Where is your taste from?

Version 5 and 6. 

After my Meat Pie reached the U.S, I realized that I can't generate a vast improvement. That is to say, I had to make a Meat Pie many times. I thought that I can make a real one by a series of smallest things brought together. 

My girlfriend, my roommate, and I ate a lot of Meat Pies at this point because we always ate up left-over Meat Pie every time. Also, my serious eaters ate Meat Pie many times during very short period. We needed more stomachs. So, I invited several friends who are from different countries to a tasting party. So that I could listen to more opinions from different perspective.

I made two different Meat Pies at the same time because I didn't have enough time (the tasting party was on 8/28). In this time, I used different cheeses (British Sharp Cheddar and Young Parmigiano) and experimented with a different way. For example, I added dried Porcini mushroom powder. I don't want to write all details here, but I bet that you can find them easily if you make Meat Pie several times. 

At the tasting party, each eaters had a different opinion. These two pies were the most controversial. Some people said that cheddar is the best cheese for this Meat Pie and other people said that real Aussie Meat Pie is less beefy etc. I was really confused and I totally couldn't understand what the correct taste is.

    

 

Some changes were very effective, but the other changes were confused people who ate the Meat Pie.

 I had to organize the taste although each person has their sense of taste that is from their food back ground.  

Beefy Beefy Beefy!

After I imagined American food, I remembered my childhood memory. 

My mother always gave my siblings and me a good food even though she didn't have money. When I was 8 years old, my parents got divorced.  After she divorced, she had two jobs day and night to raise us because she never received child support from my father. My siblings and I couldn't have nice clothes, go traveling, and take a good education unlike my friends could. However, I took a good food education from every meal. My mother always created a good meal with hard-earned money. Meanwhile, beef was very special food for us. When beef showed up our dinning table, we guessed what special day it is today. Anyway, we couldn't eat beef often. Stuffing my gut with beef steak was one of my dreams and I imagined that American people often eat a thick steak when I was a child. 

It is quite natural that I associated American food with beef. I thought how to make my Meat Pie beefy. I thought back to my memory that I ate American food in the past. Clue was in Texas food. I had eaten one of the traditional Texas foods. It was very juicy and beefy. Its secret ingredient was smokey bacon. 

Version 4. 

I used smokey bacon and replaced half of tomato can with beef broth. And also, I used beef base. I added each ingredient gropingly.

According to the serious eaters, "This is definitely Texas! What did you add?"

My serious eaters was surprised because my Meat Pie reached Texas directly without stopping any other states. They expected that I struggle and spend more time to make it beefy.

In this time, I learned that if I look for a hint, I should take cues from my past experiences, however, I couldn't achieve a vast improvement. 

"Meat Pie was not built in a day!"

Englishman made a Meat Pie for Italian.

Version 3.

After coming up from under the sea, I cut and changed some ingredients. 

For example, I didn't use a lemon zest this time. Last two times, I added lemon zest in a mashed potato because I thought that lemon zest flavor makes more flavorous. However, it was not effective. Another example is that  I sliced a cheese and used more. I shaved a cheese last two times because I wanted to make enough flavor and taste with less cheese. Although I could saved my money (the cheese is pretty expensive!), I couldn't get enough flavor. So, I was thinking the word "SIMPLE", when I made the version 3. 

This time, I had a tasting party again. After eating, my serious eaters said "This is Italian Meat Pie!" I thought that I could reach Rome, and at the same time, I lost my goal. However, my serious eaters gave next destination. One of the serious eaters said "This Meat Pie was made by Englishman for Italian. How about making Meat Pie for American?" I realized that here is not Italy. 

   

I set my goal, the U.S. 

I decided to go toward N.Y first. 

Could I get across the Atlantic Ocean directly? 

Meat Pie 2

Version 2.

"My Meat Pie sank deep under the Straits of Dover." 

I changed some ingredients to make it more Italian pie that I imagined. I used more fresh Basil, good quality of Parmesan cheese, and Italian parsley. And also I changed a can of tomatoes. My friends tasted my meat pie (I call them "serious eaters"), and said "it's not bad, but there are many things that you have to change." I had no idea why my Meat Pie sank in the Straits of Dover. It was totally different from what my imagined. 

I thought about Meat Pie all the time even when I was in a class. "What's the simple?" "How to make simple and tasty Meat Pie?"

The key word was "SIMPLE".

Th most important thing to make Italian food is using the goodness of each ingredient as Italian cook book taught me. 

I made mistake that I put a lot of Italian ingredients without careful consideration. 

At the moment, I felt that I got the Euro Star ticket to travel from UK to Italy!

KCRW's 2nd Annual Good Food Pie Contest

Today I write a big news in my life. 

I won "the Best Savory" and "the Best of Pies" KCRW's 2nd Annual Pie Contest last Sunday!!!

There were 5 categories of pie in the contest. I chose savory because I really wanted to win and Meat Pie is very special pie for me as I wrote in my pie description.  I had never entered any contest and I had never made Meat Pie before. I was hesitant to enter the contest, however, my friend, who suggested me to enter the contest, encouraged me.

After I decided to enter the contest, I decided to create Meat Pie because I was inspired by Flying Pie Man. I began by imaging its taste. I decided to create Italian Meat Pie because Italian food is simple and tasty. My first Meat Pie tasted like British Meat Pie although I intended to make Italian Meat Pie. 

     to be continued.