To get started, here’s my philosophy on food:

If I had my druthers, I’d only eat organic, locally grown, fresh foods.  However, that’s not always an option, so I like to aim for getting as close as I can to those principles.  I don’t eat fried foods or heavily processed foods (you will never see Velveeta on these pages!), and I like to at least know the ingredients for anything I put in my body.  I don’t eat at certain chain restaurants because I’ve worked in so many of them, and I know that most of them use canned, bagged, and frozen ingredients in their dishes.  When you use pre-prepared foods like that, the quality of the dish suffers and I just don’t think it’s worth my money or the calories to eat at those particular restaurants.  I love ethnic foods, especially Thai and Mexican, but I despise Americanized versions of these cuisines.  I believe Taco Bell and Olive Garden are the root of all evil, and I believe that more Americans should be able to experience true ethnic dishes.

As far as my own cooking goes, I love to experiment, but my resources are limited.  My kitchen is the size of a shoebox, and I live alone, so I’m often cooking very small meals, or making things that freeze well.  I try to watch what I eat, so I don’t cook with a lot of cheese or bacon or heavy cream, but instead I use herbs and spices to flavor my food.  I’m also a fan of putting together ingredients that most people would never try, the weirder the better as long as it’s delicious!

So thanks to those of you who encouraged me to start this blog.  I have a higher-than-average interest in food and cooking, and I prefer to make things from scratch, so to those of you who have told me countless times I should go to culinary school and become a chef, this is for you!  Cooking is not the career path for me; I’d prefer for it to be a hobby so I can continue to be passionate about food and educate my friends about ethnic food, quality ingredients, and good health.  Thanks for being here!