A Mystery Meeting: Reflections from Culinary Director Rachael Perron

Contributed by Kowalski's Culinary & Branding Director Rachael Perron.

When I interviewed for my job at Kowalski's, I didn't even know I was in an interview. Seriously. I agreed to a "meeting" to discuss what I thought was taking over a single-page column in At Home with Kowalski's, the store's complementary in-house magazine (now called Kowalski's At Home). I was running my own business at the time but figured I could surely crank out one page every few months. A few days later, I was being asked if I could manage the entire magazine, recipe development across the whole company and virtually all other culinary content creation. That level of creative and culinary freedom was obviously hard to pass on!

I've been lucky in these last 12 years to have been able to build and work with a very talented team that inspires me to do my best work every single day. By far, my favorite part of my job has always been the At Home magazine. There have been a lot of great regular features over the years ("Kids in the Kitchen" and "Rachael's Hot List" stand out in my memory – scroll down for a special anniversary edition of my Hot List!). But my favorite ongoing feature has been "Stakeholder Spotlight." I've been truly surprised to learn about the unique backgrounds, interests and talents of my fellow Kowalskiians! They're photographers, bartenders, musicians, athletes – you name it!

While I've shared a lot about myself in my Cooking At Home column over the years, here are a few tidbits that might surprise my coworkers:

Stakeholder Spotlight: Rachael Perron

Expertise: I've been with Kowalski's just over 12 years now. Before that, I was a private chef, cooking instructor and cookbook author. I actually started my career as a CPA! (Yep, not only can I make you a perfect vinaigrette, but I can also talk to you about depreciating your fixed assets – though I really prefer the former!)

Home: May Township, a few miles north of Stillwater.

What I do in my free time: I'm an artist at heart. Over many years, I have enjoyed everything from embroidery and writing poetry to making jewelry and pressing flowers. My current obsession is painting watercolors, and my favorite subject is my dog, Stella.

Favorite products from Kowalski's: Kickin' Kalbi is ALWAYS in my fridge!

What I cook at home: Skuna Bay salmon is on the menu every week! We also love pasta, main-dish salads and tacos.

"My favorite memories at Kowalski's are the deep conversations I've had with my colleagues – not about recipe development or shelf tag designs, but about kindness, justice and fairness. We believe in, support, challenge and celebrate one another in a way that's truly special." — Rachael