Q&A with Chef Justin Smith of Bread & Boredom
Our marketing intern Calli had the pleasure of sitting down with Justin Smith of @breadandboredom to ask him a few questions about his life and how he got to where he is with cooking. A big thank you to Justin for letting us into your world and answering our questions!
Calli: What is your favorite food memory growing up?
Justin: Ah that’s hard to say, I don’t have a specific memory or a favorite, but one that I appreciate the most that got me into cooking would be with my dad’s mother that let me help out in the kitchen and cut vegetables for salads and make barbeque sauce all the time when I was really young. I remember I was working at a food charity and they asked us when we learned to cook and I always go back to that when I would make barbeque sauce for my Bubby.
C: Who or what inspired you to study culinary science & hospitality in college?
J: Honestly, no one did. I liked cooking, my mom was terrible at cooking, so I wanted to do it. I had a hard time enjoying school so I figured if I was going to put myself into it I would find something I really enjoyed and this happened to be it. I was one of 12 kids in my class and I got lucky finding something.
C: Do you have any suggestions for a novice just learning to cook on their own?
J: Find one thing you really love to make and make all kinds of it. For me it was pasta. I realized I loved making it and I have now made every shape imaginable. Practice is key and if you find the one thing you really enjoy making you can try all different variations and get really good at it.
C: What has been your go-to dish to prepare during Covid-19?
J: I made a bunch of stir fries and vegetable stir-fries. I am a half vegetarian so I try not to eat much meat but I make a lot of Thai dishes and I love a good wok
C: Have you always baked bread & made your own pasta from scratch? Do you have a favorite pasta?
J: I have been making bread for about 5 years and pasta for about 7. I haven’t always made it from scratch always, but for as long as I’ve enjoyed cooking I have. My favorite pasta shape to make is gnocchi with a simple red sauce
C: How did your blog Bread &Boredom come about?
J: My father pushed me to start writing up my recipes and I follow a ton of food bloggers and I just liked writing down the recipes & I liked taking pictures of the food. I am god awful at it and I am color blind so any editing I do comes out green but my friends help me out now, but I really enjoyed writing down the recipes and taking pictures of whatever I made. I am bad at keeping up with it though.
C: Do you post more on your blog or Instagram?
J: I try to post recipes, but I keep up with Instagram way more. All the recipes are on my blog and I am more active with casual every-day things on Instagram. “
C: Are there any ingredients you always have on hand in your kitchen?
J : Olive oil, bananas, peanut butter, Pecorino Romano, tomatoes. I have never run out of any of that.
C: What is your favorite meal?
J: Oh man, that’s hard, but I love fish & chips.