Experiencing Culinary School

Book Review: The Making of a Chef by Michael Ruhlman. 1997.

Michael Ruhlman is not a chef. 

He has however, experienced rigorous classes at the Culinary Institute of America (CIA), worked alongside numerous professional chefs, and has become one of the preeminent food writers of the century.

The Making of a Chef is the documentation of Ruhlman’s experiences floating around the Culinary Institute of America. He isn’t exactly a student, but he’s not on the sidelines either. He is essentially conducting very thorough participant observation, but he’s not an anthropologist, or an ethnographer; he’s a journalist... But if this isn’t the beautiful ‘auto-ethnography’ I’m building it up to be, then I am crazy (but it is, at least I’m claiming it is... so I’m not crazy, I promise!). He documents the experience of going through the CIA with such detail and depth, that you feel as though you are there yourself; experiencing the shame of a burnt parsnip chip and the satisfaction of sending out a pristine stuffed quail on a bed of wild rice.

One of the most interesting aspects to The Making of a Chef, is Ruhlman’s interactions and observations of the instructors. All the instructors are extraordinary chefs and all have unique intensities; Every ‘block’ of each semester was with a different chef, so students et to experience a great variety types of master chefs, and gain much knowledge from each.

Being an anthropologist, I wish there had been some sort of foreshadowed problem, other than simply documenting the experience of culinary school. The ‘rite of passage’ of it, rituals involved, chef-student relationships, or simply ‘the student experience’ (with more interviews of other students, to break away from the ‘auto’ part of auto-ethnography) are just a few anthropological angles I can think of off the top of my head that would be extremely fascinating. But again, Ruhlman is not an anthropologist, so although he does not focus on on of these angels, he touches on nearly all of them through his narrative.

This book has made me both excited and terrified for my upcoming culinary school experience. Although I will not be attending the CIA, I know I will have many similar experiences detailed in Ruhlman’s narrative. Culinary school is not only where one becomes a chef, but it is where one discovers and builds an identity; an identity that perhaps had always been mulling deep down inside, just waiting for the means to be released. 

-Holly

Citation:

Ruhlman, M. The Making of a Chef. New York: Henry Holt and Company. 1997. Print.

Food, Waste, and Anthropology

Current Blog Review: FoodAnthropology The Society for the Anthropology of Food and Nutrition. 2012.

Weight. 

The word ‘weight’ itself carries a lot of, well, weight. Americans seem to be obsessed with weight loss and gain, Reality TV shows about trimming down, the latest fad to finally lose those extra pounds; anything and everything about weight always seems to be on the tip of our tongues.

Which to me is fascinating.

And probably why I was drawn to a blog post from this past November. Diana Mincyte of NYU, a contributer for FoodAnthropology (the blog of the Society for the Anthropology of Food and Nutrition [SAFN]), wrote a post titled, “Diet for a Big Storm: Reflections on Food, Waste and Hurricane Sandy” (11/24/2012) based upon a New York Times article discussing the ‘Sandy Five.’ To briefly summarize, the situation presented by the NY Times is that during and after Hurricane Sandy, people were gaining the ‘Sandy 5,” a few extra pounds due to the stress and power outages that the hurricane brought on; People resorted to either eating all their food at once, or throwing it away. Mincyte looks at the ‘darker side’ of the situation, not the fact people were gaining weight, but the revealing of a ‘complicated relationship’ with food and waste management in modern societies.

This post is a great example of why anthropology matters because in order to fully assess situations, such as the poor management of food and waste during and after Hurricane Sandy, people qualified to understand the greater implications of the situation are needed; And I think anthropologists are those people. Anthropologists are equipped with the skills and tools necessary to conduct ethnographic research on impromptu situations, many that could reveal how to better prepare or change for the future. If there had been research done previously (by anthropologists) on disaster food and waste management, much of the panic Sandy brought, could have been avoided.

Waste management can be directly related to food consumption. Because of the great amounts of food consumed everyday in the US, and around the world, tons of waste is created. New and effective ways to manage this waste need to be formulated, and anthropologists can definitely play a part in that process. 

I plan on discussing waste management and it's relationship to food consumption in the future, as well as a greater focus on the rise of obesity in America. So stay tuned!

-Holly

NY Times Article: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/08/fashion/sandy-five-weight-gain-due-to-storm.html?smid=pl-share&_r=0

FoodAnthropology Blog: http://foodanthro.com/2012/11/24/diet-for-a-big-storm-reflections-on-food-waste-and-hurricane-sandy/ 

Children as 'Co-Researchers'

Article Review: "Nordic Children's Foodscapes: Images and Reflections." 2009.

