Why you should and what you’re missing out on — A few months ago, I decided to ferment something that most people told me I was fucking crazy to try and ferment. It was pork, and that pork went into one of the best salads I’ve made in my life.

But it’s not the real problem — Note: In an attempt to manage my perfectionism, I’ve written this in one sitting with little to no editing and published it as is. Considerably different from how I normally do things. More on my usual process below. Perfectionism is a bailout for not being responsible and doing what we…

From somebody in the industry — It was already 9:00 PM, and everybody was starving. The food was nowhere near ready. I was doomed. The kitchen was a nightmare, and 15 hungry people waited patiently, and I was still cutting vegetables. I’d bitten off more than I could chew again. Isn’t cooking meant to be fun…

and finding pleasure in simple home cooking — “Tanto el más rico, cómo el más pobre, nos enchilamos con la misma salsa.” — quote from The Taco Chonicles (Netflix) "Both the richest and the poorest get spiced from the same sauce." I realized something the other day while stuffing my face at one of Mexico City's seemingly-infinite street…

They’ll work for any language — I’ve been speaking Spanish for about four years, and I got fluent in about two. People often compliment me on how well I speak, and they tend to think it’s crazy that an Australian sounds so Colombian. Believe me when I say that I’m not trying to brag but to…

And a recipe to get you started — I don’t know how you’re feeling right now, but you’d probably feel better if you’d just made some yogurt. Out of all of my kitchen projects, yogurt undoubtedly gives me the most satisfaction. Yogurt and granola is the best breakfast there is. I’ll tell you that while I’m on my…

Exploring Thai curry paste in its many forms — The last year or so has had me diving deep into, and trying to comprehend, the seemingly endless world of Thai curry, or gaeng, a part of Thai cuisine that needs some elaboration because it exists so arbitrarily in the mind of most people in the west. And I was…

Why it’s time to give up on a term that has lost all meaning — Authentic food, as we understand it, is bullshit. That was the realization that dawned on me as I continued to stubbornly pound ginger into a Thai curry paste a while back. “Ginger is not a substitute for galangal”, so I’ve been told. It’s true, ginger isn’t a substitute for galangal…

A plant-based shrimp paste alternative from Northern Thailand — Nothing brings Southeast Asian flavors together quite as well as shrimp paste. Okay, maybe knowledge, skill, and love for cooking, but mainly shrimp paste… I used to be vegetarian, and of the few things that spoiled plant-based, Southeast Asian recipes — that is, those that normally aren’t — for me…