--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I'm always in the kitchen, cooking and…" description: "\"I'm always in the kitchen, cooking and experimenting - I love it. And every now and then I think, 'I should write a cookbook' or, 'I should write for f..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a07/kiran-desai-11507_cookbook_i-m-always-in-the-kitchen-cooking-and-ex_2310949.jpg" --- # I'm always in the kitchen, cooking and experimenting - I… ![“I'm always in the kitchen, cooking and experimenting - I love it. And every now and then I think, 'I should write a cookbook' or, 'I should write for food magazines.' And then I get drawn back to writing fiction again.” quote by Kiran Desai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a07/kiran-desai-11507_cookbook_i-m-always-in-the-kitchen-cooking-and-ex_2310949.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a07/kiran-desai-11507_cookbook_i-m-always-in-the-kitchen-cooking-and-ex_2310949.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a07/kiran-desai-11507_cookbook_i-m-always-in-the-kitchen-cooking-and-ex_2310949.jpg) > “I'm always in the kitchen, cooking and experimenting - I love it. And every now and then I think, 'I should write a cookbook' or, 'I should write for food magazines.' And then I get drawn back to writing fiction again.” [Kiran Desai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiran-desai/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Balancing culinary passion with literary ambition creates tension between practical craft and creative storytelling. **In simple terms:** Cooking and writing compete for focus. Key Takeaway Choose one project to complete before switching. Themes creativity career balance Mood enthusiastic reflective Type personal inspirational When to use this quote - writing a cookbook - publishing a food article - working on a novel - teaching cooking classes Key Concepts identity discipline artistic expression Questions to Reflect On - Which medium fulfills you more? - How can you integrate cooking into your fiction? A Different Perspective The quote may underestimate the time needed to master both fields. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cooking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cooking/) [Fiction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fiction/) [Food](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/food/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) [Writing fiction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing-fiction/) ## Related quotes > [After opening my first restaurant in 1969, one of the regular customers suggested I write a cookbook, so I did. Then another. After my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/prue-leith/after-opening-my-first-restaurant-in-1969-one-of-the-regular/) [Prue Leith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/prue-leith/) > [When I first started writing cookbooks, I remember thinking to myself, what makes me think I can write a cookbook? There are these great…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ina-garten/when-i-first-started-writing-cookbooks-i-remember-thinking-to-myself/) [Ina Garten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ina-garten/) > [I think it's important if you're going to write a cookbook, it should sound like you talking - it should be things you actually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-bourdain/i-think-it-s-important-if-you-re-going-to-write-a-cookbook-it-should/) [Anthony Bourdain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-bourdain/) > [I've always had a fantasy to write a cookbook, because everyone wants to know what a model eats.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/padma-lakshmi/i-ve-always-had-a-fantasy-to-write-a-cookbook-because-everyone-wants/) [Padma Lakshmi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/padma-lakshmi/) > [I'm a huge cook! I'm actually trying to write my first cookbook. I make an Indian-spice Bolognese and serve it over pasta. It's a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannah-simone/i-m-a-huge-cook-i-m-actually-trying-to-write-my-first-cookbook-i-make/) [Hannah Simone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hannah-simone/) > [“And dear, if you should someday become famous, don't write a cookbook.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-graham/and-dear-if-you-should-someday-become-famous-don-t-write-a-cookbook/) [Lauren Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-graham/) > [I was a bit of an accident really - I certainly didn't set out to write a cookbook or three. I didn't have a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-monroe/i-was-a-bit-of-an-accident-really-i-certainly-didn-t-set-out-to-write/) [Jack Monroe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-monroe/) > [Every author has to eventually write a food book.