Also known as the cuisine of out-of-towners, or sailors, or campers, or people who are hungry now and not in an hour, the survival cooking e was practiced successfully and with great satisfaction for years by the writer during his former single life. Now, married and with a young child, this practice has become less frequent, but sometimes necessary; because you know, the life of a working parent is a real path of survival.
So from being a mere amateur practitioner of this far-from-trivial discipline, it fell to me to teach it to my wife, and I thus became a theorist of it as well. I am here today to spread the word and the secrets of this practice that is as essential as it is artistic, knowing that there will be no shortage of attentive ears among you, aware of the importance of possessing basic notions in this field.
Legal Disclaimer: none of what you will read in the next few lines can ever figure in a cookbook or food blog, because we are in the realm of pure culinary heresy here. But as we say in my neck of the woods: when you want it, you want it.
First rule
The pantry should never be short of semolina or polenta or a small noodle, the kind that cooks in 6-7 minutes. As well, of course, as fine salt, a few drops of olive oil and some dried herbs such as basil, parsley, sage, etc. etc.
Second rule
The fridge should never be short of eggs, a vegetable stock cube, a couple of zucchini. If you remember to keep a bag of frozen minestrone or some diced spinach in the freezer at all times, you are already halfway to the black belt of survival cooking.
Third rule
You have to have an all-purpose pot, just the right size for one and a half servings (the emergency hungry person becomes a homicidal maniac when presented with 80 g of pasta in a designer dish). Mine has a diameter of 19 cm, a height of 9 and a long handle only. And a proper lid, of course.
Fourth rule
Forget about stir-fries. They are fine for sauces and for cooking main courses (with diced meat). But the sauce needs pasta, and thus more long cooking minutes, while seconds without accompanying bread will leave your stomach empty and aching. In a nutshell: the emergency starving needs the damn carbs!
Fifth rule
Develop a sense of cooking time. How long does a sliced celery take to become edible? What about a carrot? And a potato? And how long, on the other hand, for an egg done as if poached?
That is, it is good for everyone to keep an eye on the cooking of the pasta, with a stopwatch in hand and the information on the envelope before their eyes. Quite another thing is to do it all empirically, sensually, instinctively. Only the true masters can do this without ever making a mistake. If you succeed in this I guarantee that even your mother-in-law, an experienced and sensitive Apulian cook, will look at you with amazed admiration.
Execution
Okay, we've come to the point, sorry for a lot of previous talk, but it was necessary. Yes, I know you are damn hungry, but if you are patient one more minute then you will have your life saved for the rest of your hopefully long existence.
Take the saucepan described above.
Put water in until about two fingers from the edge.
Put the saucepan on the stove.
Put in the stock cube and a sprinkling of dried herbs of your choice.
Line up all your ammunition on the table, that is, what you found edible in the pantry and refrigerator.
When the water begins to bubble along the walls of the pot, start putting in the ammunition, beginning with those that take the longest to cook (vegetables already cut into strips or cubes, mind you). Almost always the first will be the pasta (if you opt for semolina or polenta instead, it will be the last or almost last, in fact it takes a couple of minutes at most and continues to solidify even when the heat is off). Among vegetables, the carrot is the one that takes the longest to cook, because of its fibrous core. Potatoes are already faster (if cut small), zucchini even faster, broccoli like zucchini, more or less, and so on.
When there are now a couple of minutes left, and you also urgently need to incorporate protein into your meal, then add an egg. You can choose to let it cook as it is, from a standstill let's say(if the mixture is liquid enough) or you can start turning it to let it blend with the mixture in the pot. Matter of taste.
This is the basic method, to vary just use seasonal vegetables and do small experiments, one ingredient at a time. You will see that you will soon get your satisfaction.
It's finally feeding time!
It's been 15 minutes, turn off the heat, grab a plate (if you are one of those people who feel guilty eating in the pot) and pour all your delicious steaming meal into it. Drizzle with a drizzle of olive oil, add grated cheese, et voila...we leave you alone, in silence, to enjoy this unforgettable moment of culinary fulfillment. Or whatever.
