That’s a really good point. Those simple dishes are actually quite hard to master due to the complex chemistry going on with fermentation, meat development (rai

That’s a really good point. Those simple dishes are actually quite hard to master due to the complex chemistry going on with fermentation, meat development (raising cattle, dry aging meat), wild-caught vs farmed fish. Their simplicity in terms of bulk ingredients puts them into the same category as wine, beer, spirits, coffee, chocolate, cheese, vinegar, and fruit/vegetables (heirloom tomatoes, hot peppers). That is, to say, having a few simple ingredients is challenging because it pushes you to generate the complexity out of those basic inputs. Dishes with a lot of ingredients (curries and stews) get their complexity more directly.