Tuesday, November 4, 2008

The Joy of Cooking - Why We Love to Cook

By Alice Sy

The joy of cooking lies in every individual. It doesn't matter if you love to cook or you love to eat, it is still considered one and the same with each playing a vital part in the Culinary Arts. In order for cooking to become enjoyable, someone has to love eating its finished results; otherwise what would be the purpose of cooking?

Cooking is described as the preparation of food for eating. Cooking is also considered the oldest and most needed craft that man has ever known. It involves the application of different methods, such as applying dry heat, use of heated liquids and fats, curing, pickling, and smoking.

When fire was discovered, the joy of cooking started to spark among the hearts of men. Many tried to experiment cooking different foods directly over the fire since pottery wasn't available then. They either cooked the food directly over the fire or they wrapped and steamed them over embers.

If you think that was creative, just imagine how creative man got upon the arrival of pottery. The joy of cooking became even more sophisticated. Different pots were made to cater to different types of cooking. Man also discovered that food cooked in several different ways, tasted differently too.

Over time, the joy of cooking became an art form, so much so that it became a profession and named it Culinary Arts. Many individuals have sought to study this profession, studied the art of cooking and came up with its different forms.

Humans first roasted or toasted their food directly from the fire. This was before they invented pottery, around 7,000 and 12,000 years ago. They also wrapped and steamed their food over embers. With the development of pottery, cooking became sophisticated. The methods of cooking, like boiling, stewing, frying, and baking, were soon realized. Later, it successfully evolved to what is now modern cooking.

The Culinary Arts has identified two types of cooking and five forms of cooking food with the use of heat. All these were studied for the love of cooking and for the goal of improving and perfecting the art.

It is no wonder that many can't resist food. Cooking is perhaps one of the oldest studied and perfected art form. The joy of cooking lies in every single person which can either be the love for cooking or the love of appreciating the result of cooking. - 15634

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