Grace Cameron, Lifestyle Editor
World-famous Cordon Bleu Chef Franck Jeandon (left), demonstrates a cutting technique to kitchen whiz kid, Jonathon Cummings, at the Student Food Demo held at University of Technology, Papine, St. Andrew, on Tuesday. - JUNIOR DOWIE/STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
TWELVE-YEAR-OLD JONATHON Cummings has been cooking for so long, no one seems to remember exactly when he started.
His mother, Alma Lawrence, remembers that he used to crawl around in the kitchen. "Plus he likes food and because he's the eldest (he has two sisters), I'd call on him more often (to help out)."
His father, Central Kingston Member of Parliament Victor Cummings, says Jonathon would always be in the kitchen and he just kept on asking about cooking.
Jonathon, who has just come to the end of first form at Wolmer's Boys School in Kingston, remembers his mother allowing him to cook when he was about eight.
"I wanted to cook like my mom and I asked and she let me."
First up was rice and bully beef, followed by macaroni and cheese. After that came fried chicken and brown stewed fish with rice and peas, which he made for his father's birthday in May.
SEARCHING FOR RECIPES
Then last year he discovered salmon. It's not that his bully beef and rice and mac and cheese days are over, it's just that there's something about salmon that has sent him searching for recipes in his father's old cookbooks. He adds his own twists (with a few hints from dad) to come up with personal creations like Vinaigrette Salmon .
Cummings, whose cookbook collection (leftovers from the days when he used to take a regular spin in the kitchen) has inspired his son, says Jonathon "likes to cook so much, sometimes I have to tell him to get out of the kitchen."
Cummings is the biggest beneficiary of his son's culinary creations. Jonathon who lives with his father during the week, often cooks dinner.
"I pick him up from school, drop him off and when I come home dinner is waiting. Or if I'm home, I just stand around and watch him."
Still, there is no free meal and Cummings says the youngster insists that his father should wash the dishes and make the juices.
It's a small price to pay, admits Cummings who eagerly dives into the sweet and sour chicken (you have to put in just the right amount of soy sauce and honey, advises Jonathon), brown stew chicken and other dishes.
BOYS CAN COOK TOO
"Some people think that only girls should cook, but anybody can do anything they want to do," reckons Jonathon.
His next culinary venture will be the grilled chicken with lemon and honey that he found in the Greatest Ever Pasta cookbook. He also sees Italian, French, vegetarian and other types of cuisine in his future.
In the meantime, he's learning to use his grill, a recent acquisition that goes with his wok and rice steamer.
Oh, and for people who can't stand the heat in the kitchen, do what Jonathon does. "Cut up and season the meat first, put things in the oven or pot then come out for a while. Go back in, do some more and then come out again for awhile. You can't stay in the kitchen too long or you'll get dizzy because of the heat."
The last word goes to Lawrence, Jonathon's mother, who is also teaching him to sew: "It's good that he can cook. It means he doesn't have to depend on anyone to feed him. Plus, I'm trying to get him to sew his pants and buttons on his shirt. It teaches them to be independent and it builds confidence."
Jonathon's Vinaigrette Salmon
Salmon
Lime juice
Tomatoes
Onions
Escallion
Thyme
Olive oil
Vinegar
Italian dressing
Method
Put the salmon to marinate in some lime juice for about an hour.
Cut up tomatoes, onions, thyme and scallions. Mix the chopped vegetables in some Italian dressing, olive oil, and a teaspoon of vinegar.
Cut into the salmon (not too deep) so that some of the seasoning can go into the salmon.
Put the salmon in the oven at about 300 degrees for about half an hour.
Serve the salmon with any favourite side dish.
