Marco Pierre White's advice on how to overcome pressure in the kitchen
Marco Pierre White believes that a lifetime of being a chef means that you stop feeling pressure in the kitchen, no matter how many people you're cooking for.
Twenty years after handing in his three Michelin stars, the former head chef of Harvey's said he still doesn't feel pressured when cooking for large groups, calling it "just another day in the office."
"Whether you do 400 or four, it's the same," he said in an interview with The New Zealand Herald, where the celebrity chef will be the headline guest of the Taste of Auckland food festival in October and November.
"And remember, when you spend your life in the kitchen, you're trained to absorb pressure, to the point where you don't feel pressure."
"It's just another day in the office, it's as simple as that for me. I've done it many times in my life."
For the author of White Heat, it's not just a case of practice-makes-perfect, and aspiring chefs should cultivate their minds as much as they hone their practical skills.
"Read. Never stop reading. They should read all the cooking books that they can," he said.
Rather than draw inspiration solely from recipe books (or Instagram feeds), he recommends that chefs read as many biographies as possible, "to take inspiration, to take knowledge. As I've said many times before the story is way more important than the recipe."
"A recipe can confuse you but a story can inspire you."
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