Chapter Sixty-Two
Jamie took a bite ofthe omelette.Closed his eyes while he chewed.Needs a little more salt, white pepper, and a splash of Tabasco.
“Well.”Mike was watching Jamie intensely.“Be honest.I’ll never learn if you don’t tell me.”
Jamie took a sip of the wine.“Okay.Here’s me being honest: a bit more salt in the filling, and not table salt—cooking, or kosher salt.I’d have used white pepper instead of black.And I would have put a few dashes of hot sauce in with the ham and veg.Your pan should have been a little hotter on the first one.”He pointed to the omelette on Mike’s plate.“It either needs to be a little browner or, like the French, no brown at all.”
Mike shook his head.“And you got all that from just one bite?”
Jamie shrugged and nodded.“But you gotta remember I’ve been doing this for a long time.”
“And it shows.”Mike grinned.“But that wasn’t too bad, was it?”
“Not at all.Trust me, I’ve had some pretty ratty-ass omelettes.I once got one, and it was raw in the middle.The eggs were still runny.It was so gross.”
“Yuck.”Mike took a large bite of his omelette and slowly chewed.“Hmm, I think you’re right about the hot sauce.It would kick it up a bit.Why the white pepper instead of the black?”
Jamie chewed on a spear of asparagus.“If you taste it again, and really concentrate on the flavours, you’ll notice that there is a bitter sting.Chew a few times and then let it rest on your tongue.If it’s the least bit bitter, that would be the black pepper.When cooked like this, it will do that.White pepper won’t, and it’s also invisible so it doesn’t detract from the look of it.”
Mike took another bite and slowly chewed it, concentrating.“I think I can tell, but not certain.”
“It’s all about training your palate to distinguish different flavours.”
“Okay,” Mike nodded.“I’ll work on that.”
“You’ve got a really good palate already, so it shouldn’t be too hard.This is really tasty, by the way.I’m enjoying it.I like the cubed ham instead of the shredded type.Has a good mouthfeel.Adds a bit of texture; chew.”
They finished the meal.Mike collected the plates and immediately placed them into the dishwasher.“Coffee?”Mike asked.
“Not for me, thanks.Keeps me up at night.”
“Right, I remember you saying that.I’d offer you decaf, but I don’t have any.”
Jamie laughed.“I wouldn’t want decaf anyway.”
“More wine?I think there are only two more serves left.Wanna finish it off?”
“Sure, why not.It’s not like I’m going to be stinking drunk off three glasses of wine, especially after such a good meal.”
Mike could feel his cheeks go red.“Thank you.That’s a really good compliment coming from you.”
“I like food.I’m not a food critic.People rarely cook for me, so I appreciate it that you did.”
After pouring the rest of the wine into their glasses and having sat back down, he said, “I have to admit, I was nervous as hell.I kept asking myself what in the world was I thinking.”
Jamie chuckled.“Yeah, I get that.The first time I had to cook something for my last chef for a job interview, I was all thumbs at first.Took me a while to settle down and just cook.”
“You look so natural when you’re working.”Mike leaned in, placing his arms on the table.“It’s sexy.”
