Don’t tell anyone, but I might’ve been a little bit dorky as a kid (not that I’ve changed much). I was freckly and quirky with all sorts of big, bizarre dreams. I would read cookbooks and food magazines, watch Two Fat Ladies and Yan Can Cook! on TV, and fantasize about becoming a chef.
Yes, a chef! That may have seemed like a stretch for a boy who grew up eating boxed mac and cheese, but that’s what I wanted.
I graduated from The French Culinary Institute in Manhattan, then landed a gig working the line at a fancy restaurant. And then, in a “pinch me” moment, I got a job at Food & Wine. Today, in the F&W Test Kitchen, I do everything from create recipes to invent wonderfully oddball kitchen hacks for my video series, Mad Genius Tips. I even get to cook on television and in front of live audiences.
At F&W, I’m often tasked with taking recipes developed by chefs and simplifying them for the home cook. That might mean trimming a ridiculously long ingredient list, coming up with a clever shortcut so a dish doesn’t take twelve hours to make, or tweaking a method so it’s essentially foolproof. I promise, I’m totally humble, but I’ve become quite the expert. After years of adapting recipes from superstar chefs like Thomas Keller and David Chang, I know when you really have to sift the flour or peel the tomatoes and when it’s okay to skip that step. I know when a soup needs to be strained and when it’s perfectly delicious as is.
Still, if you ask me, you can’t do this kind of work well unless you understand how people really cook at home. And that was the lesson of my entire childhood. I grew up in Stockton, California, in the agriculturally rich Central Valley, with two brothers, three sisters, lots of cousins, and loads of nieces and nephews. It seemed like our refrigerator door was always open. We didn’t have much money, but we lived sensibly and had our own tricks for making food more affordable.
My grandma Barbara, for instance, would create incredible meals practically out of thin air. She’d doctor instant ramen with all kinds of flavorings, then zap it in the microwave; transform eggs, an inexpensive staple of our diet, into a kind of homespun soufflé; and churn ice cream in a blender that was forever on its last leg. She didn’t give these recipes formal names. Instead, she just cooked with what little she had, and we ate it.
Looking back, I’m blown away by how much my grandma accomplished. I think she knew her food was delicious, but not how much fun I thought it was, or how much it inspired me. Sometimes I wish so hard that I could go back in time and tell her that I paid attention, even if it seemed like no one else in the world did, and thank her. Though my skills have improved since I left home and went to culinary school—seriously, my tuna salad has come a very long way—my grandma made me the cook I am today.
Because I’m a nostalgic person, I’ve filled this book with reinventions of my childhood favorites as well as faster versions of the classic dishes—Caesar salad, beef bourguignon, lasagna—so many of us crave. Over the years it’s become clear to me that home cooks (ahem, this means you!) are far savvier than they’re usually given credit for. So while all my recipes are no-fuss and reliable to their core, they will push you to think in new ways. The food in Just Cook It! is creative, fresh, surprising, often healthy, and always delicious.
I became a professional cook because I’m crazy about food and love to feed others. When I worked in restaurants, the job was stimulating and rigorous, but just a bit unfulfilling because I wasn’t interacting with the people who were eating what I made. Since then, I’ve had the opportunity to gain what I was missing. And no, I’m not talking about the extra pounds around my waist, but rather the experience of connecting with my audience. Whether I’ve met you at an event or communicated with you through Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram, it’s been all sorts of incredible. I love it! And I thank you for it.
So, just to be sure we’re all on the same page, can we agree that we all want to prepare tasty and impressive recipes? That we love to entertain, be entertained, and cook for fun? That we appreciate oldies but goodies even if ultimately we want versions that are easier and oh so modern? I wrote this book because I know we’re all looking for uncomplicated recipes that work every time, and that are exciting and new. I wrote this book for you. So just cook it!