Recipe hoarders
January 22, 2017 by Darcie
Have you ever had a dish that you wanted to recreate, so you asked for the recipe – only to be denied by the person who made the dish? It might be understandable for a chef to keep a recipe trademarked, but what about your neighbor or family member? Is it fair to keep recipes a secret? Over at Epicurious, Bonnie Rubin discusses some of the reasons people won’t share their recipes.
Sometimes a friend or family member won’t share a recipe because she feels it won’t be special if everyone knows how to make it. Others worry that someone will change the recipe and still credit it to him or her, even if the changes ruin the dish. The original recipe giver does not want to be associated with something that turns out badly.
Another reason could be that the recipe isn’t as special as you think it is. For example, one hostess known for her “show-stopping” cheesecake won’t give out the recipe for one simple reason: she uses the recipe that comes on the package of cream cheese. Sometimes people can be sneaky in not providing the recipe. Instead of outright denying the ask, they sabotage the recipe by omitting key ingredients or instructions.
How about you – do you give out recipes freely or do you have “secret” recipes with which you’ll never part? Although I can emphathize with the woman who didn’t want to be associated with a terrible dish, I usually give out recipes if asked. People will occasionally say that their attempt to make the recipe didn’t turn out as well as mine. I wonder if they think I sabotaged it?
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