An Intro to Thai Food and Cooking with Chef Pailin Chongchitnant

how to cook thai food with chef pailin chongchitnant of hot thai kitchen

About Pailin Chongchitnant

On this week’s Chefs Without Restaurants podcast I have chef Pailin Chongchitnant, host of the YouTube channel Pailin’s Kitchen, and author of the companion website Hot Thai Kitchen. She recently released her 2nd cookbook, Sabai: 100 Simple Thai Recipes for Any Day of the Week. This episode is for you if you’ve wanted to learn to cook Thai food.

On This Week’s Podcast

This episode is a primer on Thai food and cooking. She dispels some Thai food myths, and shares her top five items for stocking a Thai pantry at home. We discuss why she was compelled to write another cookbook, and she shares how she grew her YouTube channel to over 1.5 million subscribers and almost 170 million views.

As always, the episode link is below, and the podcast is available on all platforms (Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Overcast, Pandora)

Relevant Links and Where to Learn About Pailin Chongchitnant

Hot Thai Kitchen Website

Hot Thai Kitchen on Instagram

Pailin’s Kitchen on YouTube
Buy the Cookbook Sabai: 100 Simple Thai Recipes For Any Day of the Week
Hot Thai Kitchen on Facebook

Video: Thai Chef Takes You Grocery Shopping

Video: How to Eat Thai Food Correctly

Relevant Links and Where to Learn About Chefs Without Restaurants

You can listen to the show on PodpagePodlink,  BuzzsproutITunesSpotifyTuneInStitcherAmazon MusicPandora I Heart Radio, and everywhere podcasts are found.

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Why Doing Free Work as a Personal Chef is a Recipe for Disaster

The Dangers of Free Work for Personal Chefs

On this week’s Chefs Without Restaurants Podcast

On this week’s podcast, I discuss the dangers of free work for personal chefs. As a personal chef, my business is centered around providing my clients with a restaurant-style experience in the comfort of their own home. This includes personalized menus, table service, and even bringing my own cooking equipment and dishware. However, one mistake I made in the early days of my business was thinking that attending events and giving out free food was a good way to market myself and attract paying customers. In this post, I’ll share some of my experiences with this approach and why I believe it ultimately doesn’t work.

The Problems with Free Work

One of the main issues with doing free work is that it can be difficult to effectively showcase your skills and services when you’re limited to a small, sample-sized portion of food at an event. My business is based on providing an in-home dining experience with personalized menus and table service, which is not something that can be easily translated to a six-foot table in a mall on a Sunday afternoon. Additionally, the caliber of food I’m able to give away for free is not going to be on par with what I’m able to serve at a full-scale dinner event.

Another issue with free work is that it can be time-consuming and costly. For example, I once paid to have a table at an event and gave out hundreds of portions of free food, only to have people come by, grab a bite, and move on to the next table without taking a business card or showing any real interest in hiring me. Similarly, I was once convinced to do a dinner on a boat, which involved a lot of time and effort setting up and preparing food on a grill. While I had hoped to get some exposure to food media and potentially land some gigs as a result, the event ended up being a disaster and I didn’t end up getting any new business out of it.

The Better Alternative

Simply put…Don’t do it. After experiencing a number of failures with this approach, I’ve come to the conclusion that it’s not necessary (or even effective) to do free work in order to succeed in business. I’ve found that my skills and services are valuable enough that I don’t need to give them away for free in order to attract paying customers. Over the past five years, my side hustle has become my primary source of income, and I’ve been able to build a successful business without having to attend expos or work for free.

Final Take-away

Doing free work as a personal chef (or in any creative or service-based business) is not a successful marketing strategy. While it may seem like a good way to get in front of potential customers, it’s ultimately time-consuming, costly, and might not effectively showcase your skills and services. Instead, focus on the value you can provide to your clients and charge accordingly. This will not only help you build a successful business, but it will also help you attract the right kind of clients who are willing to pay for your services.

Relevant Links and Where to Learn About Chefs Without Restaurants

You can listen to the show on PodpagePodlink,  BuzzsproutITunesSpotifyTuneInStitcherAmazon MusicPandora I Heart Radio, and everywhere podcasts are found.

If you enjoy the show and would like to support it financially, please check out our Sponsorship page (we get a commission when you use our links).  

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Chef Carla Hall Talks Top Chef, the Shift from Caterer to Food Media, and How to Make Amazing Biscuits

chef carla hall
podcast with chef carla hall

About Carla Hall

Chef Carla Hall was a contestant on Bravo’s Top Chef and Top Chef All-Stars. Carla spent 7 years co-hosting ABC’s Emmy award-winning, popular lifestyle series “The Chew”. She’s been on multiple Food Network programs, was a judge on Netflix’s Crazy Delicious, and is a culinary contributor to “Good Morning America”. She’s the author of four cookbooks, in addition to a number of cookbooks put out by The Chew.

On This Week’s Podcast

On this week’s podcast, we discuss her Top Chef experience, and why she wanted to return for Top Chef All-Stars. We talk about the transition from catering to food media, licensing her recipes, and chef-in-residence programs. This is also a mini-Masterclass in biscuit-making. She talks about what makes a good (and bad) biscuit, and gives lots of actionable tips.

As always, the episode link is below, and the podcast is available on all platforms (Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Overcast, Pandora)

Relevant Links and Where to Learn About Carla Hall

Carla’s Instagram
Carlas’s Website

Relevant Links and Where to Learn About Chefs Without Restaurants

You can listen to the show on PodpagePodlink,  BuzzsproutITunesSpotifyTuneInStitcherAmazon MusicPandora I Heart Radio, and everywhere podcasts are found.

If you enjoy the show and would like to support it financially, please check out our Sponsorship page (we get a commission when you use our links).  

