Just another old note found!
There are times when ,as a cook, you just have to let it go, and others, pull back. Today was a day when I was looking forward to wing night. Not that wings are something special in this day and age but `wing nite` meant a chance to relax , put my feet up, enjoy some wings and a movie. A kind of tradition that breaks my usual routine after supper. This morning as I was getting my ducks in a row ( desserts, cookies, etc) I saw that the chief cook had gotten the wings out for the night and was about to marinate them in chicken powder base and Italian dressing(!!!!!!!). It was one such time to let it go and ask him if I could just take some plain and cook them after the supper rush. It was no problem of course but you see, he would marinate them and then bread them! For a wing lover, for putting my feet up, relaxing with a movie I had to get in there and get my plain wings. On that note, the day(my end of day) was saved.
Things I have learned that I cannot do....
1)marinate wings, pork, chicken and prime steaks in Kraft Italian dressing, zesty or not, no fucking way.
2)use two day old frozen, cooked beans three days later.
3)keep the same three sink washing method waters, ALL DAY(when he is not looking or around, I take all the small stuff and run it through the dishwashing machine)
4)not season my hamburgers, and to not bake them in the oven
5)serve roast beef dinner, and then 4 meals from it over 7 days...hot roast beef sandwiches, lanchestershire hot pot, soup, braised (smothered) steak,
6)make a crisis out of the fact that the process cheese slices are low and we may have to slice real cheddar.
7)salad are the following selection; pasta. Macaroni and yes, zesty italian or for a real change 1000 island, potato is always Miracle whip and leftover mash, maybe for spice , some leftover peas and carrots;..on this trip I got lucky as the store keeper (the one who writes up the menus) put down `chef's choice` for salad and while this broke with the chief cook's `tradition`, I was thankful as I could now play abut with ingredients and styles.
make sandwiches with lettuce and tomato that is not washed.
Anyhow sea time goes on and there are a lot of stories to put down and time, my lazy companion, pushes me to do so, at some point.,.....
Did I ever mention `build your own taco night`...one time on the Tuvaq(a Woodward's ship) in the high arctic I decided to do tacos and to make it easier on me, get the crew to build their own. The way it worked on that ship was the officers and crew sat together around a big table with a huge lazy susan in the middle. It was full fo the usual stuff, condiments, salads and I put the taco toppings there as well. On a sideboard was a hot plate type of set up where I would put my mains, sides and the like. So on this day I got ready, had everything out and then at 430(skipper always ate early, and we could be out by 5 or so) and put the insert of taco mat on the side hot plate. The first guys walk in, and I am in the galley cleaning up when about 15 minutes later a crew member walks in and asks me for more taco meat. I go out to see what is going on and the first two guys took the whole container and dumped it on their plates, covering it with ketchup...lesson learned....
Did you also know that gravy is its' own food group; On the Grenfell(coast guard) there was a guy I began to call gravy bobby. He would walk up to get his lunch and supper and every time would ask `is there gravy`. At first I would answer yes or no but noticed that this occurred at every meal. One day serving pasta with meat sauce, you guessed it, `is there gravy`. Fish, chicken, egg rolls, you name it. Gravy bobby was so bad that he once asked me at breakfast! I guess I should have not put on hash browns!
.......on the Alexander(coast guard) no gravy ray would do the same...if there was no gravy he would opt for something else. He could not have fries, mash, boiled or most meats with out gravy.
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