.5. I, and millions of other Americans, have been paying into Medicare from Day One, and now “you morons” propose to change the rules of the game. Why? Because “you idiots” mismanaged other parts of the economy to such an extent that you need to steal our money from Medicare to pay the bills.

6. I, and millions of other Americans, have been paying income taxes our entire lives, and now you propose to increase our taxes yet again. Why? Because you “incompetent bastards” spent our money so profligately that you just kept on spending even after you ran out of money. Now, you come to the American taxpayers and say you need more to pay off YOUR debt.

To add insult to injury, you label us greedy for calling “bullshit” to your incompetence. Well, Captain Bullshit, I have a few questions for YOU:

1. How much money have you earned from the American taxpayers during your pathetic 50-year political career?

2. At what age did you retire from your pathetic political career, and how much are you receiving in annual retirement benefits from the American taxpayers?

3. How much do you pay for YOUR government provided health insurance?

4. What cuts in YOUR retirement and healthcare benefits are you proposing in your disgusting deficit reduction proposal, or as usual, have you exempted yourself and your political cronies?
It is you, Captain Bullshit, and your political co-conspirators called Congress who are the “greedy” ones. It is you and your fellow nutcase thieves who have bankrupted America and stolen the American dream from millions of loyal, patriotic taxpayers.
And for what? Votes and your job and retirement security at our expense, you lunk-headed, leech.

That’s right, sir. You and yours have bankrupted America for the sole purpose of advancing your pathetic, political careers. You know it, we know it, and you know that we know it.

And you can take that to the bank, you miserable son of a bitch. NO, I did not stutter.

Perciatelli, Tomato & Poached Egg

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“Waiter !  One order of Perciatelli, Tomato & Poached Egg please  !
I wish I could order food like that in a restaurant around here !
Everybody seems to serve the same old  stuff, (grilled fish with mango salsa anyone?), desperately trying to be “innovative”, “modern”, “on the edge”. But sadly, what I mostly find is mediocre food that has been invented and created a long time ago, then suffered a long and steady decline in quality and substance at the hand of badly trained cooks and so called chefs . We now find the most outrageously crappy food for even more outrageous prices in a vast majority of restaurants. I fully acknowledge that there are lots’s of great chefs out there but unfortunately, they are the minority in a sea of mediocracy or worse. How about some more top quality, simple, tasty, beautiful “REAL FOOD” . I would not mind paying top $ for a plate like this if it were fresh, good tasting, clean and nicely presented. Unfortunately, most “hip” folk’s think food like that has no place in a restaurant and it would be beneath their advanced eating habits to consume . (In public, anyway). While I appreciate as much as the next person food that is prepared and presented in an artful, unexpected, unconventional way, on a day to day basis I prefer great food  which is practical and economically sound. After all, most of us have to cook the stuff before we can eat it. While there are plenty folk’s out there who apparently can run up a dinner bill of a few hundred or even a few thousand bucks a few night’s a week, most of us are not that privileged but nevertheless deserve to eat good (and, many times, much better) on a reasonable budget.

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Perciatelli, Tomato & Poached Egg

Any thoughts on that friends ?
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Ingredients :

Perciatelli,   cooked al dente, some cooking liquid reserved
Eggs,   poached
Tomato,  chopped
Garlic,   paste
Olive oil,
Basil,   stems removed
Kosher salt,
Black pepper,   freshly ground
Parmigiano reggiano,  grated

Method :

Saute garlic paste in olive oil until fragrant, add tomatoes and basil leaves and saute for three minutes. Remove basil, add salt and pepper and mix in blender until smooth. Poach eggs in lightly salted and vinegared water to your desired doneness. Toss perciatelli  with olive oil, cheese and a bit of the cooking water until a thin film of sauce forms. To serve, drizzle tomato sauce over pasta, top with poached eggs. Sprinkle with cheese and garnish with fresh basil.

Bon Appetit !   Life is Good !
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To All My Readers

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Dear Friend’s
on LinkedIn, Facebook and other social networks.

