Dishes that Migrate Should Keep Their Identity
Is "Couscousgate" a real thing?
The Beard Foundation annual awards took place last month. As a research project, click on the link to see what won, and read. You might inspire yourself. This year I see awards for The New York Times and New Yorker writers, which is new. High level competition!
I listened to The Sporkful’s award-wining podcast, What “Couscousgate” Tells Us About French Food. I learned that some people argue that because the French colonized North African countries, couscous (now ubiquitous in France because of migration), should be considered French. Quel horreur!
It reminded me of a previous newsletter I wrote, Preserving My Family's Food Culture, in which I described my family’s Iraqi-Jewish food, and how mad I got when The New York Times called Sabich Bowls “Israeli.”
Most of the Iraqi Jews in the world live in Israel now. An Iraqi guy there invented the sandwich from Iraqi-Jewish ingredients. But that doesn’t make it Israeli.
Lately, I’ve come around to the idea that sabich sandwiches — and maybe this bowl — are an Israeli-Iraqi mashup. But I can’t agree with this idea that when immigrants come to a country and sell their food, their dishes are somehow now owned by that country. That’s like saying that Israeli food eaten in America is “American” food. Ridiculous.
Meanwhile, if you can find a sabich sandwich, please eat one and enjoy all the textures and flavors! If you can’t, make some.
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What I’m Reading
Our 12 Favorite Cookbooks of Summer 2024. From Food & Wine.
How a Self-Published Book Broke ‘All the Rules’ and Became a Best Seller.
Recipes to Hold Dear in Your Hand. How cooking zines render social media algorithms meaningless.
Is flavor really just an illusion? You have to give National Geographic your email to read this, but it’s a good scientific article.
Why Restaurants are so Loud, and What We can Do about It. I remember carrying around a big sound monitor when I was a restaurant critic. Now people can monitor noise from an app on their phones. And restaurants are still way too loud.
Behind the ‘butter board’: How the dairy industry took over your feed. Fascinating article. And probably the influencers didn’t announce their partnerships, which is shameful.
The Woman Who Created the Modern Cookbook. About Judith Jones and how she revolutionized American cookbook publishing (The New York Times gift link.)
Making a living as a book author is as rare as being a billionaire. Well, it’s not why most of us write anyway.
In a Digital Age, High-End Outdoors Magazines are Thriving in Print. Why not start a high-end food magazine then? Any takers?
14 Telltale Signs a Recipe Sucks. My friend David Leite launched a new newsletter you should read, particularly this one.
The Chef Is Human. The Reviewer Isn’t. How can we tell real restaurant reviews from fake ones? Actually, we can’t.
News from Clients and Students
Pavilion Books/Harper Collins published It Starts with Veg: 100 Seasonal Suppers and Sides by former student Ceri Jones.
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Dianne Jacob
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I've never heard anyone say (at least in France) that couscous is French. I have heard and read that it is the most popular dish in France, which is likely due to a large Muslim population, and the fact that it appeals to a lot of French people and the French palate; it's not too spicy or highly seasoned, the vegetables are well-cooked, and it has meat. Of course, it's now part of the political discussion in France (which is interesting because I don't think politicians get criticized for eating tacos or dim sum in the U.S., but I could be wrong.)
Respectfully, I wholeheartedly disagree. As food migrates, the dish itself evolves and it becomes part of its new home.
Chicken tikka masala may not be a British invention, but it’s part of the British cooking cannon at this point. Just as the baguette wasn’t invented in Vietnam, they get to keep it in making Bahn mi.