Today I read a summary of Michael Pollan's new book "Food Rules: an eater's manual". One of the rules is "Cook" explaining that home cooked food is usually much healthier. Of late the word "foodie" has gained a lot of traction. We have entire TV channels devoted to food and cooking, and stores dedicated to specialty cooking gadgets and equipment. I don't know of any other country where there are so many celebrity chefs. And yet, fewer and fewer people cook at home in America.
Last week I went looking for a turner - a spatula with a flexible metal head to flip over omelet and pancakes. I was surprised how hard it was to find a spatula that was proportioned for the cooking I do. I usually make one or two egg omelet in a 6" pan, so I need a spatula that I can rest on the edge of the pan without flipping the pan or the spatula over. Most cooking equipment I saw was restaurant quality - heavy and large, not to mention expensive. Same goes for kitchens. More and more people have these gourmet kitchens where they cook less and less.
The problem with chefs teaching us how to cook is, that they not only make cooking look hard but elevate it to an art form making home cooks feel inept. Julia Child's Beuf Bourguignon has gotten a lot of attention lately because of the movie Julie and Julia. It is a complicated and multi-step recipe for beef stew. As this article points out Julia Child learned french cooking at a school for chefs, so her technique is what french restaurants use. The home-cooking version of the same dish is much simpler, and uses fewer steps and ingredients. Similarly, a home cook does not need the same kitchen or equipment shown in Iron Chef. Look at the array of corers and pitters sold on this website. A home cook isn't going to be hulling pounds upon pounds of strawberries to require a dedicated gadget for it.
The gourmet culture keeps expanding and I fear for home cooking - something passed down from mother to daughter. Take the example of soup - it is usually a way to use up leftovers that are not enough for a singe meal on their own. If you have some leftover chicken, and a few leftover veggies at the bottom of the bin before your weekly grocery shopping, you put them together, make soup, serve with bread and you have a meal. This art - to make a meal from what you have, not go out and buy the exact ingredients you need for a recipe, is something you can only learn from your mother. A mother who cooks often, so that growing up you eat infinite variations of the same dish and finally learn that Beuf Bourguignon is just a stew - not this multi-step masterpiece that you need to fret over all day! With fewer and fewer people cooking at home, those interested in learning to cook are turning to TV chefs. Would we reach a stage where a simple home cooked meal, presented in a simple style would no longer be appreciated, and you won't be considered a cook unless you went Bam! and artfully drizzled sauce around the plate?
Raising kids in a non-native environment while constantly worrying about striking the right balance.
3 comments:
Sadly, I agree... I am a foodie that loves food and loves cooking for others. What a wonderful way of sharing love and joy.
It happens far too many times that something which is a simple joy gets out of whack with exploitation to make more money. Food Channel has gone overboard with the celebrity chefs and all their own lines of kitchen items/books, beautiful kitchens, complicated recipes and "perfect" dishes. Does anyone every say oops anymore? I remember watching Julia Child years ago and her personal comfort in making recipes that sometimes just didn't quite work out, dropping things and definitely did not have a staff to have everything shown in such unrealistic "perfection" terms.
This is the part of the American life in general I am not very proud of - expecting and striving for a preconceived set notion of perfection. The older I get the more I realize the real joys of life are the unexpected twists and turns no one could plan for - the paella I tried to make for my brother's birthday that did not "turn out" but has given us many fond moments to laugh and share.
So as my foodie traits age, my recipes are much simpler and usually altered with supplies right out of the refrigerator ...
Welcome Kate!
For me "foodie" is a difficult label to place. Food is a very important part of life in what it means for our health and social life, I understand and respect that. I prefer food to be made fresh from natural ingredients, and I cook almost everyday. You could call me a "foodie" because I care about food, how it is prepared and what goes into it. Yet, I rarely eat out because I cannot stand fast food and the food at most affordable restaurants does not seem fresh at all. I won't go out of my way to try a new restaurant, and would be equally happy with a simple meal at home. As you can see from my post I do not have much respect for "gourmet" home-cooking where you find this rare cheese and make a special dish with it. In that regard, I am not a "foodie" at all.
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