Basic crème br û l é e, ready to serve Photo by Brad Sylvester, copyright 2011, all rights reserved One of the advantages of being a TV chef is that you generally have access to every kitchen appliance and gadget known to man. Most of us who cook at home for friends and family simply don’t have all of the high tech gear we see on shows like Iron Chef . There are, however, a number of inexpensive gadgets that we can accumulate over time, which can help us to prepare and present our dishes like a TV chef or like a top quality restaurant. For example, if you watch many cooking shows, you’ve undoubtedly seen one or more TV chefs using a torch. Although it is possible with considerable practice to use a blow torch from the tool shed to achieve the same effect. The size and extreme heat of such a large torch makes it unwieldy, dangerous, and difficult to control, especially for delicate dishes like the restaurant dessert classic crème br û l é e. Sifting through the infr...
I enjoy watching a great many cooking shows on television. Although most of them gloss over the actual cooking in favor of reality show drama, occasionally there is something to be learned there. This blog will detail some of those lessons and provide general commentary of TV chefs and cooking shows, as well as offering some of my own favorite recipes and cooking techniques.