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/every-author-has-to-eventually-write-a-food-book/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [People ask me: "Why do you write about food, and eating, and drinking? Why don't you write about the struggle for power and security,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-f-k-fisher/people-ask-me-why-do-you-write-about-food-and-eating-and-drinking-why/) [M. F. K. Fisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-f-k-fisher/) > [ I would stay \[in the newsroom\] until 3 am "in case something happened." But I mostly had nothing to do between 1 and 3… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-asimov/i-would-stay-in-the-newsroom-until-3-am-in-case-something-happened/) Eric Asimov > [I had decided I wanted to write about food, and I knew the only way to do that is to speak with authority, which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-simmons/i-had-decided-i-wanted-to-write-about-food-and-i-knew-the-only-way-to/) [Gail Simmons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-simmons/) > [I really love to write about food, crafts, and fashion, so those details will always be a part of my books. I think they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-han/i-really-love-to-write-about-food-crafts-and-fashion-so-those-details/) [Jenny Han](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-han/) > [I'm not a food critic, and I'm not really an authority to write anything on food.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-kapranos/i-m-not-a-food-critic-and-i-m-not-really-an-authority-to-write/) [Alex Kapranos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-kapranos/) > [I chose to write about food: food is inherently political, but it's also an essential part of people's real lives. It's where the public…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annia-ciezadlo/i-chose-to-write-about-food-food-is-inherently-political-but-it-s/) [Annia Ciezadlo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annia-ciezadlo/) > [Food is interesting to me because it's a way of understanding culture and societies and history. I would never write about food just as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-kurlansky/food-is-interesting-to-me-because-it-s-a-way-of-understanding-culture/) [Mark Kurlansky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-kurlansky/) ## More by Kiran Desai > [“How could anything be the same? The red of blood lay over the market road in slick pools mingled with a yellow spread of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiran-desai/how-could-anything-be-the-same-the-red-of-blood-lay-over-the-market/) [Kiran Desai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiran-desai/) > [When I was growing up the publishing world seemed so far away. When my mother wrote a book, she would look up the address…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiran-desai/when-i-was-growing-up-the-publishing-world-seemed-so-far-away-when-my/) [Kiran Desai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiran-desai/) > [“Year by year, his life wasn't amounting to anything at all...And yet, another part of him had expanded: his self-consciousness, his self-pity -- oh,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiran-desai/year-by-year-his-life-wasn-t-amounting-to-anything-at-all-and-yet/) [Kiran Desai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiran-desai/) > [Why couldn't she be part of that family? rent a room in someone else's life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiran-desai/why-couldn-t-she-be-part-of-that-family-rent-a-room-in-someone-else-s/) [Kiran Desai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiran-desai/) > [In India, if you are from the elite, dogs are extremely important. The breed of the dog indicates your wealth, that you are westernized.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiran-desai/in-india-if-you-are-from-the-elite-dogs-are-extremely-important-the/) [Kiran Desai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiran-desai/) > [I don't think you can write according to a set of rules and laws; every writer is so different.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiran-desai/i-don-t-think-you-can-write-according-to-a-set-of-rules-and-laws/) [Kiran Desai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiran-desai/) > [A man wasn't equal to an animal, not one particle of him. Human life was stinking corrupt, and meanwhile there were beautiful creatures who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiran-desai/a-man-wasn-t-equal-to-an-animal-not-one-particle-of-him-human-life/) [Kiran Desai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiran-desai/) > [“But the child shouldn't be blamed for the father's crime, she tried to reason with herself, then. But should the child therefore also enjoy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiran-desai/but-the-child-shouldn-t-be-blamed-for-the-father-s-crime-she-tried-to/) [Kiran Desai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiran-desai/) > [“Biju stepped out of the airport into the Calcutta night, warm, mammalian. His feet sank into dust winnowed to softness at his feet, ad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiran-desai/biju-stepped-out-of-the-airport-into-the-calcutta-night-warm/) [Kiran Desai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiran-desai/) > [Writing, for me, means humility. It’s a process that involves fear and doubt, especially if you’re writing honestly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiran-desai/writing-for-me-means-humility-it-s-a-process-that-involves-fear-and/) [Kiran Desai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiran-desai/) > [“That very afternoon the police arrived at Cho Oyu in a line of toad-colored jeeps that appeared through the moving static of a small…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiran-desai/that-very-afternoon-the-police-arrived-at-cho-oyu-in-a-line-of-toad/) [Kiran Desai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiran-desai/) > [The publishing world is very timid. Readers are much braver.