Michael Pollan (author of Omnivoire's Dilemma and In Defense of Food) had a very interesting article on the cover of the New York Times Magazine this past weekend titled "Out of the Kitchen, Onto the Couch." In the article, Pollan essentially tells us that people are watching more and more TV cooking shows, yet are spending less time in the kitchen cooking than ever before. He certainly hits on a bunch of topics that have crossed my mind over the past few years. It's an interesting read and all the bloggers have been buzzin' about it.
I think I liked reading Joe Pastry's response (scroll down a little for it) as much as I liked reading the article. Let me just take a second to give this guy some blogger love because his blog is fantastic. Joe is a long time baker and pastry maker. His blog is instructional and informative with great photos and stories. And, he's another guy with a wood burning brick oven. Did you hear that? Oh, that's me sighing because I'm now living in the concrete jungle again and, well, there are no ovens in my near future. Yep, I sure have some serious oven envy. Anyway, check Joe Pastry out!
OK, back to Pollan's article. Here are just a few of my impressions (by no means a rehash or critique of the article..just some things that crossed my mind while reading):
*I have really been thinking about the whole "cooking as a spectator sport" mentality lately. Maybe it's because I have cable right now (which I never usually have) and have turned on the Food Network quite a bit (although have grown weary of it quickly). When Pollan said that the skills promoted by the Food Network are essentially only useful and necessary for succeeding on the Food Network, I cheered. I mean, who cares if you can made a three course meal out of twinkies and ding dongs?
*I also thought back to many of the students I knew in culinary school. Some of them definitely had this expectation that everything was going to be flashy, fun, and entertaining just like on TV. Between the cooking and reality shows, there were a lot of skewed expectations. When the sometimes grueling and repetitive hard work set in, they seemed so disappointed. Or, when they realized how hard they would have to work to get something right (hey, I still can't hand dip chocolates correctly...despite help and guidance from a super talented chocolate expert!). Oh, there were days you could HEAR dreams shattering all around you. However, I thought this was a good thing....because those that hunkered down, accepted the reality of the food industry, and grew to like/love the work survived and started learning the real stuff that would hopefully earn them a good job and paycheck. No, some of them might not get a TV show or win a $50,000 challenge (or whatever), but I sure hope they are working in high quality restaurants, hotels, and bakeries all over the world making quality products.
*Thanks, Michael Pollan, for pointing out that "there are still cooking programs that will teach you how to cook." He mentions America's Test Kichen on PBS. Hooray for ATK. Interning there is by far one of my proudest accomplishments because I was able to utilize much of what I learned at Johnson & Wales on a daily basis AND see/understand first hand what it takes to rigorously test and develop excellent recipes for the home cook. Right on.
*True I bake from scratch ALL the time; however, I am totally guilty of not cooking enough. No, I don't eat processed foods or eat out a lot; however, I am single and find it so challenging to find the motivation to prepare meals for just me on a daily basis. I do eat veggies and fruit. I frequent farmer's markets and look for local produce in supermarkets. That's all well and good; however, especially when I am working and busy, I do not "cook" much. I know, shame on me. I do want to cook more. I do want the time to cook more. I say this ALL the time, you know, but will still eat toast for dinner on a routine basis! Cooking, even for me, can feel like a chore sometimes. I found his comments on women returning to the work force and how emerging feminists viewed cooking back in the day really interesting, too. I can't even imagine what it's like to be a working Mom and have to come home and make dinner every night (although my Mom did...and thank god for that!).
*He also spoke about Julia Child (and the new movie Julie and Julia) quite a bit. Who doesn't love Julia Child? My Dad adored and got a huge kick out of her. I think more of him when I hear her name or see clips of her!
Enough about my thoughts. Read the article if you haven't already and feel free to write some comments.