Tim’s Ten Rules for Cooking

I wrote my 10 Rules of Cooking for my daughter when she went away to college. Turns out these same rules apply to professional chefs, too.

1. Use Good Ingredients

Picking good ingredients means picking a good source. As the Spice Master at  Denver’s Italco Food Products, Inc., I can say with confidence that Italico is the finest specialty food ingredient distributor between San Francisco and Chicago and would rival many of the specialty food distributors in those two cities. You won’t get the same flavors elsewhere.

2. Pay Attention – Good Ingredients Are Expensive

The piece of fresh Halibut you just spent $21.99/lb on is now in the trash because the saucier wasn’t paying attention. That costs you both money for the ingredients and time. Heads up, chefs!

3. Read The Entire Recipe Before You Start!

If you don’t read the entire recipe, you don’t understand the “commander’s intent.”  What is the garnish? What is the process? What is the sauce or rub or accouterments that goes along with the recipe? Know from the start.

4. Get Everything in Its Place = Mize En Place

You must get everything together for the recipe before preparing it. That means equipment, seasonings, ingredients, oven pre-heated – everything! You must have the allocated work space. You must have arranged access to the oven or range or candy table. Everything must be ready.

Does this mean you can’t be innovative or creative? No. The best creativity comes from when you are prepared and something serendipitous falls into your hands!

5. Share the Fun and the Credit

Cooking should be a collaborative effort. The best meals of my life were with groups of talented cooks who prepared ad hoc meals. Egos were set aside and ideas were shared so the meal could just happen.

If we respect the food, and each other, we can have a great deal of fun while we create the occasion.

6. Timing Is Everything

I apprenticed for a German Master Chef. He was demanding.

“Ziegler, what did they teach you in that damn school?”

This was a rhetorical question.

But Chef could turn a twelve top almost by himself with items like rack of lamb to pancakes with marionberry sauce and ten entrées in between, and ALL 12 would come out at the SAME TIME!

Timing is everything.

7. Wash Your Hands and Clean As You Go

Be a professional! Make food safety your first concern.

8. Less Is More

The American menu is a tremendous source of ridicule by the rest of the culinary world. Restaurant is not spelled B-U-F-F-E-T. There are times and occasions for that, but they are rare.

Learn the menu planning techniques of M.F.K. Fisher and Harold McGee. Learn food history and how to prepare and serve items that complement one another in terms of palate satiation.

9. Serve More Than One Vegetable

Be bold enough to teach your customers about food. Create great entrées, but also serve the fibrous vegetables your customers need for great health. We eat more carbohydrates than we should. Make the change.

10. If You Can Read and You Care, You Will Be a Great Cook

The food industry needs more professionals who care about the food prepared and served. If you recognize your talents or passion are less than, step aside. What our industry needs is more true professionals that aren’t on their way to somewhere else.