have been an Alton fan for quite a while, and recently purchased his first book. All I have to say is what Alton preaches is sound simple science. I used to be a fill-in chef at a Cybercafe in Georgetown DC, and always cooked food pretty good, but it was sometimes unpredictable.

My last two dishes where I applied Alton’s science behind cooking was simply remarkable. I did a salmon broil with Safflower oil, old bay, and salt, and it was one of the flakiest and tasiest salmon dinners I have ever created.

My latest dinner creation comprimised of a nice 13oz Top Sirlion I obtained on sale at my local mega-mart. Seasoned with Montreal Steak seasoning and salt, I performed quick 1 minute searing to obtain a beautiful crust, and then into the 500deg oven. Where Alton’s steak on his show took about 4 minutes to cook, mine took about 10, which the thickness of the steak, and the fact instead of a cast iron pan I had a Calphalon skillet. The steak was nearly perfect, flavorful, juicy, and tender. I used to let my steak sit for about 3 minutes, and as predicted, it would sometimes not be so great because the juices did not redistribute. So I patiently waited 10 minutes, and, voila, perfection.

Thank you Alton. I loved to cook in the past, but you have armed me with sound science behind cooking, and I am cooking with a whole new joy.