Sitting on his couch after school in late January, senior Joshua Chen found himself laughing non-stop after the “hilarious” Japanese host of “Iron Chef America,” Mark Dacascos, screamed "let the battle begin!" and did his signature hand chop to commence yet another episode.
After days of living without cable connection, Chen turned to watching the Food Network Channel in early January, merely trying to pass the time as a second semester senior. Drooling over delightful pastries and savory dishes, Chen discovered a newfound obsession in watching “Iron Chef America.” He called it a show that encompasses elaborate technique, intense concentration and lots of humor.
Growing up in a Chinese household, Chen had mainly been exposed to authentic Chinese dishes prepared by his mom. Wanting to “try something new,” Chen took inspiration from the cooking shows he watched and translated the chefs’ technique into his own kitchen. Rather than learning specific recipes from “Iron Chef America,” Chen uses the show’s techniques to create new recipes.
“I love to try what the chefs make on ‘Iron Chef America,.’” he said.“I don’t have blow torches, liquid nitrogen or salamander ovens, but maybe I’ll ask for a blow torch for my birthday.”
Because it is so easy to settle for meals that are quick and often unhealthy, Chen enjoys the challenge of cooking elaborate meals for other people. Instead of cooking “really easy” meals such as fried rice or noodles, Chen opts for other delicacies, primarily baked goods. Though he has made burritos with homemade guacamole and tortillas and is currently experimenting with chicken stock, Chen mainly has baked various sweets, such as meringues and cookies.
“Having control over what I eat feels really satisfying, as I’m also able to share my food with others,” Chen said. “Sharing my food with people is nice because I’m able to make other people happy.”
After his mom left the country to take care of Chen’s grandparents for a month at the end of January, the responsibility of preparing meals for his family fell onto Chen. Forced to become more self-reliant, Chen embraced the opportunity to experiment with new ingredients, such as dry caramel.
After watching several YouTube videos, Chen was fairly familiar with how to prepare a flan-style custard. Similar to the crust of creme brulee, flan involves a caramel consistency. Because dry caramel is notorious for its quick burning, it requires extremely delicate handling of temperatures to produce ideal results.
While Chen initially thought that he had succeeded, he realized that he had used cane sugar for the caramel, which ended up tasting smoky and burnt. After attempting the dish more than three times, Chen finally perfected the recipe.
“I never got the recipe completely right, but I wouldn’t say I failed each time either since it tasted fine, but just had various deformities,” Chen said.
Even though some people may view cooking as a female-oriented task, Chen feels that cooking opens up opportunities to break the typical “stay-at-home mom, dad provides for the family” mentality. Chen compares cooking to other crafts, such as woodworking, as both are hands-on tasks that create practical products.
“I don’t think cooking is only for females; for example, it’s ‘manly’ to barbeque meat,” Chen said. “I think that that stereotype is outdated today since both fathers and mothers can provide for their families in various ways.”
His hobby stems from a love of labor and his selfless desire to better the lives of those around him.
“There’s a sense of satisfaction in being self-sufficient. Cooking is less of a hobby and more of a labor of love since I enjoy cooking for others rather than for myself,” Chen said. “I’m by no means a good cook, but despite my failures, I’m still able to make food that tastes good and makes both me and others happy.”