NochNoch.com

masterchef to perfection

| 12 Comments

I started getting addicted to the show Masterchef in Australia recently as it replayed on TV. I watched in awe as scattered bits of fruits and vegetables concocted into divine dishes miraculously. I imagined myself on the show. I cried when the contestant I liked got bumped out. As a self-declared foodie, I wish I could cook like that. But I really shouldn’t venture into that stream, or any other, until I’ve learnt to master my perfectionist attitude.
I’ve always liked cookbooks, and had a stack from the years as a collection, looking at the drooling pictures of food made me happy, especially those cakes dancing out at me. Yet I had never once used them, I never thought I could cook, even though now I think about it, Cookery class was perhaps my favourite back in high school, and one of the few classes I actually did really well in – but of course it was not seen to be a subject which would make me a doctor or a lawyer so eventually I had to give up the class.

So for better or for worse when I got sick and was stuck at home most of the time, I followed recipes here and there, when I had enough energy. I cooked for the 2 of us in the beginning. Then, gingerly I organized the first dinner party at home where I cooked for 8 people, then 10, then 12, then 20. I loved arranging the table mats, matching the glasses, drawing up a menu, googling how to make caramel sauce. Yet, every time I cooked it stressed me out, and gave me a migraine almost.

I was worried that guests won’t like my food, that the beef was over cooked, the salad didn’t turn out right, the soup was too diluted, or the dessert won’t set. I was trying to present the perfect dishes for a meal. I lost sight of what I enjoyed – creating my food in the kitchen as a therapeutic process to calm down. I wanted so badly to impress others, forgetting that what they appreciate the most, is simply the invitation to our home and hang out, whether I had cooked a feast or boiled instant noodles for them.

I was striving for perfection, and as a result stopped enjoying the journey and zoomed in only on the destination.

 

 

Not to say that we shouldn’t continuously try to improve ourselves, but there really is no point in pushing yourself into perfection for everything, for it creates unnecessary stress. I am not aiming to be a chef as those contestants on the Masterchef show, at least not just yet. So why don’t I just take pleasure from the cooking process, spinning vegetables with my food processor and enjoying the company for the evening?

Perfectionism is overrated.

 

12 Responses

  1. Abi says:

    Yes dear, when I cook, I find it draws upon 10% talent, 30% practice and experience, 40% care and attention during the cooking process, 5% luck (in sourcing all the right ingredients, timing, temperature tweaks…etc. when serving), the rest towards 100% is more than made up for by the fact that even my pickiest friends (even chefs) usually don’t judge by the same high standards in the same aspects that I’ve set, and just love the idea of having been invited and that you’re cooking for them. For that TLC I’ve shown, they’ll honestly and readily elevate the dish to over 90% score or even 100+% percent, in their view.

    So all the rest (the wee bit lacking in taste, presentation…etc. that the cook finds) is simply overlooked and reduced to nothingness. Nothing to worry about at all. I’ll bet you’re a great cook my dear!!

  2. […] however, so decided to give it a go. I’ve always been the kind of person who’s harsh on myself, perfectionist to say the least, and so hardly give myself any credit for my own accomplishments. I tend to focus […]

  3. […] people will hate my cooking […]

  4. […] I was not in my strongest state to do much, but I wanted to take part in the planning. Thus I was overwhelmed with decisions to make in addition to my non-writing […]

  5. […] to her, I had a list of awards. I was top in something, if not everything. I was all rounded. I achieved, and had certificates to prove it. Yet, it still wasn’t enough for the Ivy League […]

  6. […] masterchef to perfection […]

  7. […] voice inside of me for so long. The endeavour to be what others wanted me to be, to chisel into perfection the image society would laud and honour, over exerted my soul, body, and mind. I had enough. But I […]

  8. […] I walked up on stage for the first time when I was in Grade 9. I had won an honour scroll – for Cookery class. I felt like a clown. My classmates jeered. My teachers pretended they did not see me as I paraded […]

  9. […] I walked up on stage for the first time when I was in Grade 9. I had won an honour scroll – for Cookery class. I felt like a clown. My classmates jeered. My teachers pretended they did not see me as I paraded […]

  10. […] wants to be, its just how she is. Part of it is her personality, and part of it I attribute to her high-pressured upbringing where she was expected to perform at the top levels of school, debating, piano class, basketball […]

  11. […] to her, I had a list of awards. I was top in something, if not everything. I was all rounded. I achieved, and had certificates to prove it. Yet, it still wasn’t enough for the Ivy League […]

about Noch Noch

Enoch Li, (pen name: Noch Noch) was born and raised in Hong Kong and Australia. She has also studied / worked / lived in the US, France, UK, Japan, The Netherlands, China, and has travelled to more than 40 countries. She loves travelling and her curiosity in foreign cultures and languages has led her to enjoy her life as an international executive in the banking & finance industry. However, she was forced to take time off work in 2010 due to her illnesses and after spending time in recovery, cooking, practising Chinese calligraphy, reading and writing – in short, learning to take care of herself and letting out the residual work stress, she has transitioned into a Social Entrepreneur and founded BEARAPY to help corporates make workplaces mentally healthy, and support executives to become more resilient.