The Many Paths of a Chef

For the past few weeks, I have started to do many things with my life. I have been put in charge to help make the culinary world a better place. I have been assigned to help start a new radio show, featuring ROC and Im enjoying it so far.

It hasn't been started yet but we are making progress. We started to talk about doing podcasts and doing more multi-media for the organization. As I started to look more into it, I really started to enjoy using the internet to bring out my voice. I experienced new ways of communicating with other people using the social media to spread my message and the message of the people to the vast landscape that is the internet. I also really like to talk to people and making videos of different things for many different reasons. I started to use twitter more fequently and write about many other adventures for all to see.

It may seem, I could possibly make a career change someday. Although, I am here to tell you that a true chef is never measured by the chef coat, the many famous restaurants that he/she may worked at, or by how well you can cook eggs. A true chef is someone who is willing to explore deeper into the culinary arts and create many different dishes and presentations to make people enjoy the simpler things in life or to push new ideas forward for the next generation ahead. My love for cooking will still be there and I always appriciate all the friends I made along the way. I just think that maybe theres another path I can take instead the traditional route of a chef.

For as long as I can remember, I always take a different route from the other students who gone through the public education system. I remember that I was always in smaller groups working differently from everyone else and when I look back, I started to appreciate that lifestyle. It gave me a chance not only learn more effectively, but to really see life through a different perspective and discovering new and amazing things. I made great friends who also took different paths and find true happiness by doing what they love to do, no matter what else said.

Im not saying that my time as a culinary student was a waste. It gave me perception, knowledge, and inspiration to look deeper into my passion. I now realize that I could not stay in the kitchen forever, but I will return to my own pleasure. Maybe I could become a radio host in the day and become a reagade chef at night. Although, its more of a thought and not really guarantee. Im just simply looking more towards the future of what I really want to do. Im still pretty young (21 years old) and I want to explore the many things before I'm too old to do anything.

We all have different dreams and as we grow sometimes our dreams change but it could be a good thing. It could give us a chance to see what else lies ahead. It could be disastrous and maybe ruin you but in the end you can say that you truly do what you always wanted to do. You can say that doing what you want can even be the true meaning of life: to explore and enjoying every single minute of it.

Im just simply venting out my thoughts right now. Im not sure if I quit the industry or maybe try something new. Im still working in the industry right now and I enjoy some of it, but Im just wondering what else I can do to truly enjoy life.

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What exactly is Seasonal?

I went downtown to the Chicago French Market today and I run into some sort of a conundrum.

I saw that there were strawberries were on sale for about ninety nine cents and I only see strawberries were that cheep during Strawberry season. (Although I would like to note, that I do know that strawberry season is between Mothers Day and Fathers Day.) Yet, it seems that its was too early for strawberries to appear organically.

So I decided to ask the nearest clerk about the strawberries and why they are so cheap. The clerk told me that there was a surplus of strawberries and when I asked her if they were in season, the clerk told me that she does not know.

From there, I started to question myself: "What exactly is seasonal and why we have forgotten about it?"

From as far as most people understand it, seasonability is when a particular food is in the right time to eat. Yet, I start to think that in America, we are starting to lose our sense of seasonability. Since more foods are becoming available all year round, we forgot what exactly is in season and the true flavor of the "peak" of the season. It sounds somewhat idiotic at first, but if you really think about it we don't tend to think about how fresh a certain item is and how seasons can really effect our food.

For example, if there are blueberries in the winter and they looked like they were just picked, what exactly did the providers do to their berries to look like that?. It just doesn't really make much sense once it start to notice because you start to think how those berries are processed to look like during that time. Im not saying that every single supermarket does this but this is somewhat of an issue that has to bring into light to many consumers.

If you think about all the chemicals, time and money that is invested to just keep a certain product available all year around; its really not the best thing for health ,taste buds, or the wallet of the consumer. Once you start to piece together all those factors, we are not just wasting money on expensive produce that is not fresh but you are eating chemically treated vegetables that might hurt you in the long run. Im not saying that grocery stores do this because their evil, it just mostly business to provide food. So please don't raise pitch forks and torches towards them. Its just business. Although this does bring in to question about quantity over quality.

