At the outset – thought of making this a single write up – but making it a two part set, considering what I learnt and eventually ended up from a thought process.

 

So I have lived my entire life as having been fed – I guess that is where most typical Indian males have a commonality across all ages. From birth to death – many go through this model of being fed – either by the mothers during the early part of their infancy / school life and then the addition of the wife feeding the man – the mother never losing her subtle inputs and reminders. Some are blessed (or not) that they never see the inside of a kitchen all their life – some may be extra blessed that they spend the majority of their life inside the kitchen (by choice or by sheer luck of finding a strong other half) – each being happy in their zones

No exception to the rule – the only time that broke this chain was during the College Hostel days for a good number of years – but then – thank God – Hostel and College Canteens rule the roost – and with road side vendors operating in your zone 24*7 – you are never short on a variety of options on breakfast / lunch and dinner with each element even having the ability to shift timings.. Hey – we all get it ready made – right? One shudders to imagine what would be the condition of Indian students going to college where there no street vendors or college canteens. Students live there – grow up there more than what they grew up in their own homes. Of course, if you are in the West – you don’t step into the canteen – that is only for losers considering the crappy food.. All those serials showing jazzy canteens in American serials – are just that – screensavers.

So after quite a few decades of living the glorious (as in being fed) life and never having the need or the aptitude or the interest to cook – landed into an long forgotten but memorable territory of living alone for some time.. The better half was travelling – the motherly dishes were limited – being in different cities – was in a spot of a bother as to how to manage. Now, not that I am one of those blessed souls who are clueless on how the Gas stove comes on – or where is the Gas connection – I can surely make a cup of tea, a bowl of rice and a sandwich, boil water (thank god for kettles and microwaves) – hardly items that I could survive on for more than one day. Yes, the online grocers were well and available – but surely Haldiram’s Bhujiyas, Namkeen, Pizza Hut / Dominos Pizzas, Pepsis too were not a viable choice – both from a financial perspective, or from managing some weight control perspective.

Yes – I had seen the ladies of the house cook for years – but then if by glancing I could have improved by cooking skills – hey – I could have joined NASA, watching all those space documentaries. The alternates extinguishing very fast and time having a wonderful habit of passing by (extremely fast when you are facing a problem) – it was a bold decision to step into the kitchen for getting into territories that I had never entered into. Switching on the cooking gas for making something else other than a cup of tea seemed no different than learning how to surgically split a frog without making a mess of it. Succeed I eventually did, however prior to that, the tens of sayings did come to mind – And as the sayings go, when pushed to the wall – you push back or get pushed in. No pain – No gain. Success comes to those who strive towards it.. Hard work never went unpunished.. and the blah and the bleu… Hail Mary, Praise the Lord and onwards we go… And into the lion’s den, you step in.

The initial phase was no less than traumatic. Little did I realize that an initial induction entailed understanding the tens of utensils that existed in the kitchen – each having it’s own purpose (one realizes now why the sink is always full). Then the different pots and pans – the Iron, Steel, Aluminum ones – each having its own peculiarities, some burn slow, some burn fast, some on extended use change the flavours of the food; the herbs, the spices, identifying quality fresh vegetables and how long do these stay fresh – Lord, the list seemed endless. Just when you think you have understood it all – you realize that you now need to remember as to which drawer has what and for what must remain in what order. Hey – we men don’t own the kitchen – the women of the house do – so in their territory – even when visiting – we follow the rules.  I must say the first day was daunting enough to change my mind and ordering a pizza and outside food.

Well, the day dawned and finally upon convincing myself that either I shell out for Pizzas day in and out – took the bold call of either conquering or being conquered. The first mindset was the typical thought process.. Hey – the wife has a collection of Cooking books, plus her own recipes, how difficult will it be to read them – all I need to do is read and Voila!!!! Dish exquisite!! Little did I know that having the book in your library is one element – reading and comprehending it – as a non Chef or a cook is another. I must add the mindset did come in – If will cook – will be MasterChef Michelin Star quality or nothing and exotic dishes at that – but reading the various famous Chef books – those dreams seemed far far away.

More to follow on Part 2…..

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