Cooking in America, In Short
Did you hear that "Julie and Julia" opens today? The over-hyped movie has spurred tons of food-related articles, none better than the cover story from last week's New York Times Magazine. Author Michael Pollan makes a strong argument about the state of cooking in America.
"The Food Network has helped to transform cooking from something you do into something you watch -- into yet another confection of spectacle and celebrity that keeps us pinned to the couch," Pollan writes.
The story states that the average American only spends 27 minutes in the kitchen every day, a befuddling statistic.
Although network executives probably didn't like Batali's quote, it's hard to argue with anything he said. If you want to watch cooking shows that actually teach some skill, Pollan states, you should tune into a show like "America's Test Kitchen" on PBS -- the network that, not so coincidentally, aired most of Julia Child's shows.
The fact is that many Americans don't cook because they aren't presented the right tools. Although Ray makes "30 Minute Meals," she also boasts tons of kitchen- and food-related experience. Melissa D'arabian, who just won "The Next Food Network Star" and whose show premieres on Sunday, probably has a similar cooking background to more Americans than Ray. But she doesn't have the popularity -- at least not yet.
Instead of trying to get people to spend more time in the kitchen, why not change the approach and have folks make the most of those 27 minutes? That doesn't mean, like Ray, they have to make an entire meal in that time. It's pretty easy to take 27 minutes to prepare food for a slow cooker meal or even to put something in the oven that's going to cook for a while.
Yes, dinner won't be ready in 27 minutes under that scenario -- but that doesn't mean that most of your daily meals can't be made in such a short time. Food Network (and most cookbooks) doesn't acknowledge that and, for that matter, neither does "America's Test Kitchen."
Bob Costas once told a group of college students (including yours truly) that he knows a little bit about a lot of things. The same can apply to cooking: it's important to learn many techniques and cuisines in order to make the most of the little time people spend in the kitchen.
If more food "experts" understand that, then maybe people who spend 27 minutes in the kitchen would enjoy cooking more.
"The Food Network has helped to transform cooking from something you do into something you watch -- into yet another confection of spectacle and celebrity that keeps us pinned to the couch," Pollan writes.
The story states that the average American only spends 27 minutes in the kitchen every day, a befuddling statistic.
"Look, it's TV! Everyone has to fall into a niche. I'm the Italian guy. Emeril's the exuberant New Orleans guy with the big eyebrows who yells a lot. Bobby's the grilling guy. Rachael Ray is the cheerleader-type girl who makes things at home the way a regular person would. Giada's the beautiful girl with the nice rack who does simple Italian food. As silly as the whole Food Network is, it gives us all a soapbox to talk about the things we care about," the brilliant Mario Batali states in the article.
Although network executives probably didn't like Batali's quote, it's hard to argue with anything he said. If you want to watch cooking shows that actually teach some skill, Pollan states, you should tune into a show like "America's Test Kitchen" on PBS -- the network that, not so coincidentally, aired most of Julia Child's shows.
The fact is that many Americans don't cook because they aren't presented the right tools. Although Ray makes "30 Minute Meals," she also boasts tons of kitchen- and food-related experience. Melissa D'arabian, who just won "The Next Food Network Star" and whose show premieres on Sunday, probably has a similar cooking background to more Americans than Ray. But she doesn't have the popularity -- at least not yet.
Instead of trying to get people to spend more time in the kitchen, why not change the approach and have folks make the most of those 27 minutes? That doesn't mean, like Ray, they have to make an entire meal in that time. It's pretty easy to take 27 minutes to prepare food for a slow cooker meal or even to put something in the oven that's going to cook for a while.
Yes, dinner won't be ready in 27 minutes under that scenario -- but that doesn't mean that most of your daily meals can't be made in such a short time. Food Network (and most cookbooks) doesn't acknowledge that and, for that matter, neither does "America's Test Kitchen."
Bob Costas once told a group of college students (including yours truly) that he knows a little bit about a lot of things. The same can apply to cooking: it's important to learn many techniques and cuisines in order to make the most of the little time people spend in the kitchen.
If more food "experts" understand that, then maybe people who spend 27 minutes in the kitchen would enjoy cooking more.
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