jacosta's review against another edition
4.0
Not Pollan at his best, nor his worst. I loved the focus on the value of food and cooking to our culture, but at times the writing seemed forced and uninspired.
kristidurbs's review against another edition
5.0
Another inspiring and enlightening book from Pollan. Cooked probably ranks as my second favorite out of his seven books, right behind Omnivore's Dilemma. Pollan discusses the elements of fire, water, air, and earth as they relate to and are connected to various dimensions of cooking - barbecue (fire); soups, stews, and braises (water); bread (air); and the trinity of fermentation: vegetable, animal, alcohol (earth). A really enjoyable read that validated my efforts at bread baking (and makes me want to pursue it all the more), while also inspiring me to want to try other crafts like fermenting vegetables, making cheese, and brewing.
cdlindwall's review against another edition
5.0
Barbecue, Braises, Bread, and Beer.
This is Pollan's investigation into the four main ways we cook, the importance of those methods, and how cooking can impact our lives and culture more generally.
There's FIRE (aka whole-hog barbecue), WATER (cooking things in boiling water), AIR (leavening dough), and EARTH (fermented by live cultures). Pollan's not making an argument, necessarily, besides the implicit argument that cooking more would improve our lives. Rather, he's just telling a story about how each of these methods came to be and where they stand today.
I'm actually impressed with how fascinating the entire book was. It sounds dreary, learning about the history of stews. Somehow it wasn't though! (at least for me, but maybe I'm kind of dreary.) I was into learning about the history of each cooking style, the current debates over methods, and the hands-on learning Pollan did himself.
I've recently begun cooking more, actually. When I moved to NY, I vowed to eat a bit healthier. The first step to that, of course, is heading to the kitchen. I was inspired by the importance Pollan places on this simple act. In 2015, cooking is political. It's a direct "no" to strong forces that want us to stay dependent consumers.
This was the part of the book that resonated with me the most. Pollan reminds us that our economy of specialization steals from us the joy and independence of producing. ("I trade my specialized skills of accounting for the corporation's specialized skill making frozen meals") In a service economy, it's dubious whether we ever produce anything ourselves at all. (I'm looking at you, buisnessmen whose job titles are mostly made of abstract terms and prepositions.) Cooking can be one of the easiest ways to reconnect with that portion of your life. Independently creating something for yourself (whether it's a well-tended garden, a delicious pot of stew, or a house you built from the ground up) is inherently valuable. Finding independence in your own skills, in the actual act of producing, is in direct defiance to the corporations who want us to remain shackled to them. Not to mention -- the food they make is killing our nation through diabetes and heart disease.
I'm just inspired. I'm inspired to improve my skills, both in cooking and in other areas of my life. I'm inspired to take control of my health by actually knowing what's in my food. And I'm inspired to write! Because if Pollan can write so engagingly about stews and moldy cheese for 400 some-odd pages, then fuck I need to get going.
This is Pollan's investigation into the four main ways we cook, the importance of those methods, and how cooking can impact our lives and culture more generally.
There's FIRE (aka whole-hog barbecue), WATER (cooking things in boiling water), AIR (leavening dough), and EARTH (fermented by live cultures). Pollan's not making an argument, necessarily, besides the implicit argument that cooking more would improve our lives. Rather, he's just telling a story about how each of these methods came to be and where they stand today.
I'm actually impressed with how fascinating the entire book was. It sounds dreary, learning about the history of stews. Somehow it wasn't though! (at least for me, but maybe I'm kind of dreary.) I was into learning about the history of each cooking style, the current debates over methods, and the hands-on learning Pollan did himself.
I've recently begun cooking more, actually. When I moved to NY, I vowed to eat a bit healthier. The first step to that, of course, is heading to the kitchen. I was inspired by the importance Pollan places on this simple act. In 2015, cooking is political. It's a direct "no" to strong forces that want us to stay dependent consumers.