Summary:

This is an account of ethnographic research carried out in four Nordic schools, one from each of the Nordic countries: Finland, Sweden, Norway, and Denmark. The purpose is clearly stated in the abstract, “A study of the different food messages that children encounter and their own reflections of these messages” (Johansson et al, 26). This study was not only to examine what children eat, but the knowledge about the food and the contexts in which certain food s were consumed. Children were given disposable cameras to document their own ‘foodscapes’ and participated in small group discussions- these actions allowed the children to act as co-researchers, rather than ‘subjects.’ A conclusion this study came to was that foodscapes are present in nearly all aspects of life. Food finds its way into social situations, family life, and festive occasions, to name a few. Food is everywhere, and the earlier in life the contexts are taught, the more conscious one will be in their own foodscape.

My Thoughts:

The incorporation of children as ‘co-researchers’ is a fascinating idea to me. Photo documentation and elicitation is one of my favorite tools in the ‘ethnographic toolbox,’ so to have allowed the children to take photos of their foodscapes and help analyze them is a great (and successful) idea. 

The authors define ‘foodscape’ as ‘a concept dealing with the effects of food and how food is affected’ (30), in other words, a foodscape is not only looking at and analyzing the food, but at the context in which the food is consumed.

Two contexts that were most deeply analyzed were home and school. Food in the home was similar between all four Nordic countries, but schools greatly differed. In Finland and Sweden, children eat in a cafeteria; while in Denmark and Norway, children eat at their desks in their classrooms. This difference in settings, also leads to a difference in the food consumed. The children eating at their desks brought food from home, and the children eating in the cafeteria eat ‘hot lunch’ or food from school. These settings also influenced social interactions, in a cafeteria setting, more opportunity for social bonds to form was apparent, and in the classroom, lunch breaks are not as distinct since there is no change in setting from learning to eating.

Eating at home was preferred by children form all countries. They saw food at home was tastier and as a time to bond with family. Being in a “cozy environment’ was important in distinguishing the difference in eating at school and at home. More ‘junk’ food was eaten in the home setting, however, mostly on the weekends. During family time, watching movies, or play dates with friends, ‘junk’ food was consumed- chips, candy, soda, etc. All of which was determined by the children to be ‘unhealthy’ but fine to eat under special circumstances.

This research is really exciting for numerous reasons. First, I love the use of photography to document and analyze data. Second, having the children involved act as ‘co-researchers’ was a really great tactic in really trying to find out foodscapes from the child’s perspective. Finally, showing the dichotomies between the different contexts in which food is consumed in becoming increasingly important, all throughout the world. Food is not the only factor in people’s foodscapes, but the place, time, and situations all need to be addresses when researching.

To conclude, I'd like to leave you with this quote discussing 'taste:'

"Taste is a complax matter, not only dependent on the individual's taste-buds, but constructed within social and cultural settings, forming"taste communities." (35)

-Holly

Citation:

Johansson, Barbo, et al. "Nordic Children's Foodscapes: Images and Reflections." Food, Culture & Society. Vol. 12, No.1. 2009: 25-51. 

Hello!

Since this is the first post of my blog, A Taste of Anthropology, I thought it would be nice to give a little background on myself and my interest in Culinary Anthropology!

I'm Holly, a senior at Humboldt State University, graduating this May!! I'm majoring in Anthropology (specializing in Cultural Anthropology) and I have minors in both Studio Art (Photography!) and French (although, unfortunately, I really don't speak well). I have had such an incredible journey throughout my four years here at HSU, but the last two have been the most influential.

I entered college as a history major, but soon realized that was NOT the major for me. Anthropology was always in the back of my mind and I finally took the Intro to Cultural Anth and fell in love! I started taking more Anthropology classes, and over the course of my junior year, I became much more confident in myself, specifically as an Anthropologist. 

My life, as an Anthropologist, changed the most dramatically when I was in Ethnography (cultural research methods training) my eyes were opened even more to the practical world of Anthropology. After being convinced to present at the American Anthropological Association 2012 National Meeting in San Francisco, with some of my Ethnography comrades, I began to really see my future in Anthropology. Right before the AAA meeting, I had a revelation the field of Anthropology I would soon fall for- one I hadn't though of before- Culinary Anthropology.

I've always had a passion for food, one in which I'm fulfilling this coming fall, when I attend Culinary School in London to become a trained pastry chef. But now that I was in love with Anthropology, I was conflicted between my two passions.

That's when a friend mentioned pursuing both.

What an idea? Making food, and then researching the culture that surrounds it? A match made in heaven! This is when I decided to begin reading around, to see if this kind of Anthropology was even in existence. So at the AAA's I went to many food lectures, and became even more inspired!

Now the story comes to more recent times, my final semester at HSU. To further my own understanding of what Culinary Anthropology is, I'm going to read through the literature: books, peer-reviewed articles, and other blogs; All focusing on FOOD!

So join me in my journey, one in which I hope to really gain insight on the delicious field of...

 Culinary Anthropology

-Holly