@Mark: OK, diabetes does require a different approach to most things kitchen anyway. I wasn't aware of that.
Still, it shouldn't keep you out of the kitchen too much, that is of course assuming that there is an inherent interest in the subject and the willingness to put in the time. Billions of people are quite happy to simply eat what is put in front of them, no problem.
Hobby chefs can in some cases easily be compared to any other nutcase on this planet, such as stamp collectors or people who'll do anything in pursuit of a rare record. It can become a bit of an obsession.
Take me, I have been known to spend 6 to 8 hours going from butcher to butcher and from one supermarket counter to the next in search of the perfect piece of Yorkshire Salt Marsh Lamb. Asking for thin slivers everywhere to first taste it. Mad, isn't it? But then, the differences in this particular British delicacy are enormous. With a bit of well developed taste bud, you can actually determine what the lamb fed on, ie. which herbs. BTW, I am just as bad when it comes to ribeye. The thinnest of slivers of chilled raw meat, left to lie on your tongue for a couple of minutes and I know exactly what the cow had been feeding on and just how it will turn out when cooked, unless I bugger it up.
I've not made any pasty myself as yet. I like it, but not to the extent of going all out and doing it myself. Maybe time for a different take on this.
As for spending days in prepping food... Yes, I've been known to mature hare in buttermilk to days on end, just to get that extra bit of tenderness, so I can understand your neighbour and there is nothing as rewarding as feeding friends a five course meal that I have been slaving over a hot stove for all day.
Yes, obsession would probably fit the bill quite nicely, but since I am retired anyway, I have all the time in the world to do it, which certainly doesn't apply to everybody here.
And here to disprove everything I have been saying all along, off to the kitchen it is and I will stick a 99p deep pan pizza in the oven since I really can't be bothered to do anything else tonight. Junkfood ahoi.
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