This was the part of the book that resonated with me the most. Pollan reminds us that our economy of specialization steals from us the joy and independence of producing. ("I trade my specialized skills of accounting for the corporation's specialized skill making frozen meals") In a service economy, it's dubious whether we ever produce anything ourselves at all. (I'm looking at you, buisnessmen whose job titles are mostly made of abstract terms and prepositions.) Cooking can be one of the easiest ways to reconnect with that portion of your life. Independently creating something for yourself (whether it's a well-tended garden, a delicious pot of stew, or a house you built from the ground up) is inherently valuable. Finding independence in your own skills, in the actual act of producing, is in direct defiance to the corporations who want us to remain shackled to them. Not to mention -- the food they make is killing our nation through diabetes and heart disease.
I'm just inspired. I'm inspired to improve my skills, both in cooking and in other areas of my life. I'm inspired to take control of my health by actually knowing what's in my food. And I'm inspired to write! Because if Pollan can write so engagingly about stews and moldy cheese for 400 some-odd pages, then fuck I need to get going.
aymitelli's review against another edition
4.0
Very interesting book on the history if foods & how people learned to cook them to get maximum benefit and flavor from the ingredients... Interesting too about how things have charged even more to move away from cooking and nutrient content for the sake of quick and easy!
Not my normal type of read, but I really learned a lot about the whys of cooking. The air chapter was also fascinating when discussing breads... Can't wait to get home to try my own sour dough recipe... Once I can find the properly ground flour.
Not my normal type of read, but I really learned a lot about the whys of cooking. The air chapter was also fascinating when discussing breads... Can't wait to get home to try my own sour dough recipe... Once I can find the properly ground flour.
charlibirb's review against another edition
4.0
A great read! Love Pollan's personal touch in researching topics.
damopedro's review against another edition
4.0
Really enjoyed it. Made me want to bake bread and definitely will be making sauerkraut very soon. If only Pollan didn't waffle on so much at times. He gets all excited and starts waxing lyrical and I get impatient for him to move on. Otherwise very good though.
schnoebs13's review
5.0
You know a book is impactful when you start thinking about ways to make changes in your lifestyle. I probably watched the Netflix document a year or two ago where I found out about the book. Since then I’ve been excited to read this. It didn’t disappoint me one bit.
A good book focused on the influence on elements, Pollan takes the reader through a journey of fire, water, air and earth. He shows how in our modern civilizations we have become rather disconnect from the food we eat. The influences the 4 elements have on our daily lives is very apparent when you take to time to actually observe what is happening to our food and how it is made. One of the biggest drivers of this book is to convince the reader to spend even a little bit more time using their hands in the kitchen and learning to cook a little more. I for one love to cook but always feel too busy to actually take the time to do it. This book really reminded me that I need to make time. I will definitely be doing that and I can’t wait to spend more time cooking my food rather than ordering and paying for it to be made by someone else.
A good book focused on the influence on elements, Pollan takes the reader through a journey of fire, water, air and earth. He shows how in our modern civilizations we have become rather disconnect from the food we eat. The influences the 4 elements have on our daily lives is very apparent when you take to time to actually observe what is happening to our food and how it is made. One of the biggest drivers of this book is to convince the reader to spend even a little bit more time using their hands in the kitchen and learning to cook a little more. I for one love to cook but always feel too busy to actually take the time to do it. This book really reminded me that I need to make time. I will definitely be doing that and I can’t wait to spend more time cooking my food rather than ordering and paying for it to be made by someone else.
hberg95's review against another edition
4.0
"Cooking is all about connection"
I've been working my way through Pollan's catalog and this is one I was excited for. It definitely delivered in the same way his other books have - they make me think about things that are commonplace in a new light. I'm excited to try my hand at baking bread and brewing beer after reading this.
I especially enjoyed the latter two sections and I appreciated the Bachelard references.
I've been working my way through Pollan's catalog and this is one I was excited for. It definitely delivered in the same way his other books have - they make me think about things that are commonplace in a new light. I'm excited to try my hand at baking bread and brewing beer after reading this.
I especially enjoyed the latter two sections and I appreciated the Bachelard references.