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borna761's review against another edition
3.0
Fire, water, wind and earth - the four elements, and four different ways of filling our stomachs. Michael Pollan takes the reader on a tour of his investigation of and experimentation with food, and it is a fascinating and captivating read.
Reading about barbeque, slow-cooking meals, baking bread, and making pickles/cheese/bread through fermentation with the help of some experts in their fields brings some saliva to the mouth. There's a lot to digest (pun intended), and there's a lot of science to back up the many interesting claims and points that he raises, such as the pros and cons of pasteurization.
What I didn't like was the deep forays into his experiments, which made the book a lot longer than it needed to be. While it can be interesting to read some experiences, when they take up more than half the book, it feels like it could be cut down a bit. Limiting that to some extent, this is still a book that is well worth reading and might make you want to try out some recipes and change your eating habits too.
Reading about barbeque, slow-cooking meals, baking bread, and making pickles/cheese/bread through fermentation with the help of some experts in their fields brings some saliva to the mouth. There's a lot to digest (pun intended), and there's a lot of science to back up the many interesting claims and points that he raises, such as the pros and cons of pasteurization.
What I didn't like was the deep forays into his experiments, which made the book a lot longer than it needed to be. While it can be interesting to read some experiences, when they take up more than half the book, it feels like it could be cut down a bit. Limiting that to some extent, this is still a book that is well worth reading and might make you want to try out some recipes and change your eating habits too.
bhsmith's review against another edition
5.0
Michael Pollan's food writing up to this point has involved close looks at diet, farm practices, agriculture and most any other aspect of what it takes to put food on our plate... except for the actual activity of cooking that food. In "Cooked" we get a much closer look at four essential cooking techniques using fire (barbecue), water (braises), air (bread) and earth/fermentation (cheese and alcohol).
Once again, I found Pollan's writing to be inspiring and encouraging. Not only did I end each section of the book wanting to try some of the techniques he described (except for maybe the fermentation), I also found plenty of reasons to feel reassured that most of what I try to do in the kitchen to feed my family is worthwhile.
Each part of this book (fire, water, air, earth) finds Pollan trying his hand at a new cooking technique, talking to experts in the field, and then also providing some substantial history and mythology of the food or technique. His interactions with other people are always interesting, and it is entertaining to read his personal accounts of trying out all of these new techniques. I especially enjoyed the time he spent learning about southern barbecue. The people, places and traditions of cooking barbecue are fascinating and sometimes a bit comical.
The history and mythology portions of each section are certainly interesting , but can get a bit overly dramatic. As you read through the book you'll first think to yourself, "Wow, cooking meat over fire really transformed all of human history and allowed us to evolve in ways previously unknown!" (At least, that is essentially what you're asked to think.) Then, you'll start reading about braises and think, "To heck with cooking meat over a fire, how in the world did we ever exist as a species before the holy cookpot?" And it goes on like this with pretty substantial claims about bread and fermentation. Perhaps a bit over the top, but certainly fun to read.
As always, I very much enjoyed reading Pollan's work. I recommend reading this book and his previous books to really help you get motivated about eating right (not dieting), cooking food and just having a better understanding of our world's food systems.
Once again, I found Pollan's writing to be inspiring and encouraging. Not only did I end each section of the book wanting to try some of the techniques he described (except for maybe the fermentation), I also found plenty of reasons to feel reassured that most of what I try to do in the kitchen to feed my family is worthwhile.
Each part of this book (fire, water, air, earth) finds Pollan trying his hand at a new cooking technique, talking to experts in the field, and then also providing some substantial history and mythology of the food or technique. His interactions with other people are always interesting, and it is entertaining to read his personal accounts of trying out all of these new techniques. I especially enjoyed the time he spent learning about southern barbecue. The people, places and traditions of cooking barbecue are fascinating and sometimes a bit comical.
The history and mythology portions of each section are certainly interesting , but can get a bit overly dramatic. As you read through the book you'll first think to yourself, "Wow, cooking meat over fire really transformed all of human history and allowed us to evolve in ways previously unknown!" (At least, that is essentially what you're asked to think.) Then, you'll start reading about braises and think, "To heck with cooking meat over a fire, how in the world did we ever exist as a species before the holy cookpot?" And it goes on like this with pretty substantial claims about bread and fermentation. Perhaps a bit over the top, but certainly fun to read.
As always, I very much enjoyed reading Pollan's work. I recommend reading this book and his previous books to really help you get motivated about eating right (not dieting), cooking food and just having a better understanding of our world's food systems.
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.