As a chef myself, I always encourage people to eat seasonably because not only the product has reach the peak in flavor but because all the nutrients and freshness is perfectly in tuned for anyone who is willing to change ones health for the better and to truly experience that particular food. Plus, this also gives the dinner the true experience of eating a strawberry on a warm late spring day and to give that true sense of pleasure.

I just want to bring on this issue just to bring seasonability to light and to maybe see what you have to say on the subject. That brings me to a question I want to ask to you. "What is Seasonability mean to you?" Feel free to Facebook, Tweet or provide the answer below in the comments about this issue.

As always I bid you a-do and eat seasonally not just because its healthy, but because its tastes so good and so right.

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Gathering Inspiration

It has been nearly 2 months since I last written about my journey of a chef. To be frankly honest, I haven't had much inspiration to progress with the blog. I always figured that not a lot of people cared or has seen this website. Plus with my new job and the cold Chicago winter, its really hard to think of new material.

Although, that changed when a friend of mine encourage me to keep going and to look more towards the future. I want to thank her for the pep talk and the inspiration to keep going as well as towards my readers who still read this blog to this day.

There is some news I also do want to share. As of two weeks ago, I am starting to save up my money to start my very own omelette stand in the Chicago French Market. It's still in development, but I believe once its open, I can finally be the chef I always wanted to be. I might show some progress with some pictures and other things although it might take a while for that to start but I keep you posted.

Speaking of which, I'm also starting to get more into social media. So if you want, you can follow me on twitter @Chefkyro and on Facebook under Kyle Hedlund. I also might do some other media stuff with ROC Chicago as well as some other projects on YouTube. You can check out my channel at mrhellochicago and I you keep updated on the new material.

I just want to confirm that I am not dead, still writing and becoming a chef. I'm just taking a different route. As always, I bid you a-do for now and keep on cooking cooking Chicago.

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January 7th: The Day I Saw the Power of State in the Eye

It was around 5:30 in the morning from when I started my journey to Springfield, IL. It was dark and cold at Union Station in Chicago. I met up with my freinds from ROC Chicago in the Great Hall to discuss our of how we are going to represent ourselves in front of the state witha guitar strapped on my back. We made it to our train by around 6:00 a.m and descended for Springfield. I saw the sunrise for the first time in many years. I belive it was a sunrise to a bright new future of not only myself, but for the whole culinary world as we know it.

We got on our server outfits and discussed on how we are going to talk to the representatives. It was the first time I have ever been to the State Capitol when its in session. The only time I have seen the capitol was from the outside on a middle school trip and wonder what could be inside. I can only imagine how after so many years, I have finally get a chance to be inside and confront with people responsible for laws to be passed through the senators eyes.

After a four hour train ride, we finnally, made it to Springfield station and headed our way to the Capitol. After going through security, we made it to the building and fan out into seperate groups. At first we got lost inside the maze of rooms and tunnels, but we found our representives with no problems. Although, we not the only group finding change in the state. Another group was there who were proposing to give undocumented workers drivers licences and we saw how they were interacting with higher power. I obsevered closely of how I could conduct my first proposal with representitive to the state.

Later on in the afternoon, after lunch at a state liberary and jam session, I was whatching every state representitive and organization members discuss about how we should raise the tipped minnimum wage. Just then, I spotted a grey haired man who was speaking to one of the lobbyist of the session. That grey haired man was one of the representatives I needed to speak to about the tipped minimum wage bill that was about to be proposed.

At first I was a little scared but, I know I have to confront him if I want to change the culinary world for the better. As I approach him, I was expecting him to just brush me off as some crazy college kid in a servers uniform but he was very accepting of ROC's cause. I was stumbling about the facts a little but a freind of mine came in and help me out with my pitch. After hearing my claim, he said that he would support us and shook my hand with confidence. I felt proud that I finnally spoked to a reprentative that cared about the people who are trying to survive the day to day life of a cook. I suddenly began to regain hope for humanity.

