Critic-Turned-Cook Down in the Trenches in the Fight for Good Food
[Photograph: Leslie Kelly]
Darlene Barnes would like author Michael Pollan to walk a mile in her tiny kitchen clogs.
"It's all well and good for Michael Pollan to tell people how they should eat, but it's another to try and make it happen in the real world," she said.
My boss at Alpha Sigma Phi at the University of Washington was in a bit of a snit after a frustrating effort to reel in some domestic, wild shrimp. She had done research and called her sales rep, asking for him to find her some American shrimp.
"At first, he told me the shrimp from Mexico were as good as Louisiana shrimp because they were both caught in the Gulf," she said. "I told him I had been raised in Louisiana and knew better. What am I supposed to do? Call the shrimpers myself?"
In addition to cooking lunch and dinner Monday through Friday for 70 hungry young men, Darlene spends hours on the hunt for quality ingredients. She hounds her sales rep—she's the squeaky wheel that gets greased with the Snake River Farms Kurobuta bacon. It requires tenacity to get the farm to the table via her fraternity kitchen. This year, she redoubled her efforts to use local organic produce, but she had to make at least a half a dozen calls before she found someone who wanted her business.
What we need are more food service companies to think (and act) like the author of In Defense of Food, or get General Pollan in the trenches to help fight this battle for better food, especially in institutional settings. Many blame childhood obesity on the lunchroom cafeteria, but few of those working in that setting are skilled cooks. "They only know how to reheat processed foods," Darlene said. They need training and inspiration.
Why is it so hard to do the right thing? I hate to sound like a conspiracy theorist, but just maybe we can never get on track as long as giant conglomerates control most of the world's breadbasket. Heck, Pollan has already said as much. But we've got to try. Every day I watch Darlene work the phones and surf the net, looking for products with integrity. I admire her for fighting the good fight.
No small victory, she finally scored those shrimp. They'll be on the menu next week.
About the author: Former Seattle Post-Intelligencer restaurant critic Leslie Kelly has been working in professional kitchens since the newspaper folded in March and chronicling her culinary journey from pen to pan for Serious Eats. She also blogs at LeslieKellyWhiningandDining.blogspot.com and recently launched a story-telling project for Northstar Winery following one wine from the vine to the table.
Related
Critic-Turned-Cook: The Alpha Sigma Phi Fraternity Kitchen
What Michael Pollan Has Been Up To Lately
Michael Pollan's Twelve Commandments for Serious Eaters: Can You Live By Them?
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1 Comment:
Ms. Barnes had to call six "farmers" to find one who wanted the biz in part because there ain't enough Organic to go around! Which further shows that Pollan does not have a clue about the real folks and is full of allot of that "organic " stuff .
jfitz at 5:44PM on 11/05/09