Photo Essay: A Dirty Yet Delicious Meal
Cooking a meal involves various steps and pieces. The tools used will differ along with the specific ingredients. Each part shows the progression of separate, empty elements through physical changes to the final dish in its new form.
Dirty rice is a simple yet delicious and filling meal. Ground meat mixed with spices and other vegetables is boiled with rice to create a delectable concoction. Boxed mixtures come with seasoning, and all the cook needs to provide is the meat.
The ground meat of choice is first laid out to thaw. Typically, it is best to take meat out early and let it gradually melt over time. If it is needed quicker or has not thawed all the way, cold tap water can be used to gently melt the ice without cooking the meat.
A large pan is prepared for cooking. It needs to be deep with tall sides so that there is room for water to boil the rice later.
Speaking of the rice, though the boxed seasoning comes with some, an extra cup is planned to be added. It will make the meal bigger and balance the amount of meat and spices.
An unslotted spoon is chosen as the tool for breaking up the ground beef then stirring and scooping the wet food.
The beef is browned in the pan with oil. Some dark soy sauce is added for color along with a little bit of seasoning like garlic powder. After the meat is cooked, the package is opened and dumped inside, along with the cup of additional white rice.
While the meat has been cooking, the kettle was filled with water and boiled. Now that it’s ready, it is poured into the pan. The lid is placed on top and over the course of about 20 minutes, the water level lowers as the rice swells up.
Beginning of boiling
Boiling progresses
Boiling is done
Finally, the dirty rice is complete. It is mixed with the spoon and tasted to check softness and seasoning.
The dish is scooped into bowls and served hot for all to enjoy.
Like many other meals, this was a process involving different components and actions that came together through planning and teamwork. With each step and each photo, changes occurred that gradually led to the satisfaction of a delicious final product.
A Story Through Photos
For my photo essay, I thought a good topic for telling a story would be cooking. It is a step-by-step process where pictures can easily and effectively convey the changes in each part.
I experimented with different angles for my photos. I took some that showed more of an object, some less. I tried unusual perspectives like the shot of the pan from down the handle. I also used distance, in particular close-ups, to highlight the details of ingredients and food; individual grains shine in the cup of rice while ice crystals sit between strands of ground beef.
Some, like the picture of the thawing ground beef, utilize the figure ground technique where the background fades away while the subject becomes the main focus.
The Gestalt principle of Symmetry was used with various shots of the pan. I think the best example is the two that show the browned meat on the left and the added seasoning on the right. The photos are very similarly posed which emphasizes the difference with the new ingredient.
