Chefs: Creators & Dealers of Perishable Art

What it means to be cooking up a storm in changed weather conditions….

Emergence of social picture sharing platforms combined with a cultural obsession for documenting food has indeed changed food and everything associated with it

Social media facts are on the table…

·         If you are on any social media site today, (which includes, most of us right now!), chances are you would see an average of 10-20 food pictures; more if you happen to be a foodie or have foodie friends!

·         In United States alone, 50 million pictures are uploaded on instagram of which 50% are estimated to be food photos

·         Food is the fastest-growing and most viral category on Pinterest

·         Food Porn (really!!!) is not only an accepted phrase; but a widely searched one on Google; imagine where this may lead a pre-teenager if he / she makes a spelling error.

Astonishing fact is… all of the above happened in the last 5 to 7 years….

What happened before? How did people share this hunger for sharing food?

I guess people talked and e-mailed... about their dining experiences and travels; about the few food journals and magazines that were available; about restaurant openings and reviews; about introduction of a new cuisine into neighborhood; and about the few television shows on food.

And way before that?

I would imagine food talk was limited to an occasional mention about an extra ordinary meal in a much smaller circle of friends and / or family.

This gives us some perspective on how food and cooking has transformed from mere sustenance to a primary social activity.

Some may argue that it has always been a critical social activity (to an extent, I agree with this.. we will talk about it in another post). But it is quite evident that it never was as relevant as it is today.

The question is… what does it mean for us, Chefs? By the word “chefs”, I do not only refer to the one in clean whites with wide smiles (guilty as charged!); but to the millions of cooks out there who sweat to feed the hungry to earn a living….

Suddenly, the stakes are higher than ever before; expectations are infinite; pressure is mounting and the chefs have to deliver!

Not that it was easy before, but this whole change of scenario has made it even more challenging… 

A lot goes into the creative process of cooking and baking… dealing with elements and senses… quality, cost, time, temperature, colors, machinery, measures…. sight, smell, taste, texture… the list goes on.

A chef has to get it right every time irrespective of the circumstances… We grew up learning, “You are only as good as the last meal you cooked”. 

An aesthetic presentation is just one element of food as an art. What it really is, is the task of making all the elements above dance to a beautiful melody to create a remarkable preparation.

The art however is an extreme form of “perishable art”. It is only complete when a person experiences it by all senses… and by then, the art is no more. One may try to capture some of it through high definition imagery or detail it through a splendidly written review, but the art has vanished forever….. till the next time the chef or his kitchen recreates it.

With limited or often no proof for their mammoth effort, it is remarkable the amount of fulfillment that most chefs get out of this creative process. All of my chef colleagues can vouch that there is no bigger high than what they feel at the end of a busy (but almost perfect) service or the feeling they get at the end of putting finishing touches on  a new creation…

But, there are no certainties… there are no absolutes when dealing with food… especially when every diner that you feed is an expert in your field. And now they hold the power to populate the largest cookbook ever written – the internet! To their credit, they most certainly have been eating from the age of one! Who’s to argue…

Well... here is my salute to those who have taken this beast head on… those who put in those hours crafting delicious meals… those who are passionate about getting it right, every time!

Here’s to those who keep pushing yourselves to do your best, challenging your own expectations and in doing so, exceeding your guests’ expectations…

Keep Cooking….

from Lucile by Owen Meredith (1860)

“We may live without poetry, music & art;
We may live without conscience and live without heart;
We may live without friends, we may live without books;
But civilized men cannot live without cooks;
He may live without books - what is knowledge but grieving?
He may live without hope - what is hope but deceiving?
He may live without love - what is passion but pining?
But where is the man that can live without dining?”