So, this is the first menu item I made. Cheeto Crusted Fried Chicken. I took cheetos, crushed them up and used them as bread crumbs. This is a good time to explain the concept behind Pop Kitschen.
I almost never go to the grocery store with a recipe in mind. What I do is, I go, I see what cuts of meat are there, I grab a few things here and there, and go home to figure it all out. Usually, I'm missing something I need so I grab cheetos instead of bread crumbs, weed instead of oregano (JOKE), etc. I developed my own style of cooking by necessity.
Over time, I realized things taste better this way and its fun to see how everyday "low brow" pop cultural items can be used in gourmet cooking. The recipe I submitted for "unnamed food contest" contained cherry coke and you'd never guess it was in there. The point in cooking with these ingredients is not to taste cherry coke. Otherwise, I'd just drink cherry coke.
When I cook, I like to balance flavors and make it all one. If one flavor/ingredient sticks out over all the others, I've failed. Maybe a few are more pronounced than others, but unless its a spicy dish, I really don't like one ingredient being louder than the others.
It is fun to use everyday ingredients laying around your house, in vending machines downstairs, from the bodega to make chef quality food. Its a challenge, but when done right really adds a layer of familiarity, creativity, and depth of flavor.
