Foundations of a Recipe

Recipes are detailed cooking instructions that allows
a cook to replicate another person’s dish

Revised 3/28/20

Historically

From my perspective, four things had to occur before we could have widespread availability of recipes through cookbooks.

1. People had to widely learn to read and write
2. We needed mass produced printing capabilities
3. Enough books had to be printed to allow wide distribution
4. Prices for books had to drop so everyday people could own them

Literacy

Wikipedia writes, literacy emerged with the development of numeracy and computational devices as early as 8000 BCE. Other sources indicate that writing started ~3200 BCE in the Near East, China, and Mesoamerica concurrently. Either way, it started a long time ago.

Approximately a thousand years later after its invention, Wikipedia notes, folks started writing recipes: ancient Mesopotamian recipes have been found on three Akkadian tablets, dating to about 1700 BCE. Others sources document single recipes surviving from ancient Egypt, Greece, China, and Persia. But, most people were unable to read or write and “paper” was often stone or clay and later animal skin, so the audiences were limited.

Moving forward, more people started to learn to read and write, to where we are now. There are regional and gender-based disparities of course, but for the most part we are a literate world. In fact, the world literacy rate is currently understood to be ~84%.

Books

The History site writes, no one knows when the first printing press was invented, or who invented it, but the oldest known printed text originated in China, ~868 AD. Movable type was invented in China, mentioned as the Bi Sheng’s printing press, in the book Dream Pool Essays, written in 1086 by scientist Shen Kuo. Many hundreds of years later, Gutenberg came along, created his version of a printing press, and printed the Christian Bible in 1492.

Cook Books

CultureTrip has an interesting web page listing the oldest cookbooks.

• Three clay tablets dating back to 1700 BC may just be the oldest cookbooks in the world… the recipes only listed the ingredients and no actual directions
• Ibn Sayyar al-Warraq wrote a cookbook, Kitab al-Ṭabīḫ (The Book of Dishes) in ~950 AD and contains 600+ recipes
• Daz Buch von Guter Spise (The Book of Good Food) published ~1350 AD is the oldest German Cookbook
• Forms of Cooking is the first modern English cookbook published in 1390
• Smithsonian writes that American Cookery, published in 1796 was USA’s first cookbook at 47 pages long
• In more modern times, 1982, the first Internet Usenet cooking oriented newsgroup (net.cooks) was created

Now, with the universal use of the Web, as one website writes, there are more recipes than atoms in the universe. 

Components of a Recipe

Ratios As Measurements

Cooking did not have consistent measuring containers. So a recipe might indicate 1 cup of something, but if you are using a tea cup and I have a coffee mug we clearly have a difference in volume. Thus, ratios became important. Your cup and mine were different, but 2:2 flour and oil was something we could replicate easily enough; given our relative cup sizes.

Precise Measurements

In 1896 Fannie Farmer published a cookbook for the first time that had a scientific bent, calling on cooks to standardize measurements. By 1915 it had sold 365k copies, an unheard of amount of sales for that time.

Before her, recipes called for a pinch, dollop, palm-full, and other approximations of ingredients, which made replication difficult. At Farmer’s urging, over time, our measurements became more exacting. We started measuring volumes by using dry metal measuring cups, liquid glass measuring cups, and measuring spoons. I have heard talking among the Chefs that these days they clearly prefer weights to volume measurements. So now, cooks measure weight via scales that provide ounces and grams.

Even so, America still uses volume measurements (which I follow on PattyCooks), but European and most of the world follows weight. This is not dissimilar to USA still using inch and foot-based measurements and the world using metrics.

Apprenticeships

Back in early days, when there were no cook books, there were also no readers. People generally learned to cook by cooking for their family; essentially, cooking was a craft taught through apprenticeships. What made it work so well is that there were limited foods and oils, and the spices and herbs were often available directly in the environment. So people could become very proficient at the cooking craft due to constant repetition, fewer food choices, and having a person correct you as you worked. Now however, we have such an abundance and variety of food, spices, herbs, and oil options, it is almost harder to cook.

Cooking Times

Many older recipes say to “cook until done.” Then we started to see approximate times things would take to cook; for instance, a pot roast may take ~3 hours to cook. Now I see recipes where times are listed throughout the recipes themselves; 3 minutes of stirring, fry 4 minutes each side, let it set for 10 minutes, etc.

My problem with this recent trend is that cooking times are totally unreliable. The time it takes to do something varies based on the equipment, heat levels, environment, and other issues out of the recipe creators control. For instance, I may use an aluminum skillet, you use cast iron, they get hot at different times and retain heat differently. My oven and stove top will never match your oven and stove top in terms of the heat it generates at different settings; 350F in my oven may actually be 360F and in your oven it may be 345F. Even water boils at different temps depending upon the altitude we are cooking at. And so on.

