Scan barcode
A review by jessica_lam
American Cuisine: And How It Got This Way by Paul Freedman
3.25
Would serve as a good textbook on a survey of American culinary history, but is a bit dry. Also important to note that this is America in the sense of political entity of the USA as little is said about the traditions and influences of indigenous people.
There are pockets of interest, especially when Freedman relates the foods back to historical events and the influence of non-white groups during various points. Admittedly it’s a Herculean task to survey something as ubiquitous as food over a stupidly large country (with multiple areas of agricultural climates). I also enjoyed the discussion of socioeconomic development of food production in the US and the effect of trends. In particular, the point that the availability of foods in supermarkets and the way non urban areas are set out actually limits food diversity as Americans buy things in bulk to save a trip (verses purchasing fresh foods daily).
The audiobook format, admittedly, is perhaps not the best way to consume this book as some sections end with a recipe which are read in a jarring way.
There are pockets of interest, especially when Freedman relates the foods back to historical events and the influence of non-white groups during various points. Admittedly it’s a Herculean task to survey something as ubiquitous as food over a stupidly large country (with multiple areas of agricultural climates). I also enjoyed the discussion of socioeconomic development of food production in the US and the effect of trends. In particular, the point that the availability of foods in supermarkets and the way non urban areas are set out actually limits food diversity as Americans buy things in bulk to save a trip (verses purchasing fresh foods daily).
The audiobook format, admittedly, is perhaps not the best way to consume this book as some sections end with a recipe which are read in a jarring way.