“That’s why we’re chefs. We want to make people happy through food.”

That’s Ming Tsai, the renowned chef and television personality who loves “sambal a little bit more than sriracha”.

He recently sat down with Noah Rothbaum for The Daily Beast and chatted about a few cooking rules.

Between speaking about his favourite holiday to cook for, and which condiment he prefers (sambal), Tsai also had a few things to say about photographing your food:

Do you have any tips about photographing food?

“Here’s one thing I have to insist on all you foodies out there in the world. This is from all us chefs. Absolutely take photos of the food. I take a photo of almost everything I eat except maybe breakfast, although I’ve done breakfast, too. Take the photo, put your camera away and enjoy the dish. Don’t take a photo and start Tweeting it and Instragramming it. No, your food is dying. Even a steak, that crispiness of the char from the broiler goes away in a minute. Eat the dish, please. Respect the chef that just spent a lot of time making that dish. You can always Tweet, Instagram and Boomerang later.”

Of course, his interview went on about other things, too, like what drinks to pair with Chinese food:

Is there a perfect wine pairing for Chinese food?

“I’m asked all the time. Straight out if it’s spicy, of course, beer is fantastic. But if you’re going to drink wine, the best grape is riesling for Asian food. Because Thai food, Chinese food and even Mexican food has great spice to it and needs a little residual sugar. We’re not talking about Mad Dog or white zinfandel. We’re just talking about a couple of brix more than a normal wine. That sugar offsets the spiciness of those chilies. If you drink a red wine with a Sichuan dish, that spice would just accentuate the tannin in that red wine. And that wine is going to taste so much more tannic than it should be. The wine maker did not intend for you to eat that. With bright spicy food, you’ve got to go gewürztraminer or riesling. Chenin blanc is close. Viognier is pretty good, too. Again, I don’t like sweet wines. And by the way, don’t overlook Champagne. Sparkling wine and Champagne they’re fantastic with Asian food. The bubbles help cut through the greasiness and the bubbles help tone down that spiciness. And everything is good with Champagne. Even breakfast.”

Champagne showers for Chinese New Year? I am in.

You can read Tsai’s full interview with The Daily Beast HERE ,and I am sure you will learn a thing or two about leftovers, how big his wine cellar is and why eating with family is so important.

[source:thedailybeast]