Over at ThisIsBy.us, I read a story called "I Just Want a \%@*$ing Burger! by bbstucco. It was humorously written, but the moral of the story is something I've discussed with friends many times. Sometimes you just want plain food. This is no surprise to Anthony Bourdain or many other professional cooks, who after a night of preparing steak au poivre just want a grilled cheese (and yuck, usually a cigarette).

Cooks need to keep genre in mind when preparing food. This was particularly clear on a recent episode of "Top Chef" where the contestants had to prepare down home food and some totally missed the mark (such as Miss Meatloaf).

The other day I talked about the importance of knowing your ingredients, now I'm saying, also know your cuisine.