Book Review: D.I.Y Cooking Handbook

In a modern world characterised by speed and convenience, the New York Time’s D.I.Y. Cooking Handbook by Julia Moskin looks like an anachronism, a relic of eras gone, when people actually had time.

The recipe for preserved lemons, for example, calls to “close the jar and let [lemons] ripen at cool room temperature, shaking the jar every day for 3 to 4 weeks,” while its vin d’orange recipe instructs to mix ingredients in a jar and shake occasionally. “After about 6 weeks, mix in 1/4 cup dark rum,” comes the next instruction.

Recipes that must sustain our attention for six weeks? Wouldn’t it be easier to go to the store?

Perhaps. But in the intro, Moskin promises these recipes are “small kitchen projects that any cook can tackle.” Moreover, she writes, ‘‘Making some of your own staples is... enormously gratifying’’ and the recipes are ‘‘simple, seasonless and a clear improvement on the store-bought version.”

Intrigued, and sold by the reassurance that these recipes are doable even if one lives “in an apartment, or tend[s] to let surplus vegetables die in the crisper drawer”, the apron was dug out of the cupboard and the projects were put to the test.

The Chinese chilli scallion oil was pure delight - so simple to make it really was easier than going to the store. A spot of preparation and the slowly simmering spices and oils were left to infuse, the fragrance of sesame oil, in particular, leaving the kitchen with a faint, pleasant aroma.

Unfortunatley, the tomato chilli jam wasn’t nearly as pleasant to make. The simmering pot of jam left the air with an unpleasant, acidic taste, thanks to the vinegar. And the whole process was rather messy, with mushy tomatoes and sticky, caramelising sugars sticking to the benchtop but at least it provided opportunities to “taste-test”. The end result , however, delivered Moskin’s promise of a ‘‘global, hip [and] sexy’’ update on ketchup, and was a sure-fire win.

The home-cured tesa, similar to bacon or pancetta, was the real test. Described by Paul Bertolli, author of Cooking By Hand, as the ‘‘easiest home-curing project’’, it wasn’t clear throughout the process if he was being sarcastic or genuine. The proper curing salt had to be sourced (only one out of the eight butchers questioned were able to provide it), the spices had to be ground, the space had to be cleared to store the meat and when drying, the meat left a faint but nasty smell in the fridge (and also scared a few other household members who had not been advised a big chunk of raw, spice-covered meat would be staring at them as they opened the fridge). However, the resulting meat, so far used in a similar way to bacon, has been declared ‘‘amazing’’ and any dishes in which it’s been used have been gobbled up, with nary a leftover in sight.

With each recipe attempted so far deemed a huge success, perhaps the D.I.Y. approach has merit. It might take a little longer, but as Ezio Manzini and Giacomo Mojoli, the men behind the Slow Food movement, suggest,‘‘it is not possible to produce and appreciate quality if we do not allow ourselves the time to do so’’.

Image and words by Annette Lin