An engineering log for the kitchen: research, testing, and the odd recipe-site rabbit hole, before any of it becomes a recipe.
Heavy batch-prep month: chicken and pork patties, back bacon, and pickled carrots and cucumber all made ahead; a new pan-in-pan method confirmed as the fastest way to cool stock; plus a teriyaki chicken recipe and a Korean meatballs idea …
A deep dive into Mediterranean cooking (dips, vegetable brining, a shift toward plant-forward meals) alongside a beetroot-chickpea hummus and a roast poultry method that splits dark and light meat onto separate pans by temperature. Also …
All research, no cooking: a lime crema and two Greek chop marinades worked out on paper (the marinade needs more lemon), and a big scatter of Mediterranean and vacation-inspired ideas — tabbouleh, homemade hummus, Jamaican beef patties, …
Late-winter research mode: a Jamaican jerk chicken recipe card saved for spring testing (missing browning sauce), a tuna rice bowl sauce worked out, and a hot pot shopping list — proteins, veg, hardware — built for spring/summer, alongside …
Post-holiday month: pulled chicken stretched across three meals, a mushroom-quinoa side that needed more mushroom, breakfast sausage adjustments (softer grind, less fennel, sweeter), and a backlog of missed December ideas — goulash, …
A full winter-break meal plan (two turkey dinners, snacky days, soup days) sketched out day by day, alongside a breakfast sausage recipe locked in (half a pork loin at $1.20/100g works out to half the price of premade) and a steamed, …
A big stock-and-broth push (chicken, turkey, a reworked pho ga base) ahead of the holidays, a McDouble clone dialed in to the gram, and a sandwich-shop sour pickle reverse-engineered against BK, McDonald’s, and A&W’s own ingredient lists. …
A wide-ranging summer: a quick pizza sauce that turned out great, a vindaloo paste built from whole spices, a broiled burger method dialed in (6 minutes a side at 288°C), and a teriyaki sauce ratio locked in for the rice-bowl rotation, …
A big stretch, January through June: Hawaii-trip-inspired kalua pulled pork and poke research, a bulgogi marinade and an Asian slaw dressing that both worked well on the first try, and a char siu marinade. Also dialed in: a broiled “home …
A holiday-heavy stretch — Friendsmas and Christmas feast prep, turkey, stocks, and a French onion soup that “was great!” — alongside a chicken burger weekend comparing brined breast patties, ground chicken patties, and pork schnitzel. A …
A methodical pizza dough test (five iterations, landing on 1.5% yeast with a long ferment for a perfect crust), plus a ramen stock and chashu pork build-out, a big pre-vacation prep push that checked off beef stew, cottage pie, and meat …
A long stretch of systematic testing: baking soda ratios dialed in across ground beef, chicken velveting, and patties, plus a running ratio-research doc (roux, fake ramen noodles, iced coffee). A mushroom-lentil freezer base and a beef ragu …
Late-summer batch of weekly staples: a quick pho tested three times (skip the celery, add more sugar than you’d think), a pizza dough that doubled well as focaccia, a bean-and-beef taco salad that became an instant favourite, and a sirloin …
A summer built around Indian flavours: butter paneer masala worked well with cashews instead of cream, and a vindaloo wing sauce got drafted from memory. Veggie burger research turned up a black bean smash burger that needed more binding, …
A long curry stretch (chana masala, butter paneer masala, a Thai red curry that “worked especially well”) alongside a big-batch beef stew and a ravioli filling that held together on the first try. A burger-and-chicken-sandwich cookery week …
A season built around “Soupmas” — French onion nearly perfect, butternut squash and potato-leek-mushroom both landing well — and a pizza dough overhaul (a Flour Water Salt Yeast-based recipe called “a big win”). Coconut lentils became a …
