Chapter 2 : Burns

THE CHRONICLER OF THE KITCHEN                                            Fall 2008

Mike Campbell

ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY:

BURNS – PART 1

It’s not the smell of burning flesh that turns your stomach, it’s the sound.

Every cook is taught to have a dry towel in his hand before touching anything but sometimes we forget. The towel must be dry because moisture conducts heat.

It’s funny how the body works. It takes time for the pain signals to reach your brain. Most times the signal is so fast you don’t notice but, not all the time. Have you ever hurt your foot? You know it’s going to hurt but there is a slight delay. You are fully conscious that you have hit your foot, there is no pain, but you know it’s coming. A burn severe enough to sear human flesh is like this.         

You touch something hot and you hear the skin sizzle. The sound is unmistakable; it’s a short tisssshh! You hear that, and you know you are in a world of hurt. At that exact instant there is no pain, but you know it’s coming. It may take a nano-second, but it feels like two or three. In these situations that is an eternity.

Now, what do you do? If the hot object is stationary, you withdraw your extremity and start to curse. If the offending hot item is small and you are lifting it, what then? Do you drop it and have to clean it up? Do you hold on, knowing the whole time that you are making your severe burn even worse? The decision is made in an instant and is usually dependant upon an individual’s tolerance for pain.

Cursing loudly is a requirement for dealing with burns. Do not be a Spartan and suffer silently. Your co-workers must know you are hurt. Otherwise they will wonder shy you are not working.

How do you treat the burn? Looking at it only makes it feel worse. Your skin will bubble quickly and rise to a size that is incomprehensible. Getting the injured body part in or under water is next reaction. But what kind of water? There are different theories of water temperature. Some say cold water, others lukewarm. What’s the temperature difference between the water and your cooked flesh? One theory states that water close to the temperature of the injured skin will cause less bubbling. Another says that colder water will ease the pain sooner. I personally have found the lukewarm method to be best.

Now what? Most likely, your shift is not over and macho rules of the kitchen state that you can’t leave. Apply some burn cream, if available, maybe a band aid and carry on. Next you lie to everyone and say that burn does not hurt. Of course, everything you go near is hot and this only makes matters worse.

How long does it hurt? The easy answer is too long. I once spent the last thirty minutes of my shift and the ride home with my thumb in a cup of water. The pain prevented me from sleeping, so I laid facedown on a couch with my arm dangling over the side. Keeping my thumb in the water allowed me to relax. I woke up several hours later, still on the couch, because that’s when the pain stopped.

All cooks experience less severe burns, but that story is for another time.

I owe, I owe, its off to work I go.

Into THE CAULDRON!

Is tuisce deoch na sceal