HOW TO BOIL WATER

Over a dinner with friends recently we were having a conversation about the number of people we all know that have moved away from everyday cooking or have almost completely given up on cooking entirely in favor of all of the prepackaged and convenience foods we've all come to recognize and believe are going to "save us" from our kitchens. One of the friends even regaled us with a tale of an acquaintance that didn't even have real dishes in her house, the thought of clearing plates and using the dishwasher was just too much work so she only used disposable plates and cutlery. Wow, the amount of garbage that one person must create between the disposable dishes and all of the packaging from the convenience food is incomprehensible.
Our conversation turned to the funny gadgets and gimmicks like the pasta cooker you see on TV that doesn't require you to do anything other than add your noodles into a canister of hot water - leave them sit long enough and they will eventually "cook". Well, if you leave anything to sit in warm water long enough it will eventually soften. I shared my story about someone recently asking me for a "recipe" for popcorn...yes, that is right - popcorn, popped on the stove in a pot with actual corn kernels and hot oil. Can you imagine, a recipe for popcorn?
Do people really think that the best way to cook pasta is in a canister on the counter top ? Are we really too busy to cook pasta in an actual pot of boiling water, are we so used to throwing a bag in the microwave that we have forgotten how to "make" popcorn from scratch? What a frightening prospect.
It is kind of like remembering the first time you had a conversation with someone much younger than you and in that conversation you were talking about listening to your favorite record album, only to realize they had no idea what a record album is? Is this the fate of food and cooking, is making popcorn on the stove the next record album and popcorn from a bag in the microwave the i-pod of cooking? Do people really want to live like the Jetson's? Open boxes, eat tasteless food of mysterious origin and throw the dishes in the garbage at the end of the meal. Wow, no thanks. I would rather eat the record album itself.
Angie Quaale is the owner of Well Seasoned gourmet food store and cooking school in Langley, British Columbia, Canada. Well Seasoned is the area's premier destination for all things gourmet. Angie has a diverse background in the food industry and is a well known local foodie. She is a board member of Les Dames D'Esscoffier and has a regular food column called "Food for Thought" in the Langley Times. She often appears on TV, radio and in print where she shares her vast knowledge as a well seasoned foodie
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Angie_Quaale