Savory Chef versus Pastry Chef
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Dan Stewart
Oct 13, 2010, 9:17:16 PM10/13/10
to software_craftsmanship
My wife and I love to watch Top Chef.
I noticed that the chef's are constantly tasting their food. They are
checking their recipe as they go.
A new show just started named Top Chef: Just Desserts. Here pastry
chefs compete for the prize.
On the first episode one of the pastry chefs said something like, "The
difference between a savory chef and a pastry chef is that, we can't
taste as we go. It has to be made perfectly for it to turn out right."
This got me thinking about TDD.
As craftsman we get to taste our design by writing tests. We discover
code smells, and we sprinkle in a little refactoring. Every few
minutes we know if we are making a good dish or not.
Without TDD, programming is like baking a cake. We put in all the
right ingredients and pop it in the oven. An hour later, we hope it
turned out right.
I noticed that the chef's are constantly tasting their food. They are
checking their recipe as they go.
A new show just started named Top Chef: Just Desserts. Here pastry
chefs compete for the prize.
On the first episode one of the pastry chefs said something like, "The
difference between a savory chef and a pastry chef is that, we can't
taste as we go. It has to be made perfectly for it to turn out right."
This got me thinking about TDD.
As craftsman we get to taste our design by writing tests. We discover
code smells, and we sprinkle in a little refactoring. Every few
minutes we know if we are making a good dish or not.
Without TDD, programming is like baking a cake. We put in all the
right ingredients and pop it in the oven. An hour later, we hope it
turned out right.
Edward Gabriel Moraru
Oct 14, 2010, 3:56:52 AM10/14/10
to software_cr...@googlegroups.com
I think it's also called "Edit and Pray".
But, the analogy has a little flaw : the pastry chef didn't cook a perfect pastry from the first time, she/he cooked some pastries before until she/he learned the recipe. So, the pastry chef also tested ;)
Anyway, great thoughts, thanks for sharing them with us.
But, the analogy has a little flaw : the pastry chef didn't cook a perfect pastry from the first time, she/he cooked some pastries before until she/he learned the recipe. So, the pastry chef also tested ;)
Anyway, great thoughts, thanks for sharing them with us.
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Ben Rady
Oct 14, 2010, 9:06:52 AM10/14/10
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It's a lot easier to adapt when you have a shorter feedback loop.
In addition to programming, I also cook and bake. In my experience, baking is very much about knowing what you're doing before you start to do it. Most of the time, it's about precision and being able to repeat the necessary steps to consistently produce something tasty. Improvising in baking is very difficult to do.
Cooking, on the other hand, is much more creativity and ingredients than procedure and precision. For example, I always prefer higher quality ingredients than what's specifically called for in the recipe. Good ingredients always taste good. If I taste it along the way, I can adjust the flavors to make sure they all balance out. Getting that fast feedback lets me try things out and not fear making something inedible.
That's why a good cook can usually walk into a kitchen and make something wonderful from whatever is on hand. They can measure the end product as they go along (by tasting it) and have the experience to know how adding other ingredients will affect the dish. The length of the feedback loop is short enough to provide lots of iterations before the final product needs to be delivered (a.k.a. dinner time). Not so with baking.
In addition to programming, I also cook and bake. In my experience, baking is very much about knowing what you're doing before you start to do it. Most of the time, it's about precision and being able to repeat the necessary steps to consistently produce something tasty. Improvising in baking is very difficult to do.
Cooking, on the other hand, is much more creativity and ingredients than procedure and precision. For example, I always prefer higher quality ingredients than what's specifically called for in the recipe. Good ingredients always taste good. If I taste it along the way, I can adjust the flavors to make sure they all balance out. Getting that fast feedback lets me try things out and not fear making something inedible.
That's why a good cook can usually walk into a kitchen and make something wonderful from whatever is on hand. They can measure the end product as they go along (by tasting it) and have the experience to know how adding other ingredients will affect the dish. The length of the feedback loop is short enough to provide lots of iterations before the final product needs to be delivered (a.k.a. dinner time). Not so with baking.
Michael Feathers
Oct 14, 2010, 9:12:01 AM10/14/10
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This reminds me of Anthony Bourdain. In his book 'Kitchen
Confidential' he implied that pastry chefs were a bit weird and what
made one or another great was a mystery.
Confidential' he implied that pastry chefs were a bit weird and what
made one or another great was a mystery.
Peter Gfader
Oct 13, 2010, 9:50:26 PM10/13/10
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+1 Nice analogy!
.peter.gfader.
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Francis Fish
Oct 14, 2010, 10:41:21 AM10/14/10
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I think it's a false distinction - Pastry chefs may not taste but they
do look at and feel consistency plus the smell of the ingredients.
Plus an experienced chef who knows their kitchen will know that
certain ovens are slightly hotter than others and so on.
do look at and feel consistency plus the smell of the ingredients.
Plus an experienced chef who knows their kitchen will know that
certain ovens are slightly hotter than others and so on.
I think it's more like Java vs Ruby. With Ruby allow the sampling and
trials and Java needing the 20 minute Ant script before you have any
idea if it still runs ;)
Erik Przekop
Oct 14, 2010, 11:47:42 AM10/14/10
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We use maven now... which takes more like 120 minutes to set up the first time...
Erik Przekop
http://www.erikprzekop.com
er...@erikprzekop.com
(734) 335-0465
http://www.erikprzekop.com
er...@erikprzekop.com
(734) 335-0465
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