All of my dumb cooking mistakes this week
And a big Bangers & Jams roundup
While prepping for last week’s Jabroni’s dinner pop up, Thursday’s Thanksgiving and a couple dinners in between over the past nine days, I made six stops at Fish King, four stops at LA Homefarm, three stops at Cookbook, four stops at McCall’s, five stops at three different Whole Foods, one stop at a friend’s house to crib from his duck stash, one stop at the Santa Monica farmers market, one stop each at Costco, Pacific Sales & Best Buy trying to replace a broken oven, two stops at Salt & Straw, one stop at Kamp, one stop at Milkfarm, two stops at Silver Lake Wine, two stops at random LA bodegas, seven stops at Maru, two stops at Gelson’s, one stop at LA Grocery & Cafe, one stop at Erewhon, one stop at Lassen’s, two stops at CVS and one stop at Albertsons.
The shopping lists topped a combined 150 items, but the prep lists remained contained to single pages.
People seemed happy with the results. That’s a stupid amount of driving and shopping for just a few meals, but as someone whose only real aspiration in life is to be a trophy husband with a Donald Judd inspired kitchen, it was a dream.
Despite the relative success of the dinners, things didn’t go perfectly. That’s okay. Every time I looked up from the kitchen I saw friends smiling, drinking, eating, ecstatic. That’s what matters. But one thing I find lacking in food writing (and influencing) online is honest discussions about the ways in which people screw things up and either adjust, accept or ignore. So here’s a list of some dumb things I did over the course of nonstop prep and cooking since last Thursday:
Lazily saved Jabroni’s prep until Friday at 6pm rather than spreading things out between Wednesday and Friday. Cooked until midnight and woke up at 6am to keep working.
Didn’t organize shopping lists by store or section. Kept forgetting things, missing things or getting the wrong things.
Subbed white wine for apple cider vinegar when roasting pears for a dessert to accommodate an N/A guest. They came out horribly acidic. Regular apple cider would have been the move.
Tried baking a double crusted cinnamon apple pie in a compact Breville that led to a burnt top before the rest of the crust could fully baked. (The apples were still great).
Over and over again, crowded pans that steamed rather than seared in order to save time.
Served a Thai Caesar salad with a chili crunch that was much too spicy.
Served dips in obnoxious large, impractical bowls that didn’t facilitate or entice much eating.
Purchased unsalted and unroasted peanuts for trail mix, told myself I would salt and roast them, forgot.
Insisted on playing a bunch of country music at the start of Jabroni’s that no one was really vibing with. Eventually switched to some old reliable restaurant party playlists that fit the vibe way better.
Made a bunch of ricotta and anchovy toasts ahead of time that got cold and looked unappetizing. Mostly went uneaten.
Served nearly every dish for Jabroni’s all at once, family style, rather than pacing and portioning things out.
Cooked a double batch of jambalaya on the stovetop when I’ve only ever baked it in an oven. The rice came out broken and too soft.
Got dejected when I thought I overcooked all of the Thanksgiving duck breasts, having not really considered the size of the breasts and how long they’d been tempering. Started plating in a bad mood and rushing. (Turns out they were fine, mostly medium rare and people loved them).
Started breaking down the tuna for a crudo with no real plan. Ended up with uneven slices.
And, you know, none of it really mattered. A few people gave me real feedback on the mistakes, which I loved. I’d rather hear what worked and what didn’t. And I’d rather remember this stuff for next time. As long as everyone left happy and full and with some new friends, I’m good.
We’ll do another Bangers & Jams party in the new year. Probably in New York. In the meantime, it’s been about six weeks since a big recs roundup, so we’re due. This one leans food and cooking heavy, since that’s all I’ve been focused on.