How many times have you seen the movie Ratatouille? Yes, about Remy, the sewer food-loving rat who wants to be a chef. Either it was on TV, or you were craving for some kind of "I can be something" inspiration, you deliberately looked for it on your repeat list. Just google why we watch the same movies repeatedly, and you'll end up with a bunch of articles explaining the theoretical or scientific basis behind it. I won't bore you with that. After all, this piece is about how I discovered I have a passion for cooking.
Now back to Ratatouille. I may have watched it for more than five times. This number is still nothing compared to some of you, who might have binge-watched it more times than you can count. I even read one Reddit user who put in on every night for over 700 nights to fall asleep!
When I saw it in 2007, I still had a shallow understanding of what sexism is about or what makes a "good" movie. Watching it again makes me wonder how Ratatouille, with so many unnecessary and overly disturbing violent scenes and stereotypes that make you squeamish, ever got a G-rating. They were not funny, creative, and imparting positive values to children.
The only reason I mentioned Ratatouille in this piece was that the movie draws me with its "anyone can cook" and "great cook can come from anywhere" themes. I can partly relate to Remy's aspiration to become a chef. The only difference is that Remy can cook. He's got the nose and taste bud for it. I can't, or so I thought.
Taking a step back in time
My first memory of ever trying to cook was at the age of five. It must have been lunchtime because my parents and older siblings were still in school. My younger brother Jonathan and me were starving. I don't know how this happened (this part of my memory was fuzzy; even Mama cannot remember), but I cooked rice myself.
When my parents finally got home, they were surprised to find a perfectly cooked potful of rice and horrified that I could have wasted rice or burned the house. At that time, it was common for our family to use firewood as the primary source of cooking energy. It remains a mystery how I managed to do that without help from anyone. I must have felt like a grown-up (lol) then.
The second time was in 2011 when I cooked rice (again!) using a rice cooker for the first time. I remember trying to make myself useful. I put the rice without the inner cooking container. The grains went directly into the bottom of the cooker. Fortunately, I didn't put water, but I almost destroyed the appliance. I saw my sister-in-law moving in slow motion – "What have you done?". I was the center of a joke amongst my siblings. I didn't touch the rice cooker for a while after that, silly me.
The third was when I baked for the first time. We were craving for dessert one evening. I told Dom I would just make him one from scratch the next day. Nope, I didn't use the pre-mixed flour, why should I? All the ingredients were ready, and I followed the recipe to the letter. What could possibly go wrong with that? So, I went ahead and expected my first sweet victory – the best brownie you'd ever eat. I guess I have overestimated my first try at baking. I ended up with super dark, overcooked, and hard as stone brownies. As you might have figured out by now, my first victim was Dom.
I could go on and on with many other experiments in the kitchen where the result always turns out horribly. The food is either bland, under/overcooked, too salty, and only someone who loves me unconditionally would dare eat it and still say, "it's delicious!".
Cooking has never been my thing
Cooking as a family has never been a shared structured pastime, let alone an occasional activity growing up. None in the family knows how to cook "amazingly" well. Okay, maybe Mama, but she hardly cooks. When she does, dishes come out delicious every time. My favorite recipes Mama would make were fresh anchovies vinegar stew, banana heart cooked in vinegar, purple yam dessert, just to name a few.
Papa loves to cook. One of the things I remember about his cooking style is "just put whatever ingredients on hand to whatever he was making" and let the fire do its magic. No one dared to try his dishes, though. I realized I emulated this style, as you will discover later on in this article. What can I say, I am Papa's fave through and through (lol)!
Soon, I was off to college, and my life as a young working professional. Most of my cooking experiments centered around instant noodles, a combo of either fried egg or stir-fried eggplant with dried anchovy on hot, freshly steamed rice. What an ultimate pairing!
Finally, a eureka moment
Do you see a pattern here (apart from anchovy and vinegar-based dishes lol)? I can't cook, or to be more precise, I had zero interest in cooking "real" food.
Thinking about it now, I realized it wasn't just a simple lack of interest in cooking. I didn't bother and failed to appreciate that food, particularly healthier ingredients, is one right way to take care of ourselves and improve the quality of life.
Here I am seven years later with a new inspiration – there are healthier choices to expensive, ready-made, and preservatives-filled meals. They are called hearty and filling homemade creations. And whenever I watch videos of country-living bloggers cooking just about everything from scratch, I would think, "That looks like something I can make and want to eat every day."
But before I tell you how I discovered my "I can cook mojo," let me take you to a quick trip to 2015, when we decided to switch to a healthier lifestyle. As any beginner guides to a healthy diet, adding more fruits, vegetables, fish, and unprocessed whole foods are the way to go. The next thing we know, we scouted the supermarket aisles for the top 20 or so healthiest fruits, vegetables, and the prominent named "superfoods." That was quite an expensive affair.
