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Just as the South African Flag embraces and symbolizes our national diversity, so should we embrace and celebrate our diverse culinary culture. There is an explosion of culinary trends, fashions and tendencies, with a host of TV cooking shows promoting all of these gastronomic happenings. It is all very exiting and fascinating, and yet it is hardly the kind of food we cook and eat at home. This almost begs the question - what do we do with all these fabulous fads and foreign influences.
Molecular gastronomy is science on a plate - but what do we do with it. Sure it is fascinating, but not all that useful beyond it's novelty value. Transforming food from its natural state to something so far removed that you hardly recognize it just does not make all that much sense. After all - a beetroot jelly cut into miniscule little cubes scattered artistically over an over-sized plate full of equally foreign morsels of something is an insult to the beautiful taste and texture that nature has given us in it's natural form.
I have this growing resistance in me against the fashionable trend of making jellies, cubes, foams, crisps and smears out of everything in the name of culinary creativity and excellence - it simply becomes too far removed from REAL FOOD FOR REAL PEOPLE.
For the homecook it is quite intimidating to see all the culinary wizardry on TV shows, almost proclaiming that this is the benchmark of a good cook. Take heart, it is absolute nonsense. I'm not saying that Heston and his admirers don't have a place in the culinary world, but it is certainly far removed from the reality of the homecook who has to produce excellent dishes on a daily basis to feed family and entertain friends. I really do believe that our South African homecooks are all mastercheffs in own right - albeit only in the domestic category.
Let's take National Heritage Day and cook up a storm, or braai one up, and let us celebrate all that food is to our wonderful and diverse culinary heritage - REAL FOOD FOR REAL PEOPLE!!!
Molecular gastronomy is science on a plate - but what do we do with it. Sure it is fascinating, but not all that useful beyond it's novelty value. Transforming food from its natural state to something so far removed that you hardly recognize it just does not make all that much sense. After all - a beetroot jelly cut into miniscule little cubes scattered artistically over an over-sized plate full of equally foreign morsels of something is an insult to the beautiful taste and texture that nature has given us in it's natural form.
I have this growing resistance in me against the fashionable trend of making jellies, cubes, foams, crisps and smears out of everything in the name of culinary creativity and excellence - it simply becomes too far removed from REAL FOOD FOR REAL PEOPLE.
For the homecook it is quite intimidating to see all the culinary wizardry on TV shows, almost proclaiming that this is the benchmark of a good cook. Take heart, it is absolute nonsense. I'm not saying that Heston and his admirers don't have a place in the culinary world, but it is certainly far removed from the reality of the homecook who has to produce excellent dishes on a daily basis to feed family and entertain friends. I really do believe that our South African homecooks are all mastercheffs in own right - albeit only in the domestic category.
Let's take National Heritage Day and cook up a storm, or braai one up, and let us celebrate all that food is to our wonderful and diverse culinary heritage - REAL FOOD FOR REAL PEOPLE!!!