Latest news with #foodpresentation
The Guardian
5 days ago
- General
- The Guardian
You be the judge: should my husband stop slapping food on my plate so artlessly?
When Jim makes curry, it's dolloped with the precision of a toddler doing finger painting My husband of 25 years, Jim, doesn't cook often, but when he does the presentation is shocking. It's a running joke in our household. When I cook – which is most of the time, because I enjoy it – I take time to present things properly. Everything looks orderly and is nicely arranged. But with Jim, it's a case of just throwing everything on the plate. My meal will look as if it's just lost a bar fight. It's a mess. I am usually out working late when Jim cooks, so I do really appreciate coming home to a cooked dinner. But presentation is not his forte. The peas will be in the gravy, and the sausages will be precariously placed on top of the mash and the vegetables. I like everything to be separate on the plate so you can see what you're eating and really enjoy it. I'm not fussy, and I don't really have issues with food touching; it's just that I don't like being handed a plate where you can't tell what's what. When Jim makes curry, it's dolloped with the precision of a toddler doing finger painting. Food sliding off one side of the plate isn't fun to eat. Neither is having to pick the vegetables out from under the meat. It hinders the dining experience because it feels as though your food is trying to make a break for it. Our daughter, Amanda, called Jim's attempt at presenting food 'abstract expressionism', which I thought was quite funny. I know Jim means well, but when he hands me a messy plate it feels as though it's been made with less care. When I cook, my thoughtfully arranged plate says, 'Darling, I made this for you.' When Jim cooks, his plate says: 'Here. Eat.' I'd love a little more tenderness. It takes 30 seconds to arrange things properly on the plate. Maybe – dare I dream? – he could wipe the edge of the plate with a tea towel and clear up any loose bits of food. I'm not asking for a Michelin star. I'm just asking him to treat the plate with a bit more tenderness. When it comes to spooning out the meal, it's like a big relief – I'm free from cooking Lynsey always complains about my food presentation style, but I don't think it's an issue. I'm not on a cooking show, I'm a man who wants to eat in a hurry. When I cook, I'm all about efficiency. I know how to make flavours work, but I don't like to dilly-dally in the kitchen. Just get it done, that's my motto. I cook for Lynsey when she comes back late from work. The kitchen is usually her forte, so I think she should be appreciative that I've managed to do it in her absence without burning it. I'm not a great cook. That's her remit. But when I do, it's just about getting it done and on the plate. Do I gently nestle the salmon on to a pillow of salad with tweezers? No, I just whack it on. She says I 'slap' the food, which isn't my intention, though I suppose I'm not checking where I place it. The meat can go on top of the veg, the sauce isn't contained in the middle of the plate. It's not deliberate – it's just because I'm rushing or hungry. I'm not trying to win a food presentation award, I'm just trying to make sure the risotto doesn't glue itself to the pan and I don't start a fire. When it comes to spooning out the meal, it's like a big relief. I'm free from cooking and just have to get the food over the finish line and on to the plate. That's probably why it looks as though I'm being careless, when really I'm just happy it's done. Lynsey still eats it and says it tastes good. I'm only cooking for her and our daughter. They don't need fancy presentation. Home cooking is supposed to be charming and rustic and real, which is what my style is. I could slow it down and be a little more delicate, but it wouldn't be authentic to who I am, and I'm sure Lynsey wouldn't want to change me. After 25 years of marriage, I don't think that's possible anyway. I just don't believe that a messy plate should be mistaken for a loveless dinner. That slapping of food on to the plate is the sound of me showing up for her. And that should be more important than what it looks like. Should Jim be more careful when serving up? Food is a feast for the eyes and the soul. If you've put time, effort and love into your cooking, slapping it on a plate doesn't exactly scream 'I care.' Just take 30 seconds and show the love!Yasmin, 53 When showing up for your partner, you shouldn't rush. You wouldn't hastily throw on your suit for a work dinner you're the plus-one at – you