Leading a healthy lifestyle (in whatever way that looks like for you) doesn't have to be one, an important lesson we, however, learned a little late in the game. Scores of research studies and experiences have shown that with a little planning, researching, and intentional shopping, it is possible to eat healthily for less – much less. Thankfully, we figured that out before we broke the bank.
We moved on from the pricey superfoods and swapped them with more realistic but still healthy alternatives. Like frozen, canned and dried fruits and vegetables are often cheaper but just as nutritious, if not healthier, than their fresh counterparts and can be kept for longer. We shifted from kale to broccoli, spinach, and other dark leafy greens equally packed with everything good that kale has, but a lot cheaper. Admittedly, we got distracted by chia too when there is a tastier, with the same nutritional content alternative, called sesame seeds.
It's been a long time coming, but we realized that making simple adjustments in the way we eat, shop, and think about food can bring about real changes without spending a fortune.
Cooking in the time of COVID-19
Starting an organic vegetable garden was one of them. The thought of making meals from edibles we grow ourselves seemed like an excellent solution to healthy eating. Much as we wanted to, we cannot get all our vegetables-needs from our tiny garden, but at least we can make things from scratch. That's how choosing what we want to make and learning what we are eating came about. Unfortunately, my cooking skills were still as bad as my gardening skills then.
Until COVID-19 happened, I felt this rush of culinary energy and excitement shoot up my spine. It could have been because I was able to harvest from the garden a lot more than usual. Or the nagging feeling that I should be helping Dom more in the kitchen. Or maybe because I kept getting bombarded every day with photos of homemade dishes made by my gardening friends.
Whatever the inspiration behind it, I found myself in the kitchen trying to whip up a storm, literally. The first few times I started cooking or baking, the kitchen was an unsightly mess – countless pots, bowls, measuring cups/spoons, and prep dishes everywhere; oil spilled on the floor; sauce on the stove top; flour all over the place. I was running all over and a lot of whining from a bloody finger.
I am generally a coordinated person, but for some reason, I am a certified klutz at the cooking and gardening departments. No matter how hard I try, I shine at being messy (but not dirty okay!). That didn't keep me from trying to create something delicious. I am a little better now. I put away ingredients, clean up in between. You bet I made sure Dom cleans up around me as I cook, so we're a good pair (call it 50/50 as you can read it here).
Cooking, in addition to gardening, has become my creative outlet for trying to make the best of this challenging time. When I told my colleagues and gardening friends that I stayed in our "cave" for nearly four months, they simply could not believe it. I finally went out this Saturday to meet my friends for the first time since March, and that felt so liberating!
Delicious accidents in the kitchen
The kitchen became my happy place, in addition to our balcony garden. With amazing recipes online, food blog, and suggestions, I tried to make something new every time relying on a few yet flavourful wholesome ingredients. I learned that I could make healthier meals using the art of swapping. For example, I replaced sugar with honey or cinnamon, herbs/spices instead of salt/sauces to season, or enhance its flavor.
I started mostly with stir-fries and the simplest of recipes using edibles from the garden for quick, healthy, and delicious meals. What I like the most about stir-frying is that it is easy to make while allowing for a bit of creativity. Remembering how Papa used to cook, I combine any random assortment of proteins and veggies we have on hand and herbs and sauces I could find in the kitchen. I realized that cooking is more comfortable and faster — and more fun — when we have the right equipment and essential kitchen tools. Yes, we have a carbon steel wok - the traditional round-bottom pan used in high-heat Chinese cooking - that weighs so heavy I need Dom's help every time.
In the beginning, I would strictly follow the recipe by the letter, using ingredients I had never used before. The finished product is seldom close to what the recipe version would produce and often not very sweet tasting either. Now, I love to experiment and try different flavors and mixes together. I just look at the recipe for ideas and vary them quite a lot. I explore healthy alternatives and substitutes and sneak herbs and spices wherever I can. They end up so different from the original recipe that I don't even know how to call them anymore. What is this?" my guinea Dom would ask. "Oh … just something I accidentally created," to which I would reply.
Indeed, most of the dishes I've made so far are the result of many delicious accidents in the kitchen. This is probably my favorite part of cooking. I discovered a sauce that beats all sauces, even the store-bought stuff. We're usually not fans of chili, but after seven years of living in Singapore, I think I found a friend in my version of chili sauce. Most dishes usually turn out unique I find it hard to recreate them again (lol).
Creating foods from scratch is a fun, entertaining, and rewarding process. All the hard work, injured hands, and chili pepper burn (that lasted for an excruciating 24 hours) were worth it because I am doing it, sharing my creation of a home-cooked meal with the ones I love.
For so long, I thought I could not or would never cook. I realized from this experience that cooking, like anything else in life, can be learned. Uh oh, I'm feeling the cooking itch again. Should I make Ratatouille? Perhaps next time.
What about you? How did you discover you have a passion for cooking, and what did you do to get started on your home cooking journey?
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