Andrea MacMichael

Food and Travel Seminar

9/14/16

Reading Response to “The Reporter’s Kitchen” by Jane Kramer from Secret Ingredients

            Jane Kramer’s kitchen, no matter the city it is in, nor the type of pots, pans, and stove she has to work with, is where I want to be eating. “The Reporter’s Kitchen” has transported me through the delicious settings in which Kramer writes, as well as her many adventures in cooking and writing, and has left a smile on my face. I feel as though I have traveled the world as royalty, dining with the most important people and eating the most interesting meals. Her playful diction and use of specifics in her descriptions brought familiarity to the Moroccan dishes I’ve never tasted and the former mayor of New York, Ed Koch, whom I knew nothing about. I found it intriguing to have my mind filled with culinary language and the fantastic stories that Kramer presented. At points they even seemed like fantasy.

            Not only was I attracted to the piece of writing itself and how I felt deeply engaged in it, but I was also surprised by some of the ideas and perspectives that emerged. Kramer described how her mother was not a great cook. Yet, Kramer clearly has a love of cooking. This made me think about my own family. My parents love to cook, and I like it, too. I have learned to become comfortable with trying new things and to use my own brain to make concoctions on my own. Cooking, I think, and growing up around a family who cooks most meals, teaches a lot of great skills in resourcefulness. I have found, too, that even the people in the restaurant business employ a lot of the same techniques.

For instance, after working at an athletic club over the summer in the kitchen, I’ve learned that part of the art of the food business is to learn what you can cheat on and still make a great dish. Time and money are very important.

Kramer claims that good cooking is easier to do than writing great pieces. In my opinion, I think they are of equal difficulty. Both tasks take a lot of trial and error and can be time consuming. But they each also have many sources for inspiration, feedback, and guidance. As one continues to write, one continues to make more and more provoking and complex works. As one continues to cook, one starts to experiment with more and more ingredients and can transform ordinary dishes into flavorful, delicious ones, just as Kramer learned to do. At an ocean-side restaurant, a lobster tail is appropriate, and for a documentary an interview is necessary. At some restaurants and in our own homes, liquid cheese and salsa nachos are perfect as an appetizer, and so is a reused high school piece for a new short story. The quality and design depends on each unique setting or situation.

There are so many parallels between writing and cooking, and the Kramer piece really brought this to my attention. Many of us learn from and are influenced by our loved ones, and eventually take these ideas on to create our own products that are fit to make new memories.