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Even though I am 23 years old, I still have the cooking skills of a 10 year old. I specifically say a 10 year old because that was the age I first learned how to cook. Being an only child with parents who both worked, I spent most of my time alone. My grandmother would come over and stay with me till my parents came home when I was younger, but when I turned 10 she would go home when I came back from school.
Normally, my grandmother would cook me dinner and put in the fridge so I could microwave it later. But with all the unsupervised time I had, I wanted to cook something on my own. To be specific, I wanted to cook a bowl of Ramen noodles. Ever since I had my first taste of Ramen noodles at the age of 9, I was insanely obsessed with them. But, my mother would only let me have a small bowlful not to ruin my appetite, and that sad little bowl was not enough to satisfy my Ramen needs. So, I decided to cook a whole bag of Ramen noodles that I could enjoy all to myself.
Now, I knew that putting Ramen noodles in a pot of water on the stove equaled tasty Ramen. But, I had no idea that the water had to boil first. I would dump the noodles, dried pepper powder in still water and then turn the stove on. The noodles would eventually get cooked but it didn't taste as good as when my mother cooked it. What puzzled me the most was this; when I put the noodles in the still water, I also cracked open an egg too. My mother always added eggs when cooking Ramen so I did too. But, when the noodles were finally cooked, the eggs were nowhere to be seen. Of course now, it makes perfect sense. Adding raw egg to still water would be nothing more than runny egg-water. The 10 year old me had no idea that she had to add the egg after the water boiled and was frustrated because she had no idea where the eggs kept vanishing. I couldn't ask my grandmother or parents because I knew in my heart that they will punish me for greedily trying to eat a whole bag of Ramen noodles.
Then one day, I still don't know what came over me that day, I decided to boil the water before putting the Ramen noodles and eggs first. I guess it was an out-of-the-blue choice that the whimsical 10 year old me decided to make. Amazingly, as soon as I added the eggs in the boiling water, they began to form shape, just like the eggs in the Ramen that my mother made. Also, the Ramen tasted way delicious than before, not as good as the Ramen mother made, but still. I realized that all this time, I had been cooking Ramen the wrong way and it was such a shocking realization that I still remember it vividly.
Sadly, that was the one and only breakthrough I made cooking-wise. I can now make an absolutely delicious bowl of hot piping Ramen noodles but that is as far as it goes. Even so, I still chuckle in amusement as I reminisce the day I made such an unbelievable cooking achievement all by myself.
Chang Hye Won
ReplyDeleteI believed that the detail about the part where the author talks about her experience after her parents went to their companies seemed very real. I have seen many experiences similar to this around myself. I also think that the first paragraph is good because the exact number, 10, is very interesting. Basically, the author is using the past verb tense. And I would like to know what are you trying to develop your cooking skill.
Hi, I'm Lee, Eun Young and I really enjoyed your writing. It was quite interesting for me to know that 10 year old girl trying to cook Ramen for the first time can be described in such a detailed way. When I was reading the third paragraph I could feel how embarrassed and depressed that 10 year old girl was when Ramen tasted different. I think your story will become more real and vivid if you can use some dialogues. For example, you might want to put “Oh, no! where’s my egg?” and so on.
ReplyDeleteAn Epiphany at 10
DeleteEven though I am 23 years old, I still have the cooking skills of a 10 year old. I specifically say a 10 year old because that was the age I first learned how to cook. Being an only child with parents who both worked, I spent most of my time alone. My grandmother would come over and stay with me till my parents came home when I was younger, but when I turned 10 she would go home when I came back from school.
Normally, my grandmother would cook me dinner and put in the fridge so I could microwave it later. But with all the unsupervised time that came with the privilege of being 10, I wanted to cook something on my own. I was tired of all the never ending dishes of healthy vegetables and rice and wanted to eat something else for a change. To be specific, I wanted to cook a bowl of Ramen noodles. Ever since I had my first taste of Ramen noodles at the age of 9, I was insanely obsessed with them. Every Sunday morning I would beg my mother to have Ramen noodles for supper but my pleas were rarely heard. About the time I was convinced I would never get the chance to eat Ramen noodles ever again would she cook them for me. But even then, my mother would only let me have a small teeny tiny bowlful. “I don’t want you to ruin your appetite!” She would always say. That sad little bowl was not enough to satisfy my Ramen needs. So, I decided to cook a whole bag of Ramen noodles that I could enjoy all to myself.
Now, I knew that Ramen noodles plus a pot of boiling water equaled tasty Ramen. But, I had no idea that the water had to boil first before putting the noodles. I would dump the noodles and the pepper soup powder in still water and then turn the stove on. The noodles would eventually get cooked but it didn't taste as good as when my mother cooked it. The soup was watery and the noodles were soggy. What puzzled me the most above all was this; when I put the noodles in the still water, I also cracked open an egg too. My mother always added eggs when cooking Ramen so I did too. But, when the noodles were finally cooked, the eggs were nowhere to be seen. Of course now, it makes perfect sense. Adding raw egg to still water would be nothing more than runny egg-water. Sadly, the 10 year old me had no idea that she had to add the egg after the water boiled and was frustrated because she had no idea where the eggs kept vanishing. I couldn't ask my grandmother or parents because I just knew that they will scold me for my greediness of trying to eat a whole bag of Ramen noodles.
Then one day, for some unknown reason, I decided to boil the water before putting the Ramen noodles and eggs first. I guess it was an out-of-the-blue choice that the whimsical 10 year old me decided to make. Amazingly, as soon as I added the eggs in the boiling water, they began to form shape. I couldn’t believe my eyes. The eggs looked just like the eggs in the Ramen that my mother made! Also, the Ramen noodles cooked way faster than before. And, the Ramen noodles tasted much more delicious than before, not as good as the Ramen mother made, but it was still amazing. I realized that all this time, I had been cooking Ramen the wrong way.
ReplyDeleteSadly, that was the one and only cooking related epiphany I had. I can now make an absolutely delicious bowl of hot piping Ramen noodles but that is as far as it goes. I think I have exhausted all my passion towards cooking at the mere age of 10. Even so, I still chuckle in amusement as I reminisce the day I made such an unbelievable cooking achievement all by myself.