Page 27 - Naked Foodies - July 2021

When I first chopped an onion, I quickly realised that, as a professional chef, I had done this same task countless times without actually looking at my hands. I would be watching over a pan on the stove or eyeballing something on the grill, perhaps even shouting at a commis chef, while the blade was slicing away next to my bent knuckles. I soon realised that working with a smaller knife is easier. My serrated Victorinox steak knife works perfectly. I also came to understand that working on a board with some sort of edge, would help me to keep in place whatever I am vigorously chopping so I could find it once done.
These insights led me to figure that in a pro kitchen, the eyes are not always the most important tool. The remaining four senses play as much of a vital role.
Yes, I know that it’s commonly said that, people eat with their eyes. I guess my years of experience help me to make the plate look appealing. I know my ingredients and am able to still position things neatly and somewhat artistically. You won’t catch me making little food towers though, that died long before my sight.
Smell comes into play so often. Distinguishing the difference between oregano, parsley and thyme, for example, is as simple as a sniff.
Sound also comes into play. The sound of a lamb cutlet searing in a pan changes as it cooks. At first, the sizzle is much louder and faster. By the time the meat is cooked to medium, the sizzle is almost totally gone.
Taste is the one that goes without saying. If a chef in my employ ever neglected to taste the wares, they were quickly and abruptly ejected from my kitchen.
So how can ‘touch’ really help? Well, how about the texture of a rib-eye steak when cooking. You may know the thumb/finger trick of feeling your palm edge to know if the cut is rare, medium or well-done. I say well-done, but actually mean, ruined. Side note: please don’t order well-done meat or expect to be shunned from any eatery worth its salt.
My culinary career was vivid and vivacious. I worked with exotic and exciting ingredients. There were spectacular cakes and decadent desserts. When my sight faded to zero, I was lost and truly believed that I would never again man a grill. I was wrong.
Blind American chef, Christine Hà is a prime example of what can be achieved. She won the Master Chef competition, when Gordon Ramsey was least expecting it. Her taste pallet is believed to be heightened and she is able to bring sumptuous meals together by leveraging the flavours from her Vietnamese heritage.
Since losing my sight, 7 years prior to writing these very words, I have learned to adapt my tools and techniques in the kitchen. This does not always mean that a special piece of accessible kit is needed. Sometimes it’s the simplest tricks that work. Raised brail bump stickers applied to the microwave keypad help me find the right numbers. My finger held over the lip of a glass as I pour in my tipple lets me know when the liquid is about to flood the table. Organising the fridge and cupboards has made it almost always possible to find what I need. There was that one time where a can of peach slices ended up in a ragù sauce, rather than the diced Italian tomatoes I expected to find. It was not bad though. An interesting confusion of flavours.
In my experience, the golden rule is as always, keep things simple and don’t get to the point that you are not entirely confident in your meals. This just leads to pantry panic, where nervous chefs keep running back for another unnecessary adornment from the pantry.
Since going blind, my culinary repertoire has changed a lot. This, however, is not a result of my sight loss. I have evolved and learned that the way you see things, is not nearly as important as the way you experience the other four senses while cooking and devouring the meal.
Some people think that a blind person has their other senses heightened after going blind. This is both true and not. It’s not an escalation but more of a strange phenomenon. The best way I can explain it is to compare myself to a computer with limited RAM.