Sam Sifton, head of the New York Times’s Cooking section, teaches a love-lorn Millennial how to cook one perfect meal. They discuss the connection between cooking skills and love life, the versatility of Shopify for sales, and cooking chicken with olive oil. Plus, sponsored ads from Discover, Apple Card, and Slate Plus.
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Quick takeaways
Confidence is key when cooking for someone, focusing on serving a delicious and well-prepared meal that brings joy to the other person.
Mastering basic cooking techniques and presenting the meal well, including seasoning meat, cooking rice, blanching vegetables, and arranging the food in an aesthetically pleasing manner, enhances the overall dining experience and shows thoughtfulness.
Deep dives
Improving in the kitchen to impress
In this podcast episode, a young man named Johnny seeks help to improve his cooking skills in order to impress his ex-girlfriend and become a better cook overall. He enlists the guidance of Sam Sifton, the food editor of The New York Times, who provides him with expert advice and a simple recipe for a perfectly cooked meal. Johnny learns the importance of confidence in the kitchen and the art of serving a delicious and visually appealing meal. Through Sam's instructions, Johnny gains the necessary skills to create a flavorful dish of skin-on bone-in chicken thighs, rice, and green beans. This episode highlights the power of cooking to bring pleasure and build confidence in both the cook and the person enjoying the meal.
The importance of confidence and simplicity
Sam Sifton emphasizes the importance of confidence and simplicity when cooking a meal for someone. He highlights the need to have confidence in one's abilities and to focus on serving a delicious, well-prepared meal that brings joy to the other person. Sam advises Johnny to keep the meal simple yet flavorful, using basic ingredients like chicken thighs, rice, and green beans. By following Sam's suggestions and being true to himself, Johnny gains the confidence to cook and deliver a pleasurable dining experience.
Mastering the basics and presentation
Sam Sifton explains the significance of mastering basic cooking techniques and being aware of the presentation of the meal. He suggests learning a few key cooking skills, such as seasoning meat, cooking rice using a rice cooker, and blanching vegetables. Sam also emphasizes the importance of plating the food well, using properly heated plates and arranging the items in an aesthetically pleasing manner. These small details enhance the overall dining experience and show thoughtfulness.
The final touch: dessert and avoiding apologies
Sam Sifton concludes the cooking lesson by recommending a simple yet delightful dessert: serving chocolate-covered nutter butters with cold organic milk. He advises Johnny not to apologize for any imperfections in the meal, urging him to remain confident and grateful for the opportunity to serve someone. Sam emphasizes that the goal is to bring pleasure and joy through cooking, and that being a good person is more important than attempting elaborate or overly complicated dishes.
Jonny is a 26 year-old bachelor whose cooking often leads to heartache (and for one ex-girlfriend, a stomach ache). Jonny admits he’s a klutz in the kitchen, so we hooked him up with Sam Sifton, cookbook raconteur and head of the New York Times’s Cooking section. In this episode of How To! we see if we can teach our love-lorn Millennial to cook one perfect meal. Is romantic bliss just a well-browned chicken thigh away? (Recipe included!)
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