Online Cooking Interview Get to know a Personal Chef

You can experience the taste of gourmet foods right in your own kitchen any time you want! You can use recipes and cook them yourself or order them and just reheat gourmet meals are not just for the rich and famous. To get good tasting gourmet meals look for quality ingredients - it may cost more but the added taste will be worth it.

Online Cooking is pleased to offer an insider's look into the
growing personal chef industry. This week we would like to
introduce Heather N. Mader the owner of Black Radish Personal
Chef in Portland Oregon. Chef Mader graciously offered to share
her insights on life as a personal chef with Online Cooking's
own Paul Rinehart.

OC: How did you get into cooking and why did you become a
personal chef?

CM: I've always cooked ever since I was a kid. I don't remember
ever NOT cooking! I read cookbooks like novels I watched
cooking shows like feature films. I took a leap of faith and
finally quit my office job and talked my way into a job as an
assistant cook and baker. I discovered that I could keep up with
the best of them which inspired me to then take a job as a cook
in a gourmet take out restaurant. A local family heard of my
talents and hired me as their private chef. I enjoyed that so
much but felt it was a shame to only share my food with one
family. That's where Black Radish was born ... from that
intrinsic desire to feed people.

OC: Describe a day in the life of a personal chef.

CM: Recipe research and menu development I usually do in the
morning when I'm fresh and clear-headed. I write a shopping
list pack my mobile kitchen and I'm off to the store to buy my
client's groceries. I arrive at the home ready to cook 5 meals.
I prepare the food package and label it clean the kitchen and
I'm usually done by early afternoon. Then I spend time in my
home office marketing my business networking and responding to
e-mails and phone calls and reading the APCA forums. I leave
the evenings open to cook dinner for my family handle household
chores and curl up with a good (cook) book.

OC: How would you describe your cooking style and what
influences your cooking?

CM: Although I am able to cook different cuisines and
accommodate many palates and diets my specialty is
upscale-comfort food. I want people to initially experience the
familiarity that comes from memories of their childhood comfort
dishes but then be happily surprised by the little unexpected
twists that make those dishes my signature. I love taking old
recipes that use cream of mushroom soup and flavoring packets
and reinventing them using fresh produce & herbs and homemade
sauces. People love those old dishes but let's face it -
convenience foods like condensed soups have lost some of their
former appeal in today's more discriminating society. I offer
the best of both worlds to my clients.

OC: What do you love most about being a personal chef?

CM: Cooking for a living and having the personal interaction
with people who eat my food is the best gift ever. There is
something so intimate about creating food and sharing it. I
love my job!

OC: What have been your greatest challenges as a personal chef?

CM: Starting a business with very little capital and virtually
no advertising budget has been a true test of my strength.

OC: What is the strangest food request you've ever gotten?

CM: Well one client wondered if I was going to cook elephant
because I hinted at the possibility of incorporating African
food into his menu!

OC: If you have a favorite thing to cook what would that be?

CM: Desserts. They are brilliant concoctions of chocolate and
cream butter and sugar eggs and flour. I love bringing a
towering beautifully decorated layer cake to the table. People
always suck the breath out of the room!

OC: Do you have any words of wisdom for someone thinking of
getting into the culinary field?

CM: If you want to become a personal chef I offer these words:
Be patient. It takes time to build up a clientele. Word of mouth
works but it's slow. Don't be afraid to ask for help. Friends
family and even other small business owners love to see a small
business succeed. Use their help and then give help later when
you are in the position to do so. Talk talk talk about your
business everywhere you go. Make it your mantra. You CAN start a
business with next-to-nothing and make it work. Be tenacious and
think positive. Network. Find your inner strength and use it to
your advantage on a daily basis. And finally don't give up!

Sample Menu:

Black Butte Porter Chili w/jalapeno cornbread Honey-Mustard Pork
ribs w/smashed sweet potatoes Thai green curry butternut squash
and green beans over jasmine rice Chicken & truffled Wild
Mushroom Gallette Ginger-Soy Glazed Salmon w/ Wasabi potatoes

(many more menu options located on my website at
http://www.blackradish.net)

Chef Heather N. Mader Black Radish Personal Chef Portland OR
chefmader@blackradish.net http://www.blackradish.net

About the author:
Paul Rinehart is a personal chef and the founder on
Online Cooking