Response to article Out of the Kitchen,onto the Couch

In First section Michael Pollen expresses that Julia Childs tv show helped to improve
on american home cooking. By expanding our boundaries of home cooking in USA. She added some french and europian recipe's. She gave to american housewifes courage to actally try to prepare a gormet meal even from a foriegn country. He demostrates how important to a woman in the house The Tv show on cooking actually was. It could teach her new methods of cooking at same time she is taking a break wathching TV.

He shows by example of the movie julie & julia that even in modern times woman can learn from watching tv. And can create something to aid in her work, and manage to keep a household operating. Cooking and working at the same time.

He demonstrates that the Popularity of cooking shows had increase dramatically. The Food Network now seen by over 100 millions americans. He demostrates the decline of good home cooking by the talking about the rise in fast food,home-meal replacements and decline and fall of everyday cooking. Hence Onto the Couch. .

Although more woman today are in the working world. In which it leaves alot of the cooking to food companies. We spend far less time in preparation of our meals than ever before. Americans are spending more time watching cooking shows than doing the cooking themselves. They say they just dont have time for cooking.

The author shows how that todays cooking shows are more likely to show the fast food products and show how to cook in mere minutes, as to when Julia Child's era it was more of pleasure to cook a gormet meal and it was not cooked in a rush. But almost everything prepared from scratch. The ingredients all in raw form, As today they are in premade packages.
The author did actally do some research from a reliable source, Phone interview with
a veteran food-marketing researcher Harry Balzar. He works for NPD Group, collect data from 2000 food diareies to track American eating habits. Americans can call almost anything cooking outside of microwaveing a pizza.
For Me cooking a meal consist of time spent on it. Is the judge of weather we call it a meal or not. Or Call it cooking. I prepare a meal once a day for dinner. Takes 20-30 minutes usually. If i just heat up something in the microwave i do not call it cooking either. More of just heating something up. Yes it is eating but not cooking.

Yes i agree that fast food has taken us out of the kitchen. It has at least cut the time we spend on preparing food for a meal more than in half. What the author did not mention is the fact of supermarkets also created a way to get food quickly.
We did not have to go to the garden to pick it, or grow it in the first place. Yes i agree to a certain extent cooking shows have succeeded in bringing us out of the kitchen. But i feel it is mostly do to fast food industry itself. Also i with the author that the american woman working has cause alot of the time spent in the kitchen to decline. And in order to keep up with demand the food industries took somewhat advantage of the situation and made it possible for people to work, and yet have time to prepare a meal. One than can be nutrious. Such as the author mentions frozen peanut butter and Jelly Sandwich.

In the authors challenge that we learn or dont learn from the Cooking network, Do to its fast,fast way of perparing things is only somewhat true.. For some have an audience right at the show's filming and they get to sample what was prepared or bring home some of the food cooked. Or get the recipe live. Direct from a Chef.

I can agree with Michael Pollan that cooking shows in our time are more about buying not making. He shows its who is cooking not whats being cooked. George Forman grill,
make a good ,greaseless burger, is not showing cooking, but actually selling a product. Rachel Ray to me, does not do much cooking but more like our modern housewife's. Suppose to be cooking but is doing everything but. Always chatter, chatter with guest.

I do agree that one of the reasons why we watch cooking on tv is do to the fact, that we miss cooking. Tasting the food as we prepare it. The sight of big smiles as we bring it to the table. Smelling oh so very good. We dont seam to have the time any longer to do all the preps so we may imprevise. Actual cooking does bring a heart felt emotion to our very souls. This i agree with what the author has said.
That cooking can strike an emotional cord.