I Heart Ovens

Is there any cooking tool greater than the oven? Oh, sure...every die-hard cook out there goes ga-ga for a good knife (as well they should)...BUT as far as a vehicle for the transformative process that is cookery, I ask again: Really... is there any cooking tool greater than the oven?

The oven is a magic box. What goes in as a messy/soupy glop, comes out as a beautiful cake. What goes in as a hunk of raw, possibly bacteria-laden meat, comes out as a richly nutritious, life-sustaining protein entree. What goes is as an overly-fibrous, not-terribly appetizing vegetable comes out as a caramelized treat that truly enhances the diner's meal.

What's even better is that these transformations take absolutely no effort on the cook's part. Sure you can toss your vegetables in a light coating of oil. Of course you can season or brown your meat first. It helps your bakery if you've greased and floured your baking tins. But you don't have to do any of this. Your oven will kindly forgive your oversight and still turn out something lovely to look at and delightful to dine upon.

This Easter weekend, although happy and filled with family, turned out to be more harried than anyone would prefer. We were not planning on an elaborate dinner, but...well..we DO have to eat something.
The trouble was that some unexpected events took place and doing much cooking at all was beginning to look like a stretch.

Thank God for a working oven. I was at least able to carve out enough time to wave some seasonings over a chicken, in a barely-there effort to make it extra-good. And with that absolutely minimal, minimal act of preparation, I still know I'll have an excellent meal. Sitting one room away as that bird roasts, I can smell the wonderful aroma of what will be crispy skin, moist and tender meat, and hot steam rising from every forkful. All of this wonderfulness and I practically didn't have to do a thing. The oven did it for me.

While teaching a "Healthy Cooking" class recently, a participant asked me what my favorite thing to cook was. I thought about toeing the healthy-cooking-party line, but I'm an awful liar, so I blurted out the God's honest truth:

"Pot Roast"

Yep. I told everyone that you put it in the oven and forget about it and it turns out perfect every time. It's another dish where the oven does all the work.

OK, I back-peddled and told the healthy-cooking folks I do like a steamed fish taco like nobody's business, which is also true...and sounds much healthier. (In moderation, ultra-rich proteins do have their place for many folks in otherwise decent health, but I wasn't supposed to be encouraging such a decadent cut of meat at this class)

Ooof. It's the oven, I swear it! I just couldn't lie. The oven is so easy and make so many things turn out amazing. I just love the magic of the oven's alchemy. Even (or especially) upon a pot roast.