Is cooking like sex?!
I am a serious cook who loves stimulating the senses. I have found by doing a few simple things: eg. changing the ambient smell (smell of room), changing cutlery (weight shape amount of food on the cutlery) etc to create new experiences can dramatically affect the dining experience.
I started to think this is like how people create sparks in their sex life because they try something new and exciting (i have heard of doing it somewhere new because new smells, new surroundings make it feel like the first time - really new and exciting).
Sooo......has anyone got anymore suggestions of ways treat people's sense's to something new that I could adapt for cooking? Cooking or sex tips appreciated (im sure i could find out the underlying sense stimulation for sex tips and adapt it to cooking).
Many thanks,
An enthusiastic chef
Answers: This is a serious question: all input would be greatly appreciated.
I am a serious cook who loves stimulating the senses. I have found by doing a few simple things: eg. changing the ambient smell (smell of room), changing cutlery (weight shape amount of food on the cutlery) etc to create new experiences can dramatically affect the dining experience.
I started to think this is like how people create sparks in their sex life because they try something new and exciting (i have heard of doing it somewhere new because new smells, new surroundings make it feel like the first time - really new and exciting).
Sooo......has anyone got anymore suggestions of ways treat people's sense's to something new that I could adapt for cooking? Cooking or sex tips appreciated (im sure i could find out the underlying sense stimulation for sex tips and adapt it to cooking).
Many thanks,
An enthusiastic chef
Earthy flavors are sensual to most folks... like cremini and portabello mushrooms... truffles... smoky flavors in the foods like bacon/pancetta... pinot noir and the foods that classically match to it. Just the tiniest bit of truffle shaved into regular mac and cheese can make a HUGE difference and take you from comfort to sensuality.
The mouthfeel of soft cheeses works for some folks too... like a buttery brie or some goat cheeses blended with other ingredients into a spread for toasted baguette slices... ditto with soft meats like veal.
Stemwear is more sensual than regular drinking glasses, especially for women because we tend to run our fingers up and down the stem and play with the rim of the glass where we wouldn't do that with a standard tumbler. Wine glasses that are very pear-shaped, like a woman's body, are sexier and they allow for full view of the wine, lots of swirling to open it up and there's something decadent about having a glass with something so precious in it that you're only pouring it 1/4 to 1/3 full that is a bit indescribable. It helps you to savor the moment and each sip.
Fondue is an experience all by itself. Whether cheese or hot pot or chocolate, if you mix it right and have the right mood, it's very sensual. Again, use a little truffle oil in the cheese fondue, mushrooms in the hot pot and Bailey's or a nut liqueur in the chocolate (amaretto, frangelico, etc) to give it a deeper and more sensual quality.
Anything you eat by hand can be sensual... finger foods... but be creative. Roast cornish game hens, oven roast fingerling potatoes or sweet potatoes, oven roast asparagus spears, have a rustic bread torn into chunks... serve this meal with a thick, heavy cut glass goblet of Gruner Veltliner... and no eating utensils. One cloth napkin... your hands will be a bit messy, there will be lots of finger-licking, but your wineglass won't slip out of your hands and the cut glass hides the greasy smudges (because those can ruin the whole thing - lol) and this wine is THE only perfect pairing for asparagus.
Dessert... well... this is best summed up with some combination of cheeses (I love a good Maytag bleu), nuts (almonds and walnuts are the best) and honey (drizzled over the nuts - for now we're talking about the ones on the plate...) and a bit of dark chocolate. Serve with a decent port wine... warm and basic... life's simple pleasures.
The contrasts are stimulating. The sharpness of the cheese next to the sweetness of the honey, the crunch of the nuts and then the smooth silky chocolate... it's just like... your mouth is constantly taking in a new experience and you're constantly stimulated orally by the contrasting elements on the plate.
Some tips: Don't ever have floral scents in your dining area, not flowers or candles or room fresheners. If you have anything like this in the room, keep it mild and ambient, and limit yourself to vanilla, light cinnamon, mild spice, gentle herbs if you're careful... but you don't want to introduce a scent that will reduce the ability to smell the wine and the food. Scented candles on the dining table is particularly disturbing to me. It actually inhibits my ability to enjoy the nose on the wine and I feel like my mouth is full of whatever the scent is. So much of taste relies on smell...
Two recent diverse experiences I will share:
1) Went to a high end restaurant connected to a winery. Scented candles on the table. They were so intrusive I asked to have them removed. I couldn't believe they would do something to overpower the very delicate scent and flavor of the first wine we were served when we arrived.
2) Went to a Winemaker's Dinner at another local winery. Holiday festivities... tree... the whole nine yards... the tasting room was filled with scents of cinnamon and cloves... and that was perfect because the first wine served was a warm mulled wine very seasonally appropriate and the scent of the room just added to the pleasure and warmth of the flavor in my mouth. It's all about what you're serving and what goes with it.
I hope any of this helped. I love that there are others who don't think it's nuts to put that sort of attention to detail into the experience of food, sex, sensual pleasures of all varieties!
kinda
i mean some people watch the food nework like its porn
It's my to unwind after a stressful week
do role-play
You are right.
Could you imagine the explosion when
you combine both.
I like to feed my woman before,during and
after sex.
Mohamed
kissin don't last cookin do
Using colors in cooking. Bright reds and greens. Why do you think Vegas uses them?
Consider the orgies of the Greeks and Romans...food, wine and sex! It's not all just oysters as a stimulus; candles, flowers, fragrant foods and drinks. Be imaginative, something different that's what it takes.
Write a recipe with all the ingredients of love.
Simmer on low for 2-3 hours, then turn up the heat for 30 minutes until the full aroma fills the air. Season to taste and share the flavors of love. Let the taste buds savor the garnishment of ecstasy.
Eat slowly and Bon Appetite.
I have written a song close to that theme.
It might be like sex, if you really enjoy doing it.
However, I've been cooking in restaurants for years (not like sex at all).
As a matter of fact, cooking for a living is kinda of like banging your head against a wall..... It feels really good when you stop.