take time to look good, for their sake. If Jim can cook well, why mix up all the flavours at the final hurdle?Jack, 23 Jim is not guilty-ish! There's a whole lot of pettiness going on here. Lynsey is being unnecessarily fussy – the food tastes good, which is really all that matters. But come on, Jim! You're doing a kind thing for Lynsey, why spoil it just because you can?Rae, 73 Jim, you're clearly a good cook but you're falling at the last hurdle on several fronts. A touch of class and a moment of care will finesse how you show up for Lynsey, inspire your daughter and make the dish sing. Jon, 37 'If a job's worth doing, it's worth doing well' comes to mind here. How food is presented affects our appetite and pleasure, so all Jim needs to do is spend an extra 30 seconds to serve it properly – plus a good while longer working out why he feels the need to be so dismissive of Lynsey's 77 In our online poll, tell us: should Jim plate up with a bit more finesse? The poll closes on Wednesday 11 June at 10am BST We asked whether Amber should stop unplugging her boyfriend's phone charger because she worries about fire risk. 62% of you said yes – Amber is guilty 38% of you said no – Amber is not guilty
Daily Mail
13-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Meghan Markle admits she doesn't 'have time to cook everyday' but will make takeaways look as 'beautiful' as possible after attracting ridicule with her food presentation on Netflix show
Meghan Markle has admitted she doesn't 'have time to cook everyday' and instead makes takeaway dinners look as 'beautiful' as possible after being ridiculed for her food presentation on her Netflix lifestyle series. The Duchess of Sussex chatted with Heather Hasson, co-founder of medical scrubs brand Figs, in the sixth instalment of her podcast Confessions of a Female Founder. Speaking about entrepreneurs who start their own business, Meghan said: 'The whole point for me, and you'll probably speak to this too, is when you see something that is an easy solve in the everyday, that's not complicated, that's not fussy, how do you get your hands involved and change the way of thinking surrounding it so it doesn't feel daunting?' 'I see vegetables and I see takeout - because I don't have time to cook every day - and I go, "Alright, but how do I still make this flattering and beautiful and present well and something that people find appetising?"' Hasson enthusiastically replied: 'I think when you take something so simple in your everyday life and you elevate it and you make it elegant, I think that's what makes it so special.' Meghan previously demonstrated how to plate up Chinese takeaway food 'beautifully' as well as making banana split and fruit salad decorated with edible flowers on her Netflix show With Love, Meghan. The royal's lifestyle series claims she was hoping to 'make magic out of elevating ordinary things'. However, it was met with mockery from viewers when it aired in March as they poked fun at the idea of 'elevating' foods like beans on toast, pizza and hot dogs with flowers. Meghan also talked about her experience studying theatre and international relations at Northwestern University helped her prepare to be a company founder. She said: 'I was a theatre major and part of the programme was that you couldn't just do the acting. 'You had to do soup-to-nuts every part of what a production would entail, which I actually think is incredible training for when you're running a team, because you appreciate what the sound person does and what the lighting person does. 'But wardrobe department and sewing was part of it too, so I am comfortable with a sewing machine.' The Duchess also talked about creating her lifestyle business As Ever. She added: 'The types of minutia that at the onset you kind of have to be across every single granular detail. For me, I don't know how to not have love in the details.' Described her busy life establishing her company, the Duchess said: 'As I've been building As Ever, oh let me tell you, it is just a constant state of recalibration. 'There's joy in that but we are always in motion. If you're a founder yourself, you know exactly what I mean, because we're moving at work speed, problem solving, filling gaps in real time, scratching a million tiny, tiny things off of your to do list, but not in that fun way like a lotto ticket.' And in today's podcast, the Duchess compared her gesture to Hasson, who was inspired to transform uncomfortable and unflattering healthcare clothes, and whose firm became the first company co-founded by a female duo to begin trading on the New York Stock Exchange in 2021. Meghan said: 'And, for you, you go, hold on this is something that you're doing every day, you're wearing this uniform every day, you're eating every day. 