Ask A Chef? How One Chef's Passion Can Help Cooking Fans Online

In response to a suggestion by friends, chef Shawn Woods launched his own website to help other lovers of fine cuisine master the art of cooking.

Chef Shawn Woods discovered the love of cooking at a very young age. It was the basic American dish of mac and cheese that awakened a young boy's interest in the wonders of cuisine. Although Woods burned his first dish, he never quite forgot the feeling of creating real food from a batch of ingredients. Unfortunately, his dream had to take a back seat.

"After high school, I got a job as a waiter in a restaurant," says Woods. "My dream of becoming a chef had to be put on hold for a while, but the environment I was working in more than made up for the lost time. It started to bring that passion for cooking back to me. I bought cookbooks and started talking to the chefs about cooking methods and recipes."

It took a lucky encounter with an executive chef at a bar he was working in to inspire Woods to take formal classes in culinary arts at the Johnson & Wales University. Since then, he has begun working in the industry he had always loved.

The idea for his own website came after Woods noticed that friends began calling to ask him about food or cooking. Although Woods happily obliged, the idea of creating his own website to offer advice and tips on cooking did not surface until later. At a dinner with friends, one of them mentioned that having someone to refer to for cooking advice any time would be a good thing. It was after this incident that Woods' website, http://www.askchefshawn.com/, was born.

"With this website, I hope to reach a wider audience and teach them about the wonderful art of cooking," says Woods. "It's a pretty simple concept, really. All I want for my website is to be able to reach people and inform them about everything they need to know about cooking – from the basic methods of preparing food to using the most complicated ingredients."

http://www.askchefshawn.com/ contains pages of information for would-be chefs and amateur cooks. The site offers information on cooking and cooking-related subjects such as health, healing herbs and spices.

The basic methods of cooking are also explained in the 'How to Cook' page and kitchen newbies can now make heads and tails of certain food components by learning from the 'Ingredients' page. Woods also offers tasty and easy to make recipes online.

For inquiries or questions about methods and ingredients, visitors can e-mail Woods directly. Visitors can simply click on the 'Ask Chef Shawn' link and write their questions.

Learning the dynamic art of cooking is a priority for Woods. To this day, he continues to expand his knowledge and skills. "I still read as many cookbooks and culinary reference guides that I can get my hands on," he confesses.

To learn more about cooking or to ask Shawn Woods about any questions you might have about any type of cuisine, go to http://www.askchefshawn.com/. Inquiries may be e-mailed to Woods and visitors may also refer to helpful sections on cooking methods, ingredients and food handling. "My website is all about learning how to cook the right way," says Woods. "It's my way of giving other people the chance to use the knowledge that I have gained over the years."