New Feature on The Kosher Chef: Beta Recipes

So, this week I have a double header for you. I've got two recipes to share. The problem is, I'm not happy with either of them! But as an inventive chef, I would be remiss in my duty if I did not share them with you. So, I've come up with a new idea for my blog: "beta" recipes. That means I am going to share with you not only my successful recipes - but also my failures. I find it really useful to learn from my (and other people's) culinary experiments that simply just fall flat.

It's interesting how certain technologies these days have pretty much redefined the word "beta" to mean "we're just experimenting and if you don't like it it's not our fault" - it used to be that a beta release of software was just a scaled back version of the full thing with a bunch of bugs, and not really production-level quality. These days though, I see almost everything marked as "beta" when it really is production-level.

So, I am going to take a page from the tech sector and warn you that when I choose to mark a recipe "beta" it means I'm not quite happy with the flavor, consistency, texture or appearance. For example, it might taste good, but the texture might be a little weird. Or, it could be exactly what I had in mind, except in reality the flavors just didn't come together the way I'd hoped. I'll always try to describe in the comments preceding the recipe what I liked and what I didn't like, and how I think I am going to play with the recipe in the future.

Of course, being a perfectionist with my food, I won't just let a beta recipe languish forever. I plan to try it again and again until I get it just right. And when I do, you can definitely expect me to post a "recipe redux" with my improvements!

With those reservations pointed out, you can try making the recipe as posted, and you might really like the taste of it, which is great! I'm quite aware that what doesn't appeal to me might be amazing to some people. Or, what I'd really hope for is that you can see my comments on where I think the recipe failed, and take it and make it your own way, with your own flair and flavor to see if you can improve the recipe. I'd love to encourage this kind of culinary creativity. All I ask though is that if you do improve on my recipe - let me know! Post a comment on the blog and tell me how you made my recipe so much better - I'd love to learn from you, my readers!

Keep on cooking!

Welcome to The Kosher Chef!

Well, it's about time. I've gone and done it. I've finally created a blog. Yes, yes, I know, I'm a little late onto the scene. But after coming up with all these creative new recipes, I decided I should start sharing them and giving back to the wonderful world of cooks on the internet.

What to expect? Mostly new recipes as I try them out or invent them; maybe some commentary on kosher food in NYC. I'll also post links to interesting recipes I find or try out. My favorite source for recipes online is www.recipezaar.com. As I learn better presentation and photography skills, hopefully you'll see yummy-looking photos of my food too.

What's my cooking style? I love cooking exotic dishes, especially Moroccan food (though I try out lots of different nationalities). I also am a fan of taking everyday foods and making them taste great. I also have a sweet tooth, so I often put honey, sugar, syrup, etc. in my dishes. I also like a bit of kick to my food, so just be aware that the spicy ingredients can be removed or substituted.

That brings me to another point about my cooking style - I'm a big fan of removals/additions/substitutions to recipes. I see it as a way to take someone else's recipe and personalize it. If I see a good-looking non-kosher recipe, I'll just drop the bacon, or leave the cheese out of the chicken. A lot of people focus on following recipes exactly - to them I say, that's great if you're working in a restaurant (which I have sort of done...but more on that later :) ) because it promotes consistency - but when you're making food for your friends or for Shabbat - being exactly consistent isn't too critical (the exception is baking - I will actually measure stuff out if I'm baking!). In fact, I take pride in the fact that even if I write a recipe, I'll never make it exactly the same way twice.

That's also why you'll see me listing spices and maybe other ingredients in recipes with no amount - to me, I just eyeball it - whatever looks good is how much you put in! That's one good step to personalizing recipes and making them your own. This can be a hard concept to grasp for beginner chefs - I admit, I too insisted on amounts when I first started cooking. But eventually you get comfortable with your ingredients, with your kitchen, and you can loosen up a bit, play around and have fun!

So, once again, welcome to The Kosher Chef - home of personalized, delicious kosher cooking - I hope you enjoy!