'How do we elevate that in a way that you feel really good about what you're doing, and you feel proud about what you're wearing, and you're able to have some functionality with it? In some ways they're actually a different version of the same thing.' Scrubs maker Figs was started in 2013 by Hasson and Trina Spear, and received financial backing in its early days from actor Will Smith. The firm saw a jump in demand for its medical apparel, face masks and shields from 2020 when the Covid-19 pandemic began. Figs makes medical apparel aimed at combining style with comfort, sold under the tagline, 'why wear scrubs, when you can #wearFIGS?' It sells scrubs in different styles including 'skinny scrub' trousers and 'oversized' scrub tops and those with multiple pockets in colours such as royal blue, teal and bright red and facemasks with patterns featuring cats, pandas and kisses. The company went public in 2021 and was valued at $4.6billion, although its sales and profits slowed over the following years as lockdown restrictions were eased. Figs was valued at about $1billion when it received a takeover offer last December from private-equity firm Story3 Capital Partners, which it later rebuffed. Today's episode was the sixth of Meghan's Lemonada Media podcast Confessions Of A Female Founder, which has been releasing a new part each Tuesday since April 8. This has included interviews with Bumble founder Whitney Wolfe Herd, Girls Who Code founder Reshma Saujani, Highbrow Hippie co-founder Kadi Lee and IT Cosmetics co-founder Jamie Kern Lima. In episode five last Tuesday, Meghan discussed leaving the UK for California as she interviewed Clevr Blends co-founder Hannah Mendoza who made the same move after struggling to 'fit in'. It follows the Duchess's Netflix lifestyle series With Love, Meghan coming out in March and the launch of As Ever, which is selling flower sprinkles and herbal tea.
Telegraph
13-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Telegraph
Meghan admits she orders takeaways ‘because I don't have time'
The Duchess of Sussex has admitted she does not have time to cook for her family but will plate up takeaways to look 'beautiful'. Despite homemade meals being at the centre of her recent Netflix show, Meghan, 43, said she sometimes relies on delivered food which she then ensured looked 'flattering' and 'appetising' for people. Her dish presentation already caused a stir earlier this year with the release of her Netflix show, With Love, Meghan, which attracted highly critical reviews in both the UK and the US. Meghan was mocked for food preparation that included cutting up fruit and using it to assemble a rainbow shape in what she described as a 'sweet' way for working parents to start their weekends. Now, while speaking on the latest episode of her Confessions of a Female Founder podcast, she has revealed her habits extend to the unpacking of takeaways at home. 'I see vegetables and I see take-out – because I don't have time to cook everyday – and I go 'all right, but how do I still make this flattering and beautiful and present well and something that people find appetising',' she said. Despite the terrible reviews, Netflix announced a second season of With Love, Meghan will be broadcast as planned in the autumn. The show follows the Duchess sharing hosting and cooking tips with different guests at a farmhouse a few miles from the Sussexes' home in Montecito, California. Reviewers commented on her liberal use of edible flower sprinkles on everything from sandwiches to fried eggs. Variety, the Hollywood magazine, said the eight-part show existed 'as a sort of celebration of all things Duchess of Sussex', adding that, as with her previous media offerings, 'no amount of praise seems enough'. Its scathing review suggested that Meghan did not have the natural savvy or competence of doyennes of the cookery and lifestyle television field, such as Martha Stewart and Ina Garten, and mocked her comparatively vacuous comments and creations. Meghan also launched As Ever, her commercial enterprise, alongside the lifestyle series. Last month, the range – made up of eight products including £11 jars of jam, £21 jars of honey and flower sprinkles for £12 – sold out in half an hour. This week it was announced she had hired an administrator who previously worked for Bill Gates as her first chief of staff. Sarah Fosmo, 45, will become her most senior adviser as she prepares to relaunch her career.
