10 Things 32 Years in Kitchens Taught Me About Cooking
I turn 45 this week. And after 32 years in kitchens, I’ve seen it all. So before I blow out the candles, here are 10 things I wish someone told me at 25. Yes, the picture on the left is actually me. I think I was 6’2 and about 145lbs soaking wet!
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Classical culinary expertise meets home cooking!
I’m Billy Parisi, a classically trained culinary school graduate from Scottsdale Culinary Institute with over 15 years in the restaurant industry and over 25 years of cooking experience.
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Food is the common language that bridges diverse backgrounds and stories, bringing people together around the same table. For me, cooking isn’t just a skill; it’s a source of pure happiness and fulfillment.
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36 Comments
Turning 45 this week, and honestly this is one of the most personal videos I've ever put on this channel. 25 years in kitchens taught me a lot more than how to cook — and #10 is the one that took me the longest to actually live. So I've gotta ask: what's the one thing YOU wish someone had told you at 25 — kitchen or not? I read every reply. Let's cook.
Happy Birthday! Love everything you do. Thank you for helping me become a better cook
Happiest of birthdays to you Billie! 🎊🎂 Love your Chanel!
All great info. I went to Culinary School late in life and all of the information is incredibly relevant!!!
Happy Birthday on Saturday! I remember your birthday because it is my birthday too! Thank you so much for doing these videos. I have learned so much!
🎶👁️🫶🏼👁️🎶
I'll be gone before you know it. So please, everyone, pay attention to this video. Nobody will remember who made the perfect ribeye on your wife's special birthday dinner, but you'll both talk for the rest of your lives how, when asked for the location of the ladies room, your waiter walked her to the door and was waiting when she came out, escorting her back to her table where a fresh water and linen napkin awaited. She actually teared up because "he was such a caring person". You must provide impeccable food, whatever it is, but give your patreons a reason to tell stories of both the food and the service and before you realize it, you'll be celebrating your tenth anniversary there.
— The Old Man
My grandmothers and aunts were my patterns for hospitality. They delighted in filling tables full of good, simple food that had people leaving the table full and happy. They all cared more about how people felt while sitting at their tables, and less about the food being perfect. The result is some of the simplest foods seem to me to be the most luxurious, because they were the special recipes of people I loved and no longer have, not because they are the most expensive foods.
Brilliant! Truthful! Humility! Authenticity. You are such an inspiration, Billy, and among the very few out there that we wouldn’t want to miss for your generosity, creativity, professionalism and humanity.
Thank you. 🙏
And yes! Happy birthday!
"Watch how they recover from mistakes."
This is what's missing from YT videos. All the mistakes are edited out, so you don't know what to do when you inevitably screw it up.
Happy Birthday Billy! And thank you for sharing your wisdom and passion for food exploration and learning. I'm older than you by a ways, and only a home cook, yet I resonate strongly with balance, exploration, and the joy of cooking for others. 🙏👏
Happy Birthday 🎂 🥳
Happy Birthday! Before watching your channel I would throw out my vegetable scraps and chicken bones and carcass. Now I save them in the freezer until I have enough to make stock and wow, what flavor! It was a life changing tip I wish I had known a long time ago. Thanks Chef!
Thank you Billy, always love your video's, I also love that cup where is it from?
Excellent pearls! Thank you for the share, Chef.🍷
Im 45 and I never started cooking
Wise words. Best one by far….
Happy Birthday Sir!! Any ideas or tips on a cucumber salad/slaw?? I have a garden full!!😮😮 I was just going to shred them on a box shredder. After peeling them, then shred some onion, some carrot and a little bit of cabbage and throw in some kewpie Mayo and some apple cider vinegar, salt and pepper, maybe some tomatoes and see what I came up with. Do you have any ideas that would make this better?Or is this worth making??😊😊❤❤
Happy birthday Chef! Great video. Thank you!
9 is so true
Simple always works
Chef for 54 years always taste duh
Good video be honest be humble ask questions and always learn
Don't just learn the classics learn the old techniques
Was that a little birthday fart at the end?
Amen! Happy birthday! BTW, I went to culinary school when I was 60 years old. It was a real education. What I found out during that time was that I learn new names for things that my grandmother, great aunt, and my mom had taught me. I also learned that there was a huge difference and opinions when you had come up through the ranks and when you went to culinary school. I didn’t fit anywhere.
Happy Birthday Sir. Look forward to seeing more videos down the road to making good tasting food. Any updates on the new restaurant?
Happy Birthday 🎉🎉🎉
Wise words , great video
Pure gold advice, Billy ! Watching, tasting, listening and curbing the ego. Thank you for these life lessons that don't just apply to the kitchen but to life !
4:35 "Hospitality matters more than perfection". This is what makes good restaurants GREAT! My all-time favorites are not only because the food is great, but the experience was unforgettable. On the flip side, poor service will ruin the experience and no amount of great food can overcome it.
Very wise to be just 45. Give yourself a pat on the back ! I appreciate you much more than I did before!
DIGITIZE as much as you can. Recipe cards. Hand written notes. Whatever it is. Trust me, over time you will lose or misplace this stuff. Family and friends will eventually leave us, and with them their recipes, secrets, and knowledge. Unless you make the EFFORT and invest the TIME to ensure you can pass it on to future generations.
What an incredibly informative and insightful video. Thank you Chef Billy, looking forward to tasting your creations at the new restaurant in Crown Point.
Killing it Billy thank you!🎉
Happy Birthday Chef! I have one birthday wish…could you include ingredients measured also in grams? I live in Europe and I always have to look up equivalents from ounces to grams. Thank you and I really enjoy your channel!