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NE NEBRASKA | I read this story and it made me laugh thinking about Iowa food:
A very long time ago, there was a young boy from Michigan, who dreamed of becoming a professional chef. His name was Steve, and unfortunately, he had been blind since a very early age. His mama refused to teach him how to cook at home, because she was afraid that he would hurt himself with sharp knives and a hot stove. However, Steve was a very determined individual, and he wasn’t about to let his mama get in the way of his passion. When Steve was old enough to leave home, he set out to pursue his dream of attending culinary school.
Sadly, back in the late 1960s, none of the culinary schools in Michigan would accept a blind student. Since Steve didn’t even let his own mama stop him, he sure wasn’t about to let the stupid culinary schools in Michigan stop him either. Luckily, one of Steve’s friends had spent some time in Iowa, and he told Steve about a culinary school in Iowa that was much less selective. Steve was overjoyed to hear this news, so the very next day, he bought a one-way bus ticket to Cedar Rapids, where Kirkwood Community college was located.
When Steve arrived at his new school, he immediately started to ask one of the instructors how a blind person could learn how to cook. The instructor told him that it wouldn’t be a big deal at all, as he went on to explain how people in Iowa don’t use seasoning in their food. Since he wouldn’t be required to work with any spices, Steve wouldn’t have to worry about reading labels on the bottles. Next, Steve told the instructor how his mama was worried about him getting hurt with sharp knives. The instructor immediately put Steve’s mind at ease, by explaining how all the food in Iowa comes pre cut from Sysco, and there would be no reason for Steve to handle sharp objects.
Steve started to feel much better about becoming a chef, after talking to his new instructor. Feeling a sense of empowerment, Steve went on to ask even more questions. Steve had always wondered how he could tell if the food was done, since he couldn’t read a thermometer or visually check if something had turned brown. The instructor promptly explained how people in Iowa prefer all their food to be overcooked and free of any kind of moisture. He went on to tell Steve all about the different ways that a blind person could tell if the food was done.
The first method that the instructor explained was the smell method. He told Steve that the odor of burnt carbon was a good indicator, that food was sufficiently cooked for people in Iowa to be happy with it. The second method was the sound method, which entailed listening for the sound of boiling water. The instructor then described how the sound of a rolling boil, forcefully splattering water out of the pot, normally meant that food was done enough for native Iowans to accept it as being good. The final method, the feel method, involved feeling for moisture. The instructor patiently demonstrated how to detect moisture in food by touching it, and he explained that Iowans do not like any form of moisture in their food. He went on to describe how the complete absence of moisture would indicate that food is done enough for Iowans to enjoy.
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The blind chef and Iowa food