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiran-desai/the-publishing-world-is-very-timid-readers-are-much-braver/) [Kiran Desai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiran-desai/) > [“The judge got down on his knees, and he prayed to God, he, Jemubhai Popatlal the agnostic, who had made a long hard journey…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiran-desai/the-judge-got-down-on-his-knees-and-he-prayed-to-god-he-jemubhai/) [Kiran Desai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiran-desai/) > [New York is a lovely city. It is an easy city to go back to and an easy city to leave. Every time I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiran-desai/new-york-is-a-lovely-city-it-is-an-easy-city-to-go-back-to-and-an/) [Kiran Desai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiran-desai/) > [She'd have to propel herself into the future by whatever means possible or she'd be trapped forever in a place whose times had already…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiran-desai/she-d-have-to-propel-herself-into-the-future-by-whatever-means/) [Kiran Desai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiran-desai/) [Explore all 59 Kiran Desai quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiran-desai/) ## More Cookbook quotes > [My office in New York is overflowing with all kinds of cookbooks, and in New Orleans we have a huge culinary library. So yeah,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emeril-lagasse/my-office-in-new-york-is-overflowing-with-all-kinds-of-cookbooks-and/) [Emeril Lagasse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emeril-lagasse/) > [A combination of the qualities of the scholar, the master cook, the painter, the gastronomer, the sportsman and the pantologist, assisted by the skill…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-ellwanger/a-combination-of-the-qualities-of-the-scholar-the-master-cook-the/) [George Ellwanger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-ellwanger/) > [Most women loathe limericks, for the same reason that calves hate cookbooks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gershon-legman/most-women-loathe-limericks-for-the-same-reason-that-calves-hate/) Gershon Legman > [British cookbook author Elizabeth David led the most adventurous life but is widely credited with bringing to the fore the importance of home cooking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melissa-leong/british-cookbook-author-elizabeth-david-led-the-most-adventurous-life/) [Melissa Leong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melissa-leong/) > [I've read hundreds of cookbooks. Most of those cookbooks don't even tell you how to get a steak ready, how to bake biscuits or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colonel-sanders/i-ve-read-hundreds-of-cookbooks-most-of-those-cookbooks-don-t-even/) [Colonel Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colonel-sanders/) > [Cookbooks, it should be stressed, do not belong in the kitchen at all. We keep them there for the sake of appearances; occasionally, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-lane/cookbooks-it-should-be-stressed-do-not-belong-in-the-kitchen-at-all/) [Anthony Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-lane/) > [“It's a recipe for agrumato," he says, sounding surprised. I roll the unfamiliar name in Italian around on my tongue. "Agrumato? What's that?" Nicolo's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-linden/it-s-a-recipe-for-agrumato-he-says-sounding-surprised-i-roll-the/) Rachel Linden > [I am a cookbook fanatic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-bee/i-am-a-cookbook-fanatic/) [Samantha Bee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-bee/) > [My mom had Julia Child and 'The Fannie Farmer Cookbook' on top of the refrigerator, and she had a small repertoire of French dishes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-bourdain/my-mom-had-julia-child-and-the-fannie-farmer-cookbook-on-top-of-the/) [Anthony Bourdain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-bourdain/) > [Every cookbook can be a bit patronising.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ainsley-harriott/every-cookbook-can-be-a-bit-patronising/) [Ainsley Harriott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ainsley-harriott/) > [Cookbooks have all become baroque and very predictable. I'm looking for something different. 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Martin > [When we first did 'Modernist Cuisine,' I think most people in cookbook publishing would have said, 'This is insane.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-myhrvold/when-we-first-did-modernist-cuisine-i-think-most-people-in-cookbook/) [Nathan Myhrvold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-myhrvold/) > [A lot of cookbooks also have incredible food writing, even though I feel like a lot of cookbook authors don't necessarily identify with being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-zauner/a-lot-of-cookbooks-also-have-incredible-food-writing-even-though-i/) [Michelle Zauner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-zauner/) > [“None of this Mad Mario showmanship- orange clogs and Bermuda shorts fit for Babar, sweetbreads garnished with squash blossoms stuffed with cheese from the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-glass/none-of-this-mad-mario-showmanship-orange-clogs-and-bermuda-shorts/) [Julia Glass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-glass/) Browse all 169 Cookbook quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I'm always in the kitchen, cooking and experimenting - I love it. 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