Why Time is the Most Underrated Ingredient in the Kitchen
Let’s change the way we think about cooking.
As a ball of dough ferments away on my counter I can’t help but imagine the taste of the soft, pillowy focaccia it is destined to become.
How can it be that mixing simple ingredients like flour, water, salt, and yeast can result in something so magical?
It’s all about time.
Time has the power to elevate and enrich recipes, but it can also spell disaster in the kitchen. Anyone who has ever tasted their mother-in-law’s dry turkey over the holidays is acutely aware of this dynamic.
In the case of a focaccia, time assists the dough to undergo fermentation — a process which traps in bubbles of carbon dioxide throughout the dough to make it rise.
Not enough time to ferment and your dough will inevitably fall flat in the oven.
Time is of the essence
It’s no wonder why we eat our fair share of subpar meals these days. Our schedules are packed to the gills. Our time-starved lives have paved the way for the mighty Instant Pot and delivery services like Door Dash.
But there are only so many times Jamie Oliver’s 15-Minute Meals can save us in the kitchen.
One of the only ingredients you can’t pick up at Whole Foods is more time in the kitchen.
Is it possible that the solution to the never-ending rush leading up to supper time is to view time as an essential ingredient in our cooking? I understand, it’s easy to see how this idea could come off as laughable or insignificant: one can’t simply fashion more time out of thin air.
But there is one solution that can help you navigate the inevitable dinner rush: meal planning.
Meal planning is the win
Amazing food is almost always the result of someone’s planning.
Whether you sit down to some spaghetti adorned with Nona’s Sunday sauce or a 16-course meal at Alinea (3 stars, Michelin Guide, 2020), time was an essential ingredient in determining the quality of your food experience.
Meals in my home leveled up when we realized the power of a meal plan. From grocery shopping to table, a meal plan relieves stress and creates space for creativity in the kitchen. I don’t know about you but knowing I have time to make a boule of Tartine’s Country Bread on Saturday and using the leftovers for grilled cheese sandwiches on Sunday excites me.
None of this would be possible without planning.
There have been countless times I’ve had a hankering for fresh bread only to come to the sad realization that I couldn’t have it ready until the middle of the night.
Fermentation is your friend
Managing your time through meal planning is one way to bring greater value to our food, but time can also have a profound effect on ingredients when they are fermented.
Some believe that humans have been fermenting food from the beginning of time.
What started as an accident eventually led to the creation of some of our favourite food and drinks, like sourdough bread, beer, and kimchi.
Increasingly, Western culture is developing a taste for fermented foods. Years ago, one could only find kombucha in China or on a hidden island somewhere in the Pacific Northwest. Now, kombucha can be found at Costco or the local supermarket.
A benefit of fermenting foods at home is the ability to use them to add flavor to your dishes with minimal effort because time is a main ingredient in fermentation.
A Google search for “The health benefits of fermented foods” only goes to show how applying time to basic ingredients can deliver marvelous results.
Weekend food projects like making sauerkraut are more approachable than ever thanks to YouTube shows like It’s Alive hosted by Brad Leone.
Revolutionize your cooking
Are you ready to begin a food revolution in your home? Thinking of time as an essential ingredient in your cooking will not only change your relationship with the food you create; it could inspire you to create a meal plan.
Your family’s next great food experience can happen in your own dining room, if you only have the time.
But one thing is certain: nobody has the time to eat dry turkey anymore.