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This Week’s Sponsors

Sponsor- The United States Personal Chef Association
Over the past 30 years, the world of the personal chef has grown in importance to fulfill dining needs. While the pandemic certainly upended the restaurant experience, it allowed personal chefs to close that dining gap.  Central to all of that is the United States Personal Chef Association.

USPCA provides a strategic backbone for those chefs that includes liability insurance, training, communications, certification, and more. It’s a reassurance to consumers that the chef coming into their home is prepared to offer them an experience with their meal.

Call Angela today at 800-995-2138 ext 705 or email her at aprather@uspca.com for membership and partner info.

Sponsor-meez
Still keeping your recipes in docs? Doing your costing in spreadsheets? You should try meez—the recipe tool designed for chefs by chefs. Founded by professional chef Josh Sharkey, meez transforms your recipe content into a powerful digital format that lets you organize, scale, train, and cost like never before. See why meez is loved by over 12,000 culinary professionals. Sign up for a free account today at getmeez.com/cwr. 

Getting Fired, Dealing with Anxiety, and Silver Linings

chef chris spear on being fired and dealing with anxiety

On This Week’s Podcast

This week is a solo episode (find it here). I discuss the time I was fired from a job and the subsequent anxiety that I experienced due to that. It took a long time before I came to terms with the whole experience. But there was also a silver lining… It ultimately led to me starting my own personal chef business, and this community. If you’ve been fired, or if you’re a hiring manager, I’d love for you to listen to this episode. If you have feedback, you can get in touch by contacting me on one of the platforms listed below.

This Week’s Sponsors

Sponsor- The United States Personal Chef Association
While the pandemic certainly upended the restaurant experience, it provided an avenue for personal chefs to close that dining gap.  Central to all of that is the United States Personal Chef Association. Representing nearly 1,000 chefs around the US and Canada, USPCA provides a strategic backbone for those chefs that includes liability insurance, training, communications, certification, and more. 

One of the upcoming events for USPCA is their annual conference scheduled for July 7-10 at the Hyatt Regency in Sarasota, FL. Featuring speakers and classes, the conference allows chefs to hone their skills and network with like-minded business people, and is open to all chefs in the industry.

For those who supply the industry, it’s a chance to reach decision-makers and the buyers of products. Chefs Without Restaurants listeners can use promo code CWR50 to save $50 on registration. Please contact Angela at aprather@uspca.com for information on becoming a member, attending the conferences, or exhibiting. 

Sponsor- Vosteed Knives

Are you looking for top quality kitchen knives for dad this Father’s Day? Well, look no further than Vosteed. With over two decades of experience, Vosteed knives are durable, well-balanced and comfortable to use. You’ll find that these knives have a razor sharp edge, robust and strong full-tang construction, and perfectly engineered ergonomics. These high carbon steel blades will definitely get the job done in the kitchen.  

Right now, you can use discount code VOSTEED15 to get 15% off your order. Go to the Vosteed store on Amazon to order yours now. Check out the Vosteed websiteInstagram page and Facebook group.

Relevant Links and Where to Learn About Chefs Without Restaurants

You can listen to the show on PodpagePodlink,  BuzzsproutITunesSpotifyTuneInStitcherAmazon MusicPandora I Heart Radio, and everywhere podcasts are found.

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Founder Chris Spear’s personal chef business Perfect Little Bites

Everything Bagel & Pilsner Focaccia

everything bagel and beer focaccia

About the recipe

This is by far one of the easiest breads to make. I started making focaccia at the beginning of COVID. Thankfully I have a lot of chef friends who kept my pantry stocked with flour and yeast. While I’ve made a similar one before, this was the first time I’d made a whole-wheat focaccia. I chose the Silver Bread Flour from Deep Roots Milling in Lowesville, VA. It’s their organic redeemer hard red winter wheat. It baked up really nicely, with a slighly tighter crumb than I usually get when using a white bread flour.

This recipe is by chef Chris Spear of Perfect Little Bites personal chef service.

Recipe

550g bread flour (whole wheat, white or a blend)⁣
5.5 g (1 ½ tsp) kosher salt⁣
6 g (2 tsp) instant yeast
5 g (1 tsp) granulated sugar⁣
410 g (420ml) lukewarm liquid (1 bottle pilsner beer + 52 g filtered water- see notes)⁣
4 T olive oil, divided⁣
1 ½ T Everything Spice (such as the one from Spiceology)
1/4 tsp smoked paprika⁣
fleu de sel salt⁣
olive oil pan spray⁣

Method

Heat the water and beer to 110 degrees F. Place the flour, salt, yeast, and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment. Slowly add the warm liquid. Knead for 5 minutes on medium. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise for 1 hour on the counter, then move to the refrigerator and let it sit overnight.⁣

Remove the dough from the fridge. Spray a 1/4 baking sheet with pan spray, then rub 2 T olive oil on the pan, making sure to get the sides coated too. Add the dough to the pan, and stretch it gently with your fingers. Allow it to come to room temp, rest and rise for an hour. Then stretch it again and let it rest for another hour.⁣

Preheat the oven to 425 F. Pour 1 T olive oil on top of the dough and spread it all over the top. Sprinkle smoked paprika on top. Top the dough evenly with the everything spice. Using your fingers, press about 20 indentations evenly into the dough. Drizzle with the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Top with fleur de sel or Maldon salt.⁣

Bake until golden brown, around 30 minutes. Let cool just slightly before transferring the focaccia to a wire rack to cool.⁣


Notes- I used 1 standard bottle of beer. It should give you 358 grams, which is why I added the very specific 52 grams of water, to bring it up to a total of 410. For this bread, I used a pilsner, but feel free to use a pale ale, wheat beer or even use all water if you prefer.