If the materials make the artist, then the right "cooking toys" can make the chef Beyond the simple act of preparing food, cooking for others is a journey of personal creation that expresses one's own individualism through an edible art form. Art can be expressed by cooking, and chefs are as passionate about using the best tools for their craft as they are about the perfect ingredients used in their cuisine. In this new volume of Tectum's successful "Toys" series, incredible examples of innovation, modern technology, and customization for both the professional and amateur chef are beautifully showcased in these pages with descriptive texts. Here we visually present the next generation of cooking, where the old age forms of tools for the chef are getting a much-needed makeover An array of high-tech appliances, stylish gadgets, and tools that have been influenced by chefs and cutting-edge product designers featured here are sure to bring any cooking experience to another level.
COOKING AS AN ART FORM
Growing up in a professional kitchen my entire childhood life did not exactly fodder a deep appreciation for the culinary arts. My father, who was a chef and full-time foodie, falsely assumed that immersing his young daughter in the daily grind at his restaurant would inspire a budding Iron Cher, or at the very least make a worldly gourmet out of her. But as a young adul t, the thought of cooking was considered a difficult chore, and instead I chore a career far away from the stresses and steams of an industrial kitchen.
But even at home, the urge to orchestrate a complicated feast was non-existent. The thought of a fully stocked home kitchen threatened my tendencies for a modcrn and minimalistic life. Added to a lifetime obsession for design and trends, it seemed that fine cooking and designer style were completely two different worlds apart. We all know the ki tchens of cooking fanatic friends: gadgets, tools, and other oddi ties fighting for space on overcrowded countertops, not to mention bits of food lodged in to every crevice and corner. Just a decade ago, it seemed that the gourmet's kitchen had no other alternative than to look like a messygarage of a hobby mechanic, which looks not only intimidating and overpowering, but to the fellow designophile, downright ugly.
But with the current explosion of innovative product and appliance manufacturers getting their inspirations from design-loving chefs and fashionable foodies, my attitude for cooking and the kitchen has totally changed. Domestic kitchen culture has gotten a facelift, becoming the proud trophy space for designer residences all around the world. This sudden rise of new kitchen construction and designer tools has inspired amateurcooks and armchairchefsto tie on an apron with Top Chefdreams. The latest high-tech appliances are the tools that have the case and functionalities to make good chefs great. lt has sparked a new cult following by those who are new to the art of cooking, but in love with modern design. As a result, home cooking has become hip.
Design and cooking is an art form. Both stem from ideas that turn into a vision, realized through concrete and careful creation. The kitchen is the canvas on which the cook creates his art, using ingredients and appliances as mediums to 'sculpt' the next edible masterpiece. What I've also learned is that if you love design, you will love food, and the opposite is also true. Food and design are loyal bed partners in life. There is a plethora of science, geography, anthropology, philosophy, and history unleashed with each bite or told through each design.
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