I post in 50 different LinkedIn groups and a bunch of different social networks. The reason in the beginning was to expose my blog to fellow professionals and food lovers and gain an audience. To my dismay, I realize now that having spread out so much has helped the popularity of the blog tremendously, but has undermined one of the main goals of mine, which is to keep an ongoing conversation with food lovers about all things culinary. You see, most folks read and comment on  ChefsOpinion  on the linkedIn page or social network page where they receive it, which is of course a separate page for each separate group and network. So, while anywhere from none to a hundred people might comment or critique on a specific article or recipe, that comment or critique in turn will only be seen by members of this particular group or network. This of course drastically limits the scope of the conversation and exchange of ideas and opinion which would be so much more entertaining, educational and interesting if it would all happen on the same place of origin, ”  www.ChefsOpinion.org  ”
So, dear friends, since chefsopinion is a free and extremely secure blog (hosted by wordpress), I would like to ask all of you to please subscribe directly to  Chefsopinion  instead of receiving it through secondary sites. This not only makes it safer for you, it would also bring us closer together as a group of food lovers and cooking enthusiast’s and let us share all comments, ideas, critiques and criticism on the one place it was meant to be shared, “ChefsOpinion“

With best regards and many thank’s for your ongoing support,
Hans
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Below find a few of the hundreds of comments I received on the  ”Am I Obsolete ?” post.
The comments below are excerpts from the comments I received on  the “American Culinary Federation Group” on “LinkedIn”

American Culinary Federation Discussion|Poll DiscussionsMembersPromotionsJobsSearchMore…

Am I Obsolete ? chefsopinion.org . . I love food.
I love food for the sake of food. Does that make me obsolete? Out of touch? Old fashioned? Removed? Aged? Antiquated? Archaic,? Bygone? A fossil? Moth-eaten? Out-of-date? Outm… 7 days ago Like CommentUnfollow Flag More Charles Huffman-Speech-Ai-Wed-Afternoon, Melinda Brown and 2 others like this 13 comments Giovanni

Giovanni Leopardi • Absolutely NOT…sometime i feel the same way, but then when I look in to the operations I am at the Helm of…I realize the importance of seasoned professionals in the field..you never will find a EXPERT…SEASONED YOUNG CHEF…sure we are able to find interesting and dedicated personnel but they always will need guidance support and direction to the way forward…it is the circle of life…

Larry Dann, C.F.B.E. • Good morning Hans, I could have not said it more eloquently. And absolutely NOT are you obsolete etc. I am 51 and with the exception of one cook and one dishwasher that I have working for me am the oldest person in my kitchens. I have four properties that I am responsible for and have several cooks, sous chefs, and chefs that are all younger than me. Like you I read incessantly and am always looking for great new ideas and trends but Food is Food, and Crap is Crap. When this whole Molecular Gastronomic revolution began I felt that it was a fad (and still feel that way). Although there are certainly a few pretty cool ideas that have come from it I feel a lot of it is just a waste of valuable time and effort. Mini plates are fine too but I don’t get the fascination with them. Thomas Kellar has surely done well with them. But then there is that congress of chefs who are very talented fine culinary artists who perhaps wouldn’t know what to do with a brisket of beef, a head of cabbage, and potatoes. I love all of my guys and gals. I treat them with respect and try to teach everyone at least one or two things every week. It is always great to see that light bulb go off when they realize they are learning something new and have that “Ah Hah” moment. Although you and I may have already been doing it for 30 years. In this field experience can not be underestimated or taken for granted. I also think that an very important thing is to surround yourself with young people and really watch what they are doing and what is important to them. Not only at work but in their private life. A genuine interest is so important. I also try to keep in shape so I can keep up with them…..lol. Okay, I’m out of breath here…LOL Have a great day!

Laura Anderson • As a young professional just starting off in the culinary world I don’t believe any seasoned, professional chef could be considered obsolete. If a chef must rely on molecular science to make food then they are not, in my mind, a chef. As you said on occasion sure I like to go outside the box and try something that looks fancier than it taste but for the most part I enjoy good home cooking. Real food for people with a real appetite for something delicious!! Any chef who doesn’t think they can and have learned from the generations before us are pretentious, it all comes down to learning the basics. I believe you learn from everyone you work with, even if you are learning how not to do things you have still taken away from that experience. I want to absorb every bit of knowledge I can from the “seasoned professionals” and then take that information and make it my own. I want to make food that will take people on journeys and the only way for a young professional to become a chef is to learn from those who have gone before us. Therefore you are never obsolete, your ability to pass on knowledge should always be held in high regards!

Beautifully said Laura :-) Wise and smart and surely on the right path. Cheers ! Life is Good !