So follow recipes, but know there are variations and you will need to use your senses to know when to take the next step in any set of directions.

When is it done?

A common question asked by cooking students is how long do I cook this or that. The Chef always respond, cook it until it is done. They try to teach that you can use your own senses to know when food is done.

• The sauteing oil is hot and ready to use when the food you place in it sizzles or the oil is just starting to shimmer
• A stew is done when it tastes like everything has combined properly
• Meat is done when it reaches certain internal temperatures (using a meat thermometer)
• A turkey is done when the juices run clear
• The En papillote fish is done when you step close to the oven and can smell it
• Grilled fish is done by checking if the membranes in the fish have dissolved while cooking
• The burger is medium well when it feels a certain way (see graphic above)

Cooking Methods

There are a variety of methods of cooking: roasting, boiling, braising, broiling, steaming, grilling, sautéing, slow cooking, and baking. Each method requires its own set of equipment; may require using specific, or no, oils; and each are best for certain types of food. You want to grill steak as opposed to grill eggs. Naming the method is critical to cooking, as it lays out what to do to prep.

Ingredients

At PattyCooks my ingredient list follows two formulas outlined below.

Ingredients are listed generally by when they occur in the directions, alphabetically, or by groupings. Example of groups: all the ingredients in a sauce, or prepping aromatics, etc.

The ingredient list also means calling out unusual preps or identifying unusual ingredients. (To make a Thai soup, I had to learn about galangal, kaffir lime leaves, and lemongrass.) So often there are links or footnotes describing the more unusual items and how to prep them.

General Formula

This is for a general recipe where I list the quantity or measured amounts in a text-based recipe. The data includes amount, what to do with the ingredient, name of the ingredient, and the select nutrition of ingredient.

• Example: 1t minced Garlic (4.5c, 1k, .2p, .1f, 0s)

Specific Formula

This occurs when I use a pre-formatted recipe maker. It provides the nutrition, per individual serving, at the bottom of the more graphical recipe interface.

• Calories: 320kcal | Carbohydrates: 20g | Protein: 10g | Fat: 23g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Cholesterol: 27mg | Sodium: 501mg | Potassium: 389mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 2468IU | Vitamin C: 29mg | Calcium: 50mg | Iron: 1mg

Directions

The identification of cooking methods and step-by-step instruction are important to replicating a recipe. If I just read the ingredient list, and I do not have a sense of the end product, I will not be able to emulate the dish. Directions should provide enough information to guide a cook through what they need to do, and in what order.

Regional Cuisines

Global Foods

To quote something I read online, most of us eat at a global table (1). Most of us cook foods where the recipe or the dish itself originated in other parts of the world. Most of us travel from one country to another, eating wonderful variations of food we may be familiar with, food we have never heard of, or foods that we wish we did not know how it was made. In short, cooking has become a world phenomena that we can all participate in at our tables.

We in the Bay area especially, are a global food market and need to understand that what happens in one place affects other people in places we might not have considered. To eat mindfully, to respect cultural differences, to use recipes taught to us from others, to share what we learn, all help make us global in our approach to food.

Translations

Often in ancient recipes we cannot tell what food they are referencing. Names change, languages change, and ingredients may disappear. Today we deal with different terms for arugula (rockett), zucchini (courgette), egg plant (aubergine), cookie (biscuit), and other veggies and herbs. When I go to international sites I often have to find translations so I know what ingredients are being used. This is especially true about spice mixtures, like Ras el hanout.

As a cook, if something tastes great, and I can figure out how to make it, I sure will and then will attempt to introduce others to this taste. Some regions of the world tend toward bitter foods, some sour, others sweet, many are salty, quite a number are HOT, and some favor savory. But taste is just one aspect to food enjoyment. I also want the food to look right. That is why pictures are so important. I am not a great photographer, so my pictures are obviously homemade, just like my food.

Aromatics

Another way I tell where food comes from is through the aromatic combos that start off so many regional recipes. There are certain combinations of veggies, herbs, and spices that start recipes, and vary by country, region, and personal tastes. In most cases it is a combination of spices or aromatics, along with choosing the veggies or fruit that is common to the region.

• Traditional French Mirepoix is a ratio of 2:1:1 of carrots, celery, and onions. Usually we are speaking of orange carrots, celery ribs and white or yellow onions. These are the aromatics of the dish that add flavor to stocks, sauces, soups, casseroles, and other one-pot foods.

Color + Display

Food that smells great, needs to also look good on the plate or bowl. We are attracted to good looking food. But looking good is half the issue, the other side of that is texture. Have you ever had the experience of having a dish in front of you that smells heavenly, looks like artwork, but you put some in your mouth and the texture is awful. What should be crispy is soggy, what should be tender is tough. We want what we see to match our expectations in texture. If it does not, the dish fails.

