Foodies Corner | Spill the Beans

I was on the phone this afternoon catching up with a very good friend who’s currently working in L.A. as a sous chef. Our conversation varied and we were just having a good laugh. The mood changed though when she told me about this video that has been circulating and raising eyebrows in the culinary industry back home.

My friend sent me the link as I have literally no idea about this video. I have not heard of it nor seen it on my facebook feed (prolly because I rarely check my feed now, and I use messenger more). Apparently, there is this lady who proudly calls herself chef Sheilla and made a demo video on how to do a risotto.

You see, graduating from culinary school doesn’t make you a chef the same way that graduating from law school doesn’t make you a lawyer. Sure, there is nothing wrong with claiming that you’re this big shot chef, or lawyer but make sure you can live up to the name you are claiming.

Chef Sheilla in another post, called out one of her bashers to be “ugly boy” and asked everyone to choose who to believe between them. Either believe her who is a graduate of Le Cordon Bleu London or the “ugly boy” who’s just a cook. Thing is, this is where she’s wrong. The attack is way below the belt. The guy may have bashed her by making fun of her “sparagus” and “sticky” risotto but she should have remembered, “where there is smoke, there is fire.” The bashers would not have sprung out of nowhere just to bash her because honestly how many cooking vlogs on youtube can you find? There are a gazillion of it! But have they been bashed? No! That’s because the vloggers don’t pretend as professionals. To those who have worked in the kitchen for quite a while will know that there are a lot of things not right in the video. I’m just a cook myself but I can spot some wrong practice already.

As I was watching the video my friend sent me, she told me on the phone: “porcini? In boiling water?” Chef Sheila failed to tell everyone watching how to find out if salmon is cooked already. To me, the fish looked very dead as soon as she took it out of the pan. She crowded the asparagus as well behind the fish. How can you expect the asparagus to get the grill mark? Or to be even grilled? I would rather grill the asparagus first and then the fish. Also, if I were her, I’d chop off an inch from the asparagus. It’s way too long. In my years of being a cook, I have never served an asparagus that long. They’re always trimmed. The “heavy bottom pan” she mentioned, to me is just a sauce pan. A more appropriate one would be a wide pan to evenly cook the rice because as she kept doing in the video, she would often stir the rice because the top most likely will not get cooked but the risk? They might become mushy from too much stirring. The grain of the rice breaks apart. She tried the risotto but did not add any salt. Then later on add the salt but she did not even taste it again. She reheated the asparagus and salmon but with that two minutes, the risotto, although done, continued with its carry over cooking. So, the ending? Ugly boy is right. It’s a sticky risotto. She could have anticipated that.

Another point I’d like to raise is, the video has been made and uploaded in a very public platform. Everyone knows the saying “you can’t please everybody.” So, if you’re an aspiring vlogger or celebrity in some form, you should be aware that with fame comes the people who will also publicly put you down which everyone refers to as bashers. Now, if most comments are negative especially on your video, you should know how to deal with it. Otherwise, just don’t post videos anymore. And to tell you the truth, I was just really annoyed by her attitude.

I can no longer recall how young I was when I first developed a certain fondness for food. All I know is that I like not just eating but also making the food. I was always eager to look for an opportunity to sneak in the kitchen and cook something delicious to satisfy my dire need. And if my memory serves me right, leche flan was the first recipe I attempted making in our kitchen. I was quite successful with it though I’ve only copied the steps from how my aunt does it. And as time went on, I did more sneaking as I tried to apply all the things I’ve learned from my T.H.E. classes ’till I got busted by my parents doing my stuff in the kitchen. And though I have been found out, this never made me stop. Instead, I’ve persisted with my cooking till they got used to it. I realized then while I was growing up that stirring and whisking were among my favorite things to do. As of today , however, I no longer make a leche flan but I do make delicious carbonara, pizza, and brazo de mercedes.

When I was in high school, I had my hopes of going to a culinary school for college but that spark of hope never lit and died down. My parents cannot afford the expensive education thus the change of plans. I still held on to the idea though that maybe someday when I already have my own money, I’d still be able to pursue my desire. But I guess, that time is still so far in the future but I will never give up.

I know that money was the main problem before and even up to now. I guess, life wouldn’t be that much harder if there were no monetary issues involved.

Truth is, I’ve always wanted to open a coffee shop of my own that would cater to people with sweet tooth like mine. I’d like people who fancy sweets to also have a taste of my own baked pastries, cakes and tarts. For now, I can only wish that someday, when God gives me His blessing, I’d be able to fulfill this one sweet craving. What I am sure of in my life is that I wanna become a pâtissière too just like Kim Sam Soon. 😀