Menu
With time, I have come to understand the statement “Cooking With Love.” Making the perfect meal is not about having organic ingredients sourced from around the world. It has also not been about the service or the décor in the restaurant. Making the perfect dish is all about my attitude towards the whole process. From sourcing of the ingredients to waiting in the broth to boil to serving, the attitude matters. I learned that whatever I do as a chef, I have to do it with the intention of ensuring the guests enjoy.
Life as a chef is not all roses and sunshine. Like any other career, there are low moments when a recipe doesn’t turn out how you anticipated. There are days I have thrown a cake in the waste bin when it didn’t turn out sweet. These are all challenges you face when you need to create new recipes or tweak new ones. Ultimately, the happy moments will prevail when you learn not to give up.
Life as a chef has been about sipping, nibbling, and licking. It is about finding the perfect balance of ingredients. It is about finding the quantity at which certain ingredients bring out the best of certain meals. Before the day ends, I will have tasted cakes, meats, chocolates, pickles, sauces, and so many other foods. These are the moments that define me as a chef. These are my happy moments when I see the beauty of my skills and my hard work on a plate.
Bering a chef stays with me in and out of the kitchen. When I visit other restaurants, I cannot help but judge the food, the service, the décor, and so many other aspects of the restaurants I visit. I will spend the first minute after a meal is served trying to figure out what herb the chef used and why they chose the garnishing they used. I will know when the cardamom is a tad too strong and when the rice is missing something. This is what makes me a good chef.
I was not always good with herbs, spices, cakes, and many more meals. In fact, I washed dishes in the restaurant and shadowed chefs in a bid to learn more. I was eager to learn more and that is how I ended up near the chef and ultimately lead the kitchen.
You never stop learning. Even after being a chef for many years, I still seek more knowledge to hone my skills even more. I created this blog to satiate my other passion, writing, as I share my experiences and knowledge with chefs around the world.
I want chefs reading my blog to get inspired to build their career. It is a record of the life I live every day and the knowledge I garner from being in the industry for a long time. It is sometimes not easy working from Sunday to Sunday to build a business or build a career. But, at the end of the day, the work is fulfilling. I am not a superchef. I do not have medals to show but I have the knowledge, and love, and skills. Like Carla Hall says, you need to pour your love into each dish you make. This is what has made me better over the years.
I have worked with Italian chefs, worked in a few world-class wineries and restaurants, and I have given my all to scale up the levels and be where I am today. You can be better than you are today and I started this blog to ensure we all grow together. I am not where I want to be, yet. But I believe with hard work and a passion for cooking and food, I will get there.
Writer / Blog
Hi, there friends! Welcome to my Blog. Chef Carla Hall is my inspiration. For many years, now I have watched her make incredible meals out of the ordinary ingredients I have had in my refrigerator for so long. She calls it cooking with love and I could see were skills and culinary knowledge and experience.
© Copyright 2023 carlahallsouthernkitchen.com | All rights reserved | Designed by Pettiford Creatives