My first attempt to make Poori had a great cooking smell, looked okay when I pulled them out of the oven, but then the puff fell, they were like eating hockey pucks. Needless to say it failed when not even the dogs would eat them, and they generally would eat everything. I tell this story to remind everyone, including myself, that while I love good food, there is nothing to guarantee I can cook it!

When PattyCooks Sources Others

For those PattyCook written recipes that are clearly inspired by others, I take what they have done, and modify it to suit my tastes.

• First, I make it like they describe so I understand the taste, texture and look of the food
• If it reminds me of an ethnic cuisine, I research to see how to make it more in line with foods from that area
• Then I make it again, but start to adjust ingredients or cooking style. all the while taking notes so I remember what I did
• My new dish is tested on my tasters (many thanks to Joyce and Jill)
• Then I rework it, based on their feedback
• Write a set of final ingredients and directions in draft on the site
• Look up the nutrition counts and record
• Check the web re: foods and diet types and record those
• Pay attention to little details that catch my eye for any comments I want to make
• I try to pinpoint the closest source for my inspiration
• Then I continue to use my recipes published on the site, and fine tune them as I learn more about the dish or cuisine it comes from

Combo Recipe Uses

There are times when I have an ingredient, say a pear, and I look up a variety of recipes about pears and read them to find ingredients that will work well with that fruit, and methods that sound good to me. I fix a hybrid recipe in my mind and then cook it, so there may not be just one recipe that spurred on my dish, but a variety.

After The Fact Recipe

Honestly, sometimes I just make up the recipe and then check online to see what others have done only to find my recipe there. The question then is do I source others because they have printed a recipe before me? I decided that yes, that is the proper way to proceed. So I will find a source that is closest to mine, link to them, and then clarify that I found it after I cooked the dish.

PattyCooks Recipe Outline

Starting

• I try to start with a catchy short title that is also descriptive
• If I can find a video that shows people what to do (apprenticeship via Youtube) I include it
• Include pictures if I can, I try hard to use “free” web pictures or take my own; admittedly I am not a food photographer, so what you see on my site is in fact how the food really looks

Ingredients

• I print a total list of all the ingredients
• For each ingredient, identify it clearly (e.g., red 4″ diameter cabbage)
• Indicate relevant nutritional information
• List total amounts of the ingredient needed
• Write what to do with the food (diced, minced, grated, etc.)

Nutrition

• List nutrition information
• Estimate how many servings I can make from the recipe
• Then calculate nutrition by serving
• Link to where the nutrition information came from so if anyone modifies the ingredients they can recalculate the nutrition

Directions

• Provide clear step-by-step directions
• Remind the cook to taste or season the food at important times
• Identify the cooking method to be used (sauté the onions, grill the salmon, slow cooker, etc.)
• If it includes an unusual technique or ingredient, describe what to do with in detail
• Describe options
• Indicate how to know when the dish is done

Diets

• I try to provide details on what diet the dish falls into
• But in my recipes I always provide options so anything can fit your diet requirements

Comments

• A good dish will be aromatic, colorful, have great texture, and display well on the plate, so include tips or options
• There should be some comment on storage or reheating
• Include SOURCE links and comments
• Sometimes I will add historical or ethnic information for the dish

Hopefully, this helps provide some information on the work that goes into preparing and posting a recipe.

— Patty

— ** —

NEWS: SFGATE The European Union has long refused to import poultry from the United States that is routinely rinsed with chemical washes to kill germs. Unlike in the EU, the use of antimicrobial sprays and washes is widespread in the U.S. chicken industry. Companies apply them to kill germs at various stages during processing, such as when carcasses are de-feathered, gutted or any other point when feces could splatter and spread germs like salmonella. The chemicals used in rinses have to be approved by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and their use is limited to specified amounts. The agency says the rinses are present in finished products at insignificant levels. The EU thinks these washes are basically hiding a severe sanitary and safety issue with US meat production and processing.

Recipe: Garlic Confit and Tomato Confit

Articles: Added a Casserole dish page.

Tip: To accent certain spices consider toasting them in a cast iron skillet, without oil, and over medium heat until they smell toasty and fragrant. (Do not burn, if the spices smoke you have cooked them too long.) Have the mortar nearby so you can quickly move the toasted spice off of heat. Then, using a pestle, crush the spice before adding directly to your prepared dish. The flavor that is released will make your food taste extra good. Here is a list of spices I generally toast: peppercorns of all colors, star anise, cinnamon sticks, cumin seeds, coriander seeds, juniper berries, cloves, mustard seeds, and fennel seeds.