First Salty, Then Sweet
When I was twelve years old, I oversalted corn chowder. It was far gone past the flavor of the sea, not salvageable at all, and this reality crushed my world. I used to spend hours on end in the kitchen with my dad, blasting Bruce Springsteen while we roasted chicken and dancing around to Fleetwood Mac while we prepped gazpacho. Most of the time I was the sous chef in the kitchen but on occasion I built up the courage to take the lead on meals, and the praise I received skyrocketed my confidence to the moon. Food was easy. Food was fun. Food was my outlet.
A certain summer Saturday sticks with me in particular, when my dad wanted to try a simple seasonal recipe with some local ingredients. The aroma of sweet corn permeated through the house and the scent of fresh chives pasted a smile on my face. Summer corn chowder was on the menu and it was mine to prepare. After throwing on my denim “chef in training” apron, I was ready.
I gracefully cut the corn off the cob, chopped the onion, and minced the garlic. My confidence was at level ten. I referenced the directions often and meticulously to make sure I was on point. All was going according to plan and it was time for the easiest step of all: the salt. I glossed over the recipe to view the instructed amount of salt and swiftly added it to the soup pot, stirring all of the chowder ingredients together and then transferring them to a blender.
After my dad tasted the soup, I watched as his face turned from neutral to disgusted. He quickly put the spoon down and asked, “how much salt?” Humph. Two tablespoons. I frantically scanned the recipe to see where I went wrong, and there it was right in front of me. “Add one to two teaspoons of sea salt to taste.” The chowder was inedible, and as a single tear streamed down my blushed cheeks, I felt my entire world crashing down.
In the grand scheme of things this was a minor inconvenience. Though at the time it felt huge, I look back and appreciate the mistake that allowed me to gain the attention to detail and love for recipe development that I have today. Sometimes it takes a slip up to show you not only the beauty of imperfection, but also that nothing is that deep, especially an oversalted corn chowder.
