I CAN MAKE A MEAN CEDAR PLANK SALMON ON THE BBQ. IT DIDN’T JUST HAPPEN, THERE WAS AN EVOLUTION AND A LEARNING CURVE TO BRING IT TO THE PERFECTION THAT IT HAS BECOME. IT EVOLVED BY TRYING DIFFERENT TECHNIQUES OF SOAKING THE PLANKS, ADJUSTING THE HEAT, AND FINDING THE RIGHT BALANCE AND RATIO OF ROSEMARY AND LEMON PEEL TOPPING.
Due to my precise and orderly rituals, stringent prep rules, and the fresh and meticulously proportioned ingredients, the final product is one that will make palettes dance in ecstasy.
Finding that balance took trial and error as well as time, and when I think of my first blundered attempt at creating this recipe, it’s now obvious what I did wrong. I’m a fan of rosemary. It’s the type of flavor and aroma that one has to acquire, but once you do it treats your taste buds to an exquisite pleasure. Because I’m so fond of this aromatic herb, I used it very generously in my first crack at the recipe. I took dried sprigs and ground them to rub coat the entire salmon’s surface, and a few fresh uncut stems to garnish the top. It surely looked amazing and smelled pungent, but the flavor was so overpowering that you couldn’t even taste the salmon itself. As odd as it sounds I had ruined it by adding too much of my favorite flavor.
This was my first self-taught lesson in cooking—that less can actually be more. I learned that my number one herb is better enjoyed in a subtle presence than it is in an in-your-face packed punch.
The recipe for life, much like in cooking, is all about balance. Some say too much is never enough, or the more the merrier, but there are times where the opposite mindset prevails. Sometimes, a single rose can be even more poignant, beautiful, or sentimental than the clumsily slapped together arrangement.
One of the things that I loved, particularly in this past year, was the smaller weddings I attended. The pandemic has downsized our celebrations but in my opinion, the intimacy gave them an atmosphere that embraced its guests and brought us closer to the core of the event. The mere fact that the guest list had to be reduced by hundreds highlighted the fact that the people who did make the guest list are the ones who matter the most. The venues were quaint and personal, and whether it was a tented backyard or a smaller banquet room at a country club, it captured the moments with the distinctiveness of a close family gathering, which is a feeling that the grand humongous, opulent ballrooms we’re used to just can’t provide. There was a beauty in the simplicity that couldn’t be duplicated in a larger setting. It worked well. Just like scaling down the rosemary on my salmon, we were able to appreciate the less—all the more.
As humans we know what we like and we want what we want. Our society is one of excess. We tend to crave the elaborate over the simplistic. But if we learn to focus on the essentials, we might find enhanced fulfillment. It just might be that the secret to happiness is not found in seeking more, but in developing the capacity to appreciate less.
BRIAN MARCUS
Brian Marcus is a community member who loves to write. He has contributed to IMAGE Magazine many times.
