Today’s lunch was an absolute disaster. I had started out way too late, and so ended up trying to cook lunch in a hurry. Part of the dish came out ok, the rest was not good, to put it mildly. The kitchen looked like a battlefield, and I felt defeated. Luckily, such disasters occur only about twice a year, but whenever they do I am reminded of some very important lessons.

Lesson #1
Never rush around and try to cook a meal in a hurry.

Lesson #2
Never start cooking without mise en place, or putting everything in place. Chop, prep, weigh, measure, take out the pots and pans – do it before you even think about turning on the stove. It’s the holy grail of cooking and those who mess with it will feel its wrath.

Lesson #3
Never cut corners by substituting fresh vegetables with frozen ones. If it’s seasonally unavailable, don’t go for the frozen stuff. It’s vastly inferior to fresh, in-season produce.

Which leaves us with one very happy dog, who got to indulge in a lunch gone wrong…