The Secret Ingredient

Chefs the world over are often asked by curious patrons, “I loved the dinner tonight, but you must tell me, what’s your secret?!” When going to a restaurant and partaking in a triumphant feast of the senses, it’s easy to believe that chefs have secret, unknown ingredients in their food that make it so much better than we could ever do at home.  It’s true that some chefs may sometimes use non-traditional ingredients in what may be called “traditional” dishes, but this means that they might have a secret ingredient in a couple of dishes they like to make, but definitely not for everything they cook. To illustrate this point, I’ll share with you one of my own secret ingredients – freshly ground nutmeg. That’s right, I put this stuff in dishes most people would never dream of, but it works for me and I can tell by the excited looks on the faces of people who eat my soups and pastas that have freshly ground nutmeg in them, other folks enjoy it as well. To be honest though, I sometimes don’t even think that the nutmeg is what really bring my dishes together and I think many chefs will tell you the same. So what is it that makes good food so good? During a recent trip to Mexico in a sleepy fishing town called Sayulita, I had a talk with a local chef and I think we came up with the answer.

Now, before I tell you what the secret ingredient in great food is, you have to promise not to laugh. It’s a four letter word and it’s not a profanity. Any guesses? If you guessed salt, you’d be close. Pretty much any chef would tell you salt is the most important spice in their food, but not necessarily the most important “ingredient”.  The most important secret ingredient when cooking food is quite simple – it’s love. Not the kind of love between two people, or the love I have for hummus at Chef Olives house (which I eat with everything from pork chops to pizza). What I mean is that it doesn’t matter if you’re cooking for one person or one hundred people, the food will come out better if you carry out every process of the meal with care, passion and pride. The chef who I spoke with in Mexico made my family and I fresh fish that was not incredibly complicated by any stretch of the imagination. But when that fish came out and we began to eat, it was obvious that the dishes were prepared by a man who enjoys his work and takes great pride in it.

We talked for hours after dinner and the point that sticks out most vividly in my mind was when I told him, “You know what, Ricardo? People think that great food is made by creating complicated dishes with ingredients that chefs would rather die with than tell somebody else, but I don’t think this is true. If I gave my favorite recipes to one hundred people, every single person’s dish would taste differently. Of course, you can’t make great food with terrible produce, but you can make the most wonderful food with the simple ingredients. The secret is in the chef’s touch, which is developed by years of practice. Great chefs cook with all of their senses. They not only look and taste, they do much more than that. They listen, smell and even feel what is going on with their dishes. And of course, the best dishes of all are the ones made with pure intentions and passion, because of you put those feelings into your food it will be noticeable.”

He completely agreed with me and said that you can’t make great food if you’re not passionate about it. And it starts from the very beginning – on the farm. Happy fruits, vegetables and animals taste better. The difference is obvious and for that reason farmer markets and organic produce is now becoming more popular than ever. People can taste, see and feel the difference when they eat food that was grown with consciousness and care. So remember, you don’t have to make a bunch of fancy French dishes to create a delicious meal. As long as you stick to what you know and prepare your food with as much love as possible, the results will never disappoint.