Food Porn at Rouxbe

I cringe when a bagger at the market places heavy items on top of fragile produce. I admit I'm totally anal when it comes to picking out unblemished fruits and vegetables, but after spending the time and money to find that perfectly ripe tomato or pound of strawberries, my heart stops when cans wind up weighing them down. It, unfortunately, happens more often than not. A cashier was once so brutal with a bag of apples; one fell out of the bag, bounced like a tennis ball, and rolled to another till. She nonchalantly picked it up, put it back in the bag, and continued. She seemed surprised when I told her I didn't want to take that one. She replied, saying it couldn't possibly be bruised.

My breathing temporarily stops when I see customers slam down and toss their own items onto a conveyor belt. I could be wrong, but these people can't possibly be foodies...boxes are squashing bread, which is squashing lettuce. No care is taken. For someone like me, I couldn't be happier to take my own reusable grocery bags to the market and bag my own.

I thought it may have been a tiny neurotic disorder, but I have discovered meaning to my madness. A few days into my job at Rouxbe, I found myself shopping for a video shoot. My mission: to find the sexiest and freshest onions, shallots, chilies, and red peppers. Since the food is THE STAR at Rouxbe, I was in my element. I had to decide who was going to make the cut, and so the auditions began. Was each item too fat? Too thin? Too old and wrinkly? Too genetically modified? A few vendors smirked when I told them I had to find the sexiest produce possible because it was going to be a supa-star.

So what's sexy at Rouxbe? Sexy is no food styling. The pictures you see are the end result of each dish. Sexy at Rouxbe is honest food and honest cooking. There is no hairspray on set...no glue, food coloring, shaving cream, or blowtorches. Pictures are taken immediately after cooking or baking, as the star of the show waits for nobody. Sure, the odd crumb may be brushed away or a splatter may be wiped up, but the food is never improvised. One of the best things at Rouxbe is we indulge in every dish that we test, pre-produce, and film. Thanks to Rouxbe, I breathe easy as I no longer feel like a psycho for searching out the best of the best.

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My New Job at Rouxbe

During these past two months, my blogging has been light. With a hectic schedule and so much to say, it has been difficult to sit down and write.

Back in April, I wrote about a company called Rouxbe. Ecstatic to find out they were based in Vancouver, my first thought was to interview the co-founders Joe Girard and Dawn Thomas. I had started a blog series on Food Industry Jobs and was curious to find out about their journey in the industry. What prompts two Chefs to go from owning and operating a successful film catering company to teaching people how to become better cooks at home through online, step-by-step videos?

As I researched Rouxbe, their business model, vision, and goals intrigued me. This was a company I had to work with and so the stalking began I set up a meeting with them and things serendipitously fell into place. I began working at Rouxbe in July and every day since I have been overjoyed to wake up and go to work. Even though there is a lot to be done, I have a hard time calling it "work" in the traditional sense. For the first time in my life, I can truly say I love what I am doing. In an environment with such a positive and goal-driven team, it's hard not to.

There is so much exciting stuff coming up, I can hardly wait to share more news, along with my behind-the-scenes experiences. To take your cooking skills to the next level, go ahead and check out Rouxbe for yourself.

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Rouxbe - Taking Online Video Instruction to a New Level

How would you like a professional Chef in your kitchen demonstrating step-by-step instructions? Rouxbe (roo-bee), a revolutionary online instructional cooking video company is working to make that a reality. Rouxbe's incredible vision is radically changing the rules of the game on the way instructional video is presented to people, by transforming the video experience from passive to interactive.

When I first encountered their site, I was immediately impressed by the exceptionally clean design. Apart from it being very attractive and easy to navigate, their videos provide clear, concise, and uninterrupted culinary instruction and techniques. The richly interactive and step-by-step videos give control back to the user, allowing them to pause and "drill down" for further information, if desired. From novices to seasoned cooks, Rouxbe has interesting tips to offer and brings an entirely new level of learning. Available 24/7, they are changing the way people can approach recipes and culinary information. Take your laptop into your kitchen to easily prepare delicious, healthy, and homemade meals.

Clearly, Dawn Thomas and Joe Girard, the co-founders of Rouxbe, are passionate about what they are building and feel it is important to give back. Right out of the gate, Rouxbe has also established Rouxbe for Life, where 15% of all member fees (not profits) are donated to the UN World Food Program. Click on Rouxbe's membership options to obtain a free trial or purchase your yearly membership. Better yet, if you sign up as a founding member before June 1st, 2007, you will enjoy lifetime videos for a very small fee.

Being that it is Earth Day, something else came to mind. Rouxbe's advanced technology is saving many trees. No longer are cookbooks needed in print. This is definitely one company I'm interested in following.

Tagged as: [ cooking culinary howto instructional pastry rouxbe videos ]