Later on, we headed back to the train to return home with pride and beer in our systems. (Dont worry, I am 21.) We sang songs, we drink and just having a good time with my fellow members.

That is my story of when I went to springfeild on January 7th 2013. I will remember that day for the rest of my life. The day where I faced power face-to-face and to take a giant step forward as a chef of the 21st Century Revolution.

 

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Holiday Greetings

Hello everyone and Happy Holidays to all my readers. I know I haven't been updating about my adventures through the culinary world in a while and I am here to tell you that I am STILL updating the website.

My reasons why I haven't been writing as much was because I am trying to find regular employment for after college but with the economy right now its really difficult to find a place with regular hours. I am still cooking, but a lot of them are small parties with temporary work and I do need money to move out of my parents house to continue the Brony Chef Project and to gain more experience to tell my adventures of the culinary world.

Although, I do want tell you that in 2013; There will be more updates and new adventures into my world of a chef and as a writer. It wont be easy, but I am determined to excel in the culinary world and in this website.

I just wanted to give my readers a holiday greeting and to assure you that 2013 would be a year of new discoveries and a year of adventure.

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The Power of Stages

A lot of people think that just because you have a paying job, means that you are progressing. True, its nice to have money and it is necessary in world of today, but recently I discovered that in order to get a head, you must learn from others.

There is a certain practice that culinary students used to do but it is not as popular today. The Stage is when a cook or a chef would work in a resturant for a day to learn how to cook a certain item or a number of certain items. This practice could also be used as a "working interview" to see if you could handle the pressure of various orders or how you create hollindaise sauce without breaking it. The reason why this practice is not popular today is because most of the time, you work with no pay. (I would like to note that there are some places do have paid stages.) Although, the big plus size with stages is that you gain more experience, learn more about how the certain mechanics of how the restaurant works, and make various connections with chefs to find more job opportunities.

Now im not saying that you should just only do stages for free for the rest of your life or use this method to use for income. Its a learning opertunity and a chance to make connections with other big time chefs. You might say, it continueing culinary education in the most unconventional way. True, its a tough upbringing and you sacrifice full-time employment but it does bring the upbringing of many great chefs and future culinary stars.

For the past month or so, I have become a freelance cook, going to small resturants, catering companies, and other fields of the culinary world to gain experience in my field. Its going to be a long journey for me to become the chef I always envisioned and the path im taking right now is the one less explored. Yet, I believe at the end of this road, I see the promise of greatness to those who work hard and prosper for what they do.

 

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Near the End of my Training

As of Tuesday, November 6th, 2012, I have finished my last class required to graduate. (I am still in another class but that is for another post.) As I near the end of my culinary training, I wonder how I progressed over the past two years. I remember all of the challanges, homework, tiring night classes and the trials to get to where I am today. I can still take some classes in the future and maybe learn a new techniqe or two, but I feel as though I have completed my trials to move forward and to take the next step of my journey.

The real world can be as cold as the frozen november air, but I will be ready for any challange that is thrown at me and I will peservere.

I havent really been writing lately since I have been finishing up my study's and working on the Brony Chef Project. Although, I really start to become a little bit more diverse with my interests and I start to see the world through a new perspecitive. I started to see the startings of a new revolution on the horizon. It may not be as glorius as other revelutions in the past but I belive that with the social media and the modern idea of a changing world, there can be and will be a brighter tomorrow. I dont really mean to be mellow dramatic, but it's simplily my perspective of what is happening right now in the world.

As for the R.O.C, we recently had a meeting about how the R.O.C can evolve into more of a community. There were new ideas with focus about how we can recruit more members into the R.O.C and how we can improve the resturant industry. As the discusstion and ideas were exchanged, I realized that people can be caring about a cause and people can unite to change the world. So to all my readers from here and the Brony Chef Project, I would like to ask to join in our community and make the world a better place not only to resturant workers, but to anyone who wants to change the world for the better. Here is the link: http://rocunited.org/

As for my future, its still unknown to me; but I can assure you, that the world would be a better place for people who has the passion and determination to move forward.

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