Cooking Inspiration Found In Restaurants (original) (raw)

When you go out to eat, what type of cuisine do you usually end up ordering? We all have our number one favorite> However, there are a few of us that like to cook, but would instead enjoy our favorite foods at a restaurant. If you too, like to cook, it is almost a sure thing that, you also love to go out to eat on occasion, to taste your favorite cuisine. It may surprise you, that restaurants make an excellent place to find inspiration for your own cooking as well.

Favorite Restaurants

Do you have a regular place that you prefer to have dinner at? Your own restaurant experiences can be applied to find new ways to prepare food that you love. First thing to do is to make a list of the restaurants you go to. Then, try to remember what they have, that you always come back for. Maybe it is the method that they cook the food that is appealing. Or, is it because of the elegant atmosphere? Once you have pondered upon these issues, then you can start to use them to improve your personal cooking and the comfort level of your eating area.

Take A Close Look At The Menu

We each have a personal cooking style, that enhances our eating. If you take a good look at the restaurant menu, you can get an idea of the kind of ingredients and seasonings that the chef prefers. Then, you can jot down the special items that look interesting and very delicious. Afterwards, you can try out some of these new recipes, seasonings or whatever idea came from the notes that you wrote down.

For example, say you ordered an orange duck dish that was so yummy, that you got a second helping. While you were looking over the menu, you zoomed in on the orange duck, made a mental note that is was roasted over an open fire and marinated in a sweet and sour orange sauce. The method of cooking and the kind of sauce sounded delicious to you. After your orange duck arrived, you were delighted that it also smelled as good as it sounded on the menu. This is the time to write down some notes, like how the duck was roasted, how long did it marinate in the sauce and that maybe only fresh oranges and honey went into the sauce.

Go To Chef Classes

For a more direct approach, you can get the cooking techniques from your favorite restaurant by inquiring if the chef offers classes where you live. Then, you can practice their techniques during their classes and learn from a professional. Once you have mastered these new skills, you can apply them in your own kitchen and enjoy your favorite dishes anytime.

Try New Cuisines

So you can get to know new cuisines, it is a good idea go eat it at the restaurant first. This is a critical key to enable you to learn how the food normally tastes. By trying it at the restaurant first, you can compare against your own cooked version and be able to determine if it was cooked properly. This gives you a guide, verses trying to guess how to cook it, before having ever tasted it.

To learn more cooking ideas, you can easily find on the Internet, an ebook that discusses everything you ever wanted to know about cooking, but never dared to ask. Then, you can enhance your restaurant and cooking experiences even more.

About the Author: Tom Straub is an accomplished editor, and webmaster of the Best Cooking Light web site, where you can read more on home cooking and a dozen other cooking topics.