Is cooking a leisure activity

Answer 1

Yes! For most cooks, the meal is a journey and seeing the validation of smiles on your family and friends as they eat your creations is the goal. A professional chef must create a menu to please a large audience. When you go to AppleBees or McDonalds, everything on the menu is tested, controlled, measured and packaged in exacting precision. The workers in the back are not participating in a leisure activity - they are simply generating income and product. Actual cooking however means that you are granted some creative variation, and can add/change/adjust ingredients as your tastes or the needs of your guests dictate. When you dine at an establishment known for it's menu, you are eating the pre-measured product of someone else's creation. When you eat at a place known for the chef on duty - you then understand how his or her work translate into something worth talking about. Every mean is different - even if it is the same. When you cook your own meals, everything you do has an impact and influence on how the dish will turn-out. It could be starting things in exact sequence to ensure everything is the correct temperature when it is served. It could be your cooking steak on cast iron, baking in pyrex and making sauce in stainless steel - all at the same time. It could be the way you prep your vegitables, arrange the plate or select the wine/beverage that ties everything in. When you cook - you create. When you create something from scratch, and have control over every minute detail of the menu - you will realize that no matter how many people are eating or how complex the menu: You are very much participating in a leisure activity.