Feeling Nervous in the Kitchen: A Blindfolded Cooking Experience

As I stood in front of the stove, I couldn't help but feel a sense of nervousness wash over me. It was ironic, really - I had just undergone LASIK surgery and now my ability to cook was being taken away from me. To make matters worse, I had to cook a simple recipe for kimchi pancakes blindfolded. The thought of it was daunting, but I was determined to see it through.

I took a deep breath and began to set up the ingredients in front of me. My mise en place was carefully laid out, with everything within easy reach. But as I reached for the pork, I realized that I couldn't feel my way around the kitchen without any visual cues. The electronic induction stove had no knobs or buttons that I could feel, only a series of small markings on the side. I taped the buttons to make them easier to identify, and then began to slowly add the ingredients to the bowl.

As I mixed everything together, I couldn't help but think about how much I relied on my sense of sight in the kitchen. Without it, everything felt like a gamble. Would I be able to get the right consistency? Would the flavors come together properly? The questions swirled in my head as I continued to mix and stir.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, I added the water to the mixture. And then I realized that I had added too much - it was far too clumpy. I took a deep breath and poured out most of the excess liquid, hoping that it would still come together somehow. As I stirred in more water, I couldn't help but feel a sense of trepidation. Would this be enough?

The pan was heating up quickly, and I knew I had to add the oil soon. But as I reached for the bottle, my fingers slipped on the counter. Water spilled all over the stove, and I quickly grabbed a spatula to scoop it off. It was a close call, but I managed to prevent any major accidents.

As I added the final touches to the mixture - a sprinkle of sugar, a squeeze of kimchi, and a dash of oil - I couldn't help but feel a sense of pride. We had done it! The pancakes were finally coming together, and they looked amazing. But as I took my first bite, I realized that this was just the beginning.

The key to making these kimchi pancakes truly special was in the fermented kimchi itself. If you don't use properly fermented kimchi, the flavors will be dull and uninspired. But when it's done right, it's like a burst of flavor on your tongue. The pork belly adds a richness that's hard to beat, and the crunch of the pancake is the perfect contrast to the softness of the kimchi.

As I took another bite, I couldn't help but feel a sense of wonder at the magic of food. It was like a little miracle in a pan - a combination of flavors and textures that came together to create something truly special. And as I sat there, savoring each bite, I realized that cooking wasn't just about following a recipe - it was about experimentation, creativity, and taking risks.

