Why Cooking is Caregiving, with Chef Hillary Sterling | Better in Person

Hillary Sterling's culinary philosophy centers on cooking with senses, not just recipes—she teaches cooks to listen for the 'noise' of pasta in a pan and to feel when pork is perfectly cooked by its 'glisten' rather than relying solely on thermometers.

Sterling reveals that she didn't take the job to run Danny Meyer's iconic Union Square Cafe because she felt she couldn't be her authentic self in a space with such a fixed history, choosing instead to build her own identity at Ci Siamo.

The chef discusses the economics of running a restaurant, including negotiating with suppliers for 28,000 pounds of cipollini onions and 6,000 rabbits annually, and the importance of controlling food, wine, and labor costs.

Sterling's childhood of 'cream cheese sandwiches on Wonderbread' and canned potatoes shaped her pursuit of real, textured food, making her an anomaly among chefs who grew up with access to good restaurants.

The episode highlights Sterling's resilience: after a zero-star review early in her career, she read it years later and admitted the critic was right, using that experience to build herself back up and eventually earn a glowing review from the same critic.