I have a pretty low threshold for what I consider “me, cooking.” Pretty much, if I add Tabasco, I’m cooking.
So, for example, if I made toast, to which I wouldn’t normally add Tabasco, that wouldn’t count as cooking. (Or mebbe, if I added Tabasco to toast, that might count as cooking, but it’d count as bad cooking. I think. I need to try this.)
Similarly, if I made a can of soup, like some Wolfgang Puck’s Thick and Hearty Lentil, and I didn’t add Tabasco (which would be crazy) that also would not be cooking.
But, in contrast, if I made a can of soup, and I chose to add a few drops of Tabasco, in my heart it would feel like I had truly cooked that can of soup. Like the culinary choices (ok, choice) that I’d made had transformed that can of soup into a lentil-laden very personal and real expression of what I consider good eats.
Tonight, the lentil is hearty, yes. Thick too. I credit Wolfgang for this. But it’s also slightly spicy, and I think I’ve made my point.