So the next time you're feeling nervous in the kitchen, remember that sometimes the best things come from stepping out of your comfort zone. Try something new, take a risk, and see what happens. You never know what culinary magic might be waiting for you on the other side.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: eni'm feeling a little nervous i never cook blindfolded ironically enough i just did lasik surgery and to have that taken away from me to cook it's kind of um it's kind of nerve-wracking what's up world my name is jay lee i'm the chef and owner of no one in the east village in new york city i'm here today to cook a very simple and easy recipe kimchi pancakes i have to make this in five minutes and it's so easy that i'm gonna do this blindfolded we tell ourselves to have your mise en place set in a way where you know where things are blindfolded ironically i'm going to be blindfolded this is a electronic induction unfortunately there are no knobs there are buttons but the buttons i can't feel with my fingers the up and down button to control the heat so i tape them i've marked the buttons so we'll see how it goes the key point of this is that you have to give it enough color and if i can't see how the hell am i going to know are you ready all right let's do this all right all right this is the pork all right this is my towel all right this is the pot okay slowly add it in all right it's in i'm gonna take this i think i'm in all right just mix that up so it doesn't clump up i'm gonna put this behind me all right back to my position here we go got the bowl here okay now i'm gonna add everything else all right here's the egg boom is this the trash can i don't care all right this is a kimchi okay kimchi went in this is a flower great this is the ap flower this oh this is the sugar okay one minute one damn already oh okay did i get everything how's everything okay now i'm gonna add i'm gonna add the water here we go water i need my whisk whisk okay i also don't want to get it on my shirt okay so i didn't add all the water because i don't i don't think it'll need it yeah i definitely will i could already tell it's too clumpy so i need i need more water you know i can tell experience actually if it comes out it's like all wrong all right this definitely feels a little better yeah still too clumpy three minutes all right at this point we're gonna have to just go with it because we don't have much time yeah all right whatever okay now oil where's the oh there you go be generous with it okay damn i got some water in there careful guys no water in hot pan spatula oh sh that's a good sound i'm just going to make a small one because i don't want it to all right i really can't do anything at this point i mean more than two minutes i mean the pan's at a good temperature i'm gonna have to just flip it i can't even feel the pancake though actually it's just gonna have to the smell is great that's all i can say oh yeah the smell is wonderful but seven six five four three two one oh wow that's not bad very rustic almost like hungover trying to make something in the kitchen it's dark honestly look at this caramelization look at this i'm cooking blindfolded but i still stacked up my ocd wanted me to stack this up what the hell is wrong with me but look at this i mean that's not bad there's some texture here like it crisped up nicely especially on the edges the batter's consistency was where i wanted it to be i can't believe i even like got that that was that was i'm kind of mind blown it let's try it so delicious the real important key to this recipe is to have for properly fermented kimchi the seasoning comes from the kimchi alone and it's just like a burst in flavor and the pork belly super savory you saw me do it and you can do it too thanks so much come check me out at no one in east village new york city peace pork belly in kimchi is perfect it's like oreos and milk it's like peanut butter and jelly it's like red wine and charcuterie it's like fish and olive oil it's it just goesi'm feeling a little nervous i never cook blindfolded ironically enough i just did lasik surgery and to have that taken away from me to cook it's kind of um it's kind of nerve-wracking what's up world my name is jay lee i'm the chef and owner of no one in the east village in new york city i'm here today to cook a very simple and easy recipe kimchi pancakes i have to make this in five minutes and it's so easy that i'm gonna do this blindfolded we tell ourselves to have your mise en place set in a way where you know where things are blindfolded ironically i'm going to be blindfolded this is a electronic induction unfortunately there are no knobs there are buttons but the buttons i can't feel with my fingers the up and down button to control the heat so i tape them i've marked the buttons so we'll see how it goes the key point of this is that you have to give it enough color and if i can't see how the hell am i going to know are you ready all right let's do this all right all right this is the pork all right this is my towel all right this is the pot okay slowly add it in all right it's in i'm gonna take this i think i'm in all right just mix that up so it doesn't clump up i'm gonna put this behind me all right back to my position here we go got the bowl here okay now i'm gonna add everything else all right here's the egg boom is this the trash can i don't care all right this is a kimchi okay kimchi went in this is a flower great this is the ap flower this oh this is the sugar okay one minute one damn already oh okay did i get everything how's everything okay now i'm gonna add i'm gonna add the water here we go water i need my whisk whisk okay i also don't want to get it on my shirt okay so i didn't add all the water because i don't i don't think it'll need it yeah i definitely will i could already tell it's too clumpy so i need i need more water you know i can tell experience actually if it comes out it's like all wrong all right this definitely feels a little better yeah still too clumpy three minutes all right at this point we're gonna have to just go with it because we don't have much time yeah all right whatever okay now oil where's the oh there you go be generous with it okay damn i got some water in there careful guys no water in hot pan spatula oh sh that's a good sound i'm just going to make a small one because i don't want it to all right i really can't do anything at this point i mean more than two minutes i mean the pan's at a good temperature i'm gonna have to just flip it i can't even feel the pancake though actually it's just gonna have to the smell is great that's all i can say oh yeah the smell is wonderful but seven six five four three two one oh wow that's not bad very rustic almost like hungover trying to make something in the kitchen it's dark honestly look at this caramelization look at this i'm cooking blindfolded but i still stacked up my ocd wanted me to stack this up what the hell is wrong with me but look at this i mean that's not bad there's some texture here like it crisped up nicely especially on the edges the batter's consistency was where i wanted it to be i can't believe i even like got that that was that was i'm kind of mind blown it let's try it so delicious the real important key to this recipe is to have for properly fermented kimchi the seasoning comes from the kimchi alone and it's just like a burst in flavor and the pork belly super savory you saw me do it and you can do it too thanks so much come check me out at no one in east village new york city peace pork belly in kimchi is perfect it's like oreos and milk it's like peanut butter and jelly it's like red wine and charcuterie it's like fish and olive oil it's it just goes\n"