I grow hot peppers (several different varieties) and have developed a line of fruit+pepper jams. I am trying to make this little hobby into a business.
I have learned that it is illegal for me to sell any food product I make in my home. It has to be made in a commercial, inspected kitchen. I understand that probably no chef would allow me to use their kitchen until I’ve completed a certified food handler’s course.
My question to you is: What other incentives could I offer when I am running around town trying to get a chef or restaurant owner to rent their kitchen to me on their off hours so I can produce my product?
I do not live in an area large enough to support one of those co-op kitchen things. I would love to do that. Is there some other avenue you could think of that would get me into a commercial kitchen aside from begging chefs and restaurateurs to rent me some space?
Laws in different states may be different, but the State of Florida’s web site was pretty specific about it.
At this point, it is not an option to have my home kitchen certified because I have three animals and cannot keep them out of the kitchen–they eat in there too. My understanding is that it has to be a separate space, under a different roof, than your regular living space. I could purchase a camper or trailer (if there was room on my property for such a thing) and have a completely separate kitchen space that could be certified. I’m in no position to make such a commitment until the recipes are stabilized (and formulized) and more research is done.
Renting space from a church might be just the thing. I’ll look into that. There’s a church on my block that might be open to it, and that would make it easy because I only have to walk down the street.
Funny aside: That church has a sign on their bus that makes me laugh. “A going church for a coming Christ.”
If Barack Obama/Queen Elizabeth II/Jesus Christ [or someone else that you admire] showed up at your home and said “You have one chance to make something that will impress me; go for it,” what would you make?
I am a self-taught cook and have really been upping my game the last several years. I specialize in/prefer French and Caribbean. I’ve been toying with the idea of chucking this corporate thing and trying my hand at opening a bistro catering to those two culinary regions, given the not-too-surprising-when-you-think-about-it similarities they have in common.
I don’t have any questions for you yet, but I wanted to chime in as to how much I’m enjoying this thread so far.
Do you have any moral objections to the way certain gourmet meats are derived, like veal or, say, foie gras?
What is your favorite preparation of foie gras? Surely you’ve made it in one form or another after 25 years in the business.
What in your opinion is the most food-worthy wine in terms of its ability to pair with the largest variety of foods?
If you had your druthers and an unlimited budget, would you have your own restaurant be more comfort-food oriented or more of a nouveau cuisine type of place?
I agree with the others that this is an entertaining thread. My career path is very similar to yours. I was very brash and bold, which served me very well in competitive markets like NY and Boston.
Someone referenced Anthony Bourdain. Reading his first book really took me back to the start of everything. It’s uncanny how similar my experiences were to those in the book.
Its amusing, to me in particular, that you mention you are OCD. I assume you meant it quite literally. I worked those crazy hours for 25 years…went months without a day off. People thought I was crazy, and was going to work myself to death. In reality I friggin loved every stressful minute of it, and never met anyone that could out- work, much less out-cook me. I know for a fact that having bipolar disorder was a major factor regarding stamina, passion, and insane pride. I wonder if we have ever crossed paths.
Anyway, I’ve taken the last 6 years off to see my kids though highschool. The job, in addition to some old football injuries have destroyed my knees. I’m having a total replacement of my left one next month. How old a guy are you? I’m 47, I imagine you are feeling a little bit of the effects of all that time on your feet. Its been a pretty lucrative career, and I’m entertaining the idea of getting back into the game once I heal up.
Just wanted to say howdy to a comrade, and continued success.
Oh, and if you are anywhere near the Kenai penninsula, I set up camp there every July and fish for a couple weeks. Would love to sample your wares.
A few years ago I went to a lunch with Anthony Bourdain. This was about the time of the first Gordon Ramsey TV appearance the documentary series Boiling Point, about him trying to get a Michelin award. He wasn’t then the industry he is now. Someone asked Bourdain whether Ramsey is as big an asshole as he appears to be on camera and the answer was yes and no.
Apparently he behaves that badly most of the time but he said many big name chefs do, it’s very high pressure work. Ramsey’s staff love him dearly and work with him for years. At the end of every shift they cook up a meal for themselves, sit down and eat, laugh off all the invective and get ready for tomorrow. He said that while he was there he thought they were a very good crew.
Bourdain said that top end kitchens aren’t for the faint of heart.
I worked in a middle-eastern grill for a while during college, on a lark at first, though I eventually got to genuinely like the place. I had read The Kitchen Confidential by Bourdain and I found this place, though tiny, to be a little microcosm of the places he talked about working in early in his career. The other guys in the kitchen were shady as hell. Dishwasher/prep cook was a convict and very scary/pathetic - he was later fired for stealing. But damn could he crank out the food, and it looked good too. He was a crazy sonofabitch and completely on the fringe of society, utterly unpresentable to any polite company, but he cranked out meal after meal after meal, all of them tasty and well-presented with artistic style.
Is this how it is in the kitchens the OP has worked in? A lot of ex-convicts who are outcasts and rejects from normal society, but insanely good at the menial but crucial tasks of working in the kitchen, and able to hold up under extreme pressure and crank out order after order after order?
Or is the kitchen staff more “polite,” more well educated and less shady nowadays? What’s the difference between the line cooks at a regular restaurant, like some local steakhouse, and at a really fine, upscale kitchen?
When Gordon Ramsey left Aubergine to start his own restaurant, every one of his chefs followed with him. Say what you like about the man but the people who work under him have been fanatically loyal to him.
**What’s been your worst injury in the kitchen? **
I’ve spent 8 years in a couple of kitchens. I’ve gotten about 5 good size burn-scars on my forearms that are never going away. I would imagine after 25 years of 80+ hours weeks in a kitchen has to lead to a hell of a lot of burns/nearly severed fingers.
I know you said your knife preference was basically “one that works,” but I do have a couple of maintenance questions.
My primary knives are Henckels, but I also have a 10" Cutco that I use for breakdown/high volume chopping and an 8" Cold Steel Kitchen Classics that get a lot of use. The Henckels don’t seem to retain an edge worth beans and are the most difficult to resharpen.
I’ve used just about every knife sharpener method available: one of the dual slotted coarse/fine V sets, a guided carbon wheel and a fine diamond dust stone are the current ones in inventory, and of course I steel them after every use. I’ve been around knives since childhood and know how to put a a good razor edge on one; so I’m thinking it’s not likely a technique thing. Is there a particular tool or method you recommend to put on and retain a good edge on a mid-range knife?
Oh, as an aside, I took my most commonly used knives to Sur La Table for sharpening. They use a Global Mino. I should have saved myself the $1/inch and week wait. They came back barely sharper than when I dropped them off.
He has to eat, sure, that’s his problem. My problem is, if I piss off the Captain, I’m in a world of hurt - NOTHING goes my way. If I piss off the cook, I’m hungry a lot, and my food sucks, but otherwise okay.
Curiously, in 12 years at sea, I only ever saw someone piss off the cook badly once, and it was a pretty innocent thing. The Chief Scientist nuked her bacon because it was underdone to her taste- the Cook took offense, and was uncivil to her for the next 2 weeks. She never booked the ship again, so that was millions of dollars that went to a different R/V
Hm. Maybe I should do an ‘Ask the former Oceanographer’ thread.
I don’t want to spend my time cleaning pots and pans while I’m entertaining:
I’m thinking of having a pasta party wherein the guests can take a plate of spaghetti and choose from a variety of sauces. How can I "hold’ the pasta say in foil pans without it becoming sticky?
How can I “hold” prime rib in the oven without it overcooking? I want it cooked and sliced and in the pan ready to go when the guests arrive.
