At the age of 10, I would always watch my mother or grandmother cook. I would always ask both if they would teach me to cook. Every time I would receive the same response: “you can learn by watching,” so I did. I watched every time I was at my grandma’s house what she would do, and I engraved it in my memory over and over. The same thing I would do when my mother cooked.
A year later, myself or one of my sisters after school, while waiting for my parents to arrive home from college, gave a smart ass response to my mother, when she said: “open the door.” One of us replied: “you have the keys.” My mother and father, got back in the car and left us at home. Haha! Not so funny now. LOL
Well, my parents left us and we were hungry. Here I am, only 11 years old and decided to go ahead and take matters into my own hands and cook for my sisters and I. I seasoned the chicken and placed it in the electric oven we had. I turned on the gas stove, and boiled the water, added oil and salt, and washed the rice. Then in another pot, I made the beans. All of this, the way my mom would make it. My parents arrived home, and I told them that I cooked. I was almost about to get my head chewed off by my mom, when she looked at the rice, beans, and chicken all cooked and ready to eat.
From then on, well, I’ve learned everything on my own, by experimenting, and making recipes my own. I just “think” that maybe this ingredient and that ingredient would make sense and taste good together. Don’t get me wrong, I have made mistakes in the kitchen by over seasoning (a funny story I’ll share later).
I love and enjoy cooking. My greatest satisfaction is trying something new in the kitchen. A new ingredient, a new recipe, from my traditional Puerto Rican food to other ethnic recipes. I’m a bit of a foodie, so I’m always willing to try new foods. It has helped increase my palate (taste buds) and increased my cooking experience.
Today, I decided to start a simple, easy, healthy, and grain free recipe. Braised purple cabbage is one of my favorite in my list. Steak, I do not eat it often and when I do, I’m always a bit hesitant on how long I should cook it. I was always a well done steak person, and in the past few years, I began to like medium-well. I think that is as raw as I’ll let it go.
I hope you enjoy this simple recipe. Please keep in mind, I do not measure when I cook. Leave any comments if you try it and how it turned out.
Ingredients:
1/2 chopped purple cabbage
Balsamic vinegar
Water
Salt & Pepper to taste
NY Strip Steak
Instructions:
In medium heat in a pot add the chopped purple cabbage, water, and balsamic. Cover with a lid, and let it steamed. Once it no longer looks raw, add salt and pepper to taste. Continue to cook and add more balsamic if you wish. Cover with the lid and lower the heat on low and allow it to cook for another 5 – 10 minutes.
Season the steak the way you like it. I used salt, pepper, smoke paprika, onion powder. In medium to high heat, place a pan and allow it to get hot first. Once it is hot, add a little bit of olive oil and place the steak. Allow it to cook 3-4 minutes per side.
Once cooked, plate, and enjoy! -Lily
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