Tough Guy Book Club #GetCooked challenge recipe

Ingredients

• One Goon.
• A challenging recipe (see cooking tip).
• A dollop of enthusiasm.
• Photographic evidence.
• No BBQs.
• No comfort zones.

Cooking Tip

“Challenging recipe” is relative. This challenge isn’t about being a good cook, it’s about being the best cook you can be. If you are a crap cook, find a recipe that looks interesting and give it a bash. If you are a good cook, try something you haven’t done before.

Method

Combine all ingredients into a post on the Pool Hall Facebook page with the hashtag #GetCooked.

As may be plainly obvious by now, this month’s challenge was to cook something challenging. And the Tough Guy Book Club delivered! This was by far the most responded to challenge in our history. Goons who can cook went fancy, those who never cook gave it a red-hot go. Some took a simple idea and took it to another level – who knew a grilled cheese and ham sandwich could be so complicated? One goon googled ‘what is the hardest thing to cook,’ and his croquembouche video was a highlight of the challenge.

It was great to see such a range of recipes, skill levels, and settings. Cooking classes in Vietnam featured, along with cuisines from all around the globe. Beef wellington, crème brulee, handmade pasta, Japanese pancakes, ice-cream, curries, stews, soups, roasts, pies, and even a hot sauce made from crickets. What seemed like an endless stream of delicious photos, stories, recipes and videos, was enough to tighten the belt of even the most health-conscious among us.

The challenge had a positive impact on others too. Families were treated to a fancy meal, partners were given a much-valued night off cooking, and some goons taking the chance to have a bonding experience with their kids – dramatically increasing the difficulty level! Many goons added a social factor by cooking for each other, one notable event was half a dozen goons sharing their creations one night, to matched beers.

As this was our most embraced challenge, there were way too many recipes and other attempts to list. It was bloody fantastic to see everyone get outside of their comfort zone to put up a special post, whether that was the hardest recipe in the world, or an easy fry up for those who had never tired anything harder than cereal before.