James Filaroski • I love food as well. The world is moving to robotic food and service and theres a lost art of doing things well, with passion. My deal with the new world of culinary profesional is they dont want to put the time we did into learning the right way. There needs to be more decipline when it comes to the younger generation. You cannot teach passion that has to be in ones sole. We are not fossils, well made quality food will always compete in the market place. I know one one to re-create fads suck as gastronomic, big plates small plates etc. Like theme restaurants they have a 3-5 year shelf life until the next one comes along. Great fresh quality food with value will always come out on top. Keep the dream alive my friends.

Kim Bisk • I also love Food… And Good Food is Good Food… No matter what the concept is… Small Plate, Traditional, Gourmet, Family Style, etc. etc… When you find the right combination of Flavors… It is Good!!! There is nothing Obsolete when the flavors are there!!!

Gerard Campione • We have finally found the true cuisine…and it is in honor of your style of dedication to good food. It is a cuisine of natural ingredients from locally sourced producers. Local farmers, ranchers, artisans using raw ingredients without preservatives, artificial colors and flavorings. To eliminate processed foods with more chemicals than essence. Your many years of using fresh, nutrient rich vegetables and animals with the knowledge of using all the parts without waste. What a unique quality in cooks that only recently has become fashionable…again. Your gifts of knowlege are much appreciated now that we finally know what you were talking about. Never stop teaching. We will eventually learn from your true cuisine.
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Arrogance & Narcism Of The Highest Order ?

.Michel Bras’ gargouillou, which René Redzepi has called one of the most copied

Michel Bras' gargouillou, which René Redzepi has called one of the most copied dishes of all time [Photo: Entre Les Bras/Facebook]

Michel Bras’ gargouillou, which René Redzepi has called one of the most copied dishes of all time [Photo: Entre Les Bras/Facebook]

Dear  Friend’s
If you think the picture above shows a pretty presentation and is worth to pay a few bucks for in a nice restaurant, so that you have something to nibble on until the real food arrives, then we speak the same language.
If on the other hand you think this represents culinary art, innovation and groundbreaking plating technique, we might not be from the same planet.

Here is what has started to tick me off lately:
A spectacle is being made by a bunch of chef’s about copy protecting recipes, cooking techniques, plating details and styles. One recent headline on “Eater” read:

” Inspiration and Attribution in Cooking:
How and When Should Chefs Credit Their Sources? “

What a tremendous load of bullcrap !
It is one thing to credit your sources for a ”unique“  recipe, technique, idea and / or influence out of respect and good manners.
It is a whole other story to, as some donkey’s now do, ”demand” credit for something that has been around for years, decades or even centuries.
Lot’s of chef’s nowaday’s call themself innovators, visionaries, inventors, when all they do is change,  grow, and, hopefully, refine established ideas, techniques, method’s and ingredient’s.

- Fried Hollandaise ? Hollandaise has been around for a long time, folks. Frying   too !
- Foraging for food ? Come on guys, even my great great great great  great… grandfather was foraging for food.
- Food trucks ? Been around for decades in Europe, (See also food carts in other parts of the world)
- Elaborate presentations? Medival cuisines started that trend.
- Use of the wole animal? Come on, really?
- Sprinkle a few leaves, herbs and edible flours on a plate “painted” with a sauce or coulis? Ask your twelve year old to give you a hand.

While there are without doubt a few (very few) chef’s out there who are true innovators, artist’s and culinary visionaries, the majority of dishes, techniques, presentation, ingredients, and combinations, have been around forever. Some have come and gone, some have looked and tasted a bit different, some have not been as popular and many have come from other parts of the world and simple been introduced to a unknowing group of people who did not travel or frequent ethnic restaurants (or food trucks) and were therefore never introduced to stuff which was already well established elsewhere.

Now, just imagine to take this nonsense a step further and contemplete the following:

Everytime you write a menu, you give credit to the creator of the tomato soup, baked potato, grilled steak, poched fish, lemon wedge, compound butter, turning spaghetty with a fork, sprinkling cheese on top of pasta, a ham & cheese sandwich, blanching and shocking in ice water, decorating your pudding with whipped cream (EXTRA credit if you add vanilla, extra extra credit if you add sugar, extra extra extra credit if you call it chantilly) Where would it start? I certainly could never end and be nothing but a pointless excercise. Professional chef’s are well aware of the names of the creators of certain dishes, techniques, even garnishes (Melba; Celestine, Grand Mere, Cafe du Paris), but in my humble opinion the names of these creators and innovators are still alive today because what the have created was worthwile to cherish, admire, look at and most of all, eat, eat and eat again !

Ahhh, a little venting does one good  :-)
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Bon Appetit !   Life is Good !
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