COOKINGS AND HOW IT BEGINS
My Amma is a great cook and I’m forever grateful for this blessing. I’ve always wanted to follow her footsteps for each and everything especially cooking.
I am not a foodie but I enjoyed her cookings. Just like every ordinary Indian family, my family too has been practicing vegetarian every Friday.
Okay, a self-denial here which I wanted to share.
I don’t prefer vegetarian food every week but for any important occasion then definitely I would do. I would rather be fasting on those Fridays or eat only a very little portion than usual. And that too I do it because of Amma. I knew she had cooked for all of us. So, I don’t want to disappoint her. And besides that, she cooked at our shop house kitchen. It is not easy and comfortable sometimes. That blazing sun caused a very scorching heat on the roof. But she never complained anything about it.
My cooking history will be this.
I’ve been cooking the simplest and easiest food since young. I think it all started when I’m 10 years old. Then it went on like that till I’m 18.
During this age, I was more interested in bakings. I would try out more bakings and pastries at home. In the age of 20, is when I started cooking by myself for my family.
Do you agree that in the presence of our mother right there, we will definitely ask all the doubts even the simplest and silliest one also to our mother when cooking? And we got our doubts clear just in seconds? So that was what I was doing whenever Amma is right beside me.
There are several occasion when my parents were away abroad and I can’t be depending on my Amma to clear my sudden doubts in the midst of my cooking. So this kind of situations helped me to build my confidence in cookings.
So, here are few of my unforgettable experience. The first will be when my Amma and Akka were away abroad and I was with my father and two younger brothers. So I got to cook for them. I recorded a few cooking procedures with amma so that I don’t get stuck when I’m cooking. And honestly, those audios and videos helped me when I prepared food for the boys at home. I was actually still dependable as I had someone elder than me at home during that time. So that was one good experience for me. Then it went on. I cooked occasionally at home.
Then again when I was 21, Amma and Appa were away abroad, and only we, the children were at home. I still had my akka right beside me and we were dependent on each other when it comes to cooking. So it was still okay for us and we did pretty well.
In the meantime, I cooked occasionally as Amma will be there to cook all the time. It went on and on just like that. Sometimes I’ll do the side dishes while helping amma.
And then, here comes a challenge for me last year when Amma and Appa were away abroad again and akka was away working. This time it was three of us at home for 10 days. We did the usual routine. We went to shop and I had classes too. I cooked for my brothers and two workers. I said it was challenging because this time, I am only dependent on myself. It was only me to put the food on the table for them as I don’t prefer much on outside food. And honestly, it was a beautiful experience for me. I learned many things.
I experienced something different and this is what I meant.
The menu planning
The preparation
The food combination
The rush
The eye keeping on time moment
The doubtful moment
The confusion
The outcome
The cleanliness
The fear and almost everything.
I felt that I’ve grown more matured to handle things more clearly especially for cooking.
