Wolfgang_Puck

Chefs late night have sex, they don't eat.

Thank you.

Listen, I tell you one good story about that.

One time, a long time ago, I went to Billy and Audrey Wilder's house - Billy is a famous movie director, you know, he did SUNSET BOULEVARD and god only knows how many more. And were like 6 people, 7 people for dinner, and Audrey was cooking. And then I went into the kitchen to look what she was doing, and the other couple who was there too came in there too. And then the other guest, she looked at Audrey and said "Aren't you worried to cook or nervous cooking for Wolfgang, the chef?" and Audrey said "I don't give a shit, he can flush it down the toilet if he does not like it!"

She probably had a few vodkas before that, so...

You know, if you have to pasteurize the soup (which is the law), which means you keep it 15 minutes on high temperature, I think it detracts from the flavor. It is not the same as the restaurant, or what i would cook at home. Fresh is always best. But when you are hungry, it is always a good thing to have a good bowl of soup. Or i use my tomato soup for my pasta dishes. Like I saute some onions with a little chili flakes and garlic in olive oil, add the tomato soup, reduce it to the consistency of a sauce, and then toss my pasta cooked al dente in there. So it's very good, you don't just have to use it as a soup. If you use it as a soup, heat it up properly, maybe put a swirl of cream on top, maybe sour cream, or a little julienne of basil, or a little drizzle of olive oil.

And all of a sudden, people are going to say "oh you made a good soup!"

If you had the pumpkin soup - one of our best selling ones - if you finish it with a little cranberry relish, or some caramelized chopped apples, all of a sudden you've finished it and it gives you a much, much more interesting product.

So what i tell people is: use the soup as a base. And then be inventive.

One recipe everyone should master is how to cook perfect eggs.

At least if they want to invite me to their house!

Virst of all, I can't go back to college, I didn't go to high school yet, so... Well, first of all, I would spice it up with a little chili oil. I would add a slice of fresh ginger for flavor. And maybe some scallions.