I’m an American. That doesn’t mean I can’t see shortfalls. Based on what got sold out and continues to sell in huge amounts during the pandemic I think it is fair to say an amazing number Americans can’t or won’t cook. HO may, in general but not all, represent a minority who can or at least try.
In other fora I see all kinds of people saying “I can’t cook, how do I feed myself?” and the overwhelming majority are Americans. I blame the summer of love that led to political correctness and the destruction of Home Economics (and shop class) in public education. Helicopter parenting is in there somewhere. A person should be able to feed themselves by age eight. By twelve s/he should be able to eat reasonably well. No one should be heading off to college without basic life skills.
I quote: " A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects. " - Robert Heinlein
Theres a ton of them…the one I was in was in a small town well outside the Periph, so no tourists, and the line was out the door.
Don’t let anyone kid you…the French love their fast food, with McDo, Burger King, and KFC on every corner be, along with homegrown Quick (from Belgium). And they’re all busy, even in small rural towns.
The majority American perception might be due to the boards you frequent. And if you’re only looking at anglophone boards, that will also limit your perspective.
It’s easy to engage in American exceptionalism if you’re surrounded by and only engaging with Americans.
There’s a strange complacency in American exceptionalism, possibly particularly when designed to create hierarchies of value amongst its communities. It somehow suggests cosmopolitanism whilst being, in fact, a very narrow view of things.
I can attest that there are people around the world who don’t particularly care for cooking or are too busy/knackered thanks to all of our increasing work. and people also fighting against the ways traditional/old fashioned cooking have been discourses used to enforce gender and caste norms.
(I also wonder what it means when people say they can’t cook on a board. There I are, I’m sure, people who absolutely can’t, but I also think there’s people who might feel that what they do isn’t cooking like others cook. (The number of cooking videos on social media makes me wonder a lot about cooking and perceptions. And not just because I got sucked into the nightmare world of Chef Club.)
Possible. Definitely anglophone. My language skills are mediocre at best. However definitely international although majority American.
Not a scientific sample either. A pattern of American young people moving away from home for the first time posting on cooking groups in Reddit and Facebook that they have no idea how to feed themselves and don’t have the money for takeout every day. Practically the same post time after time after time.
As to PC, what I remember is a groundswell of disapproval of shop (overwhelmingly boys) and Home Ec (overwhelmingly girls) in the 70s. I took shop because it was interesting to me. I took Home Ec because that was where the girls were. In my opinion we (big societal we) would have been better served focusing on the life skills elements and getting girls into shop and boys into Home Ec. Instead we have a lot of people who can’t cook and can’t hang a curtain rod.
I hear other people considering life skills so I’m not alone. The perspective has not worked its way into schools that I’m aware of.
As for shortfalls @shrinkrap how do we improve without looking at what can be better?
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Harters
(John Hartley - a culinary patriot eating & cooking in Northwest England)
47
I reckon the not cooking “issue”, such as it might be, is not confined to the western side of the Atlantic. In the good old days, pre-Covid, when I used to shop at our local supermarket in the UK, I was always intrigued by the considerable amount of shelf space given over to microwave ready meals. And just how many trolleys were loaded up with them.
From time to time, in my head, I would invent a back-story for these shoppers. A bit like the late Caroline Aherne’s checkout operator character in the Fast Show.
I was floored by how many women I knew in France who didnt cook, or were as rudimentary as some of their Yankee counterparts. I got raves about my cooking (well beyond being kind or gracious) and requests for my recipes.
Wheb I was gifted a cooking class at the Ritz by appreciative guests, I was dumbfounded to have my knife skills called out by the instructor …she had me demonstrate the techniques as the rest of the class was hacking everything to shreds.
Harters
(John Hartley - a culinary patriot eating & cooking in Northwest England)
50
That’s a working class Manchester accent. Caroline was brought up in the city’s Wythenshawe area, which is where I was also raised and which is only a few minutes walk from where I currently live.
I suppose it depends on who you are talking to, but starting with whats wrong is often followed by defensiveness. If you started with something like “15 percent of Americans say they cook” , I think the conversation would go differently.
As for skill sets in achools, that could be a huge discussion, and it might go off the rails quickly.
I was under the impression folks in Europe ate out a lot, but I didn’t presume it was more or less than in the US, or that it reflected on cooking abilities . Where would someone find such information?
If I only shopped at one store in my town I would a completely different impression than I would if I only shopped at another.
Harters
(John Hartley - a culinary patriot eating & cooking in Northwest England)
54
Priceless.
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Harters
(John Hartley - a culinary patriot eating & cooking in Northwest England)
55
I’d be surprised if there was any continent-wide data.
I’ve struggled to find for you any really meaningful data just for the UK, although I did find one article suggesting that the average Briton eats out three times a month. That will include breakfast, lunch or dinner and did include meals at fast food places, such as Burger King.
FWIW, my anecdotal evidence is that we eat out for special occasions or social events (including dates), rather than as an alternative to cooking.
When I worked in an office, I ate breakfast and lunch out 5 times a week ; weekends were once or twice for lunch or dinner. So 50 times a month? After I switched to a work from home model (long before the pandemic) it was maybe 1 breakfast a month, 2 lunches and 2 dinners a week. So 17 times a month?
When in the office it was convenience . . . I had a long commute and so it was just convenient to drive through McD’s or DD or, when available, the office caf, where they at least used fresh ingredients cooked to order. And lunch was just an excuse to get away from the desk for a sandwich, pizza, etc at fast casual/pizza places/delis.
Nice restaurants are maybe 1-2 times a month for special occasions or leisurely meet-ups with friends.
Other than the occasions\meet-ups my dining out is more laziness–I enjoy cooking, but I sometimes get tired of the cleaning up.
When my doctor remarked on my weight loss, questioning whether it was the result of a great diet I found or a medical issue, I realized it was the substantial reduction of dining out. I rarely fry at home and cook much more lean protein and fruits and vegs. (But of course I still like a bit of dark chocolate for dessert and the occasional pizza or cheesesteak delivery
" I took shop because it was interesting to me. I took Home Ec because that was where the girls were"
FWIW, I took took classes to become an LVN and AP classes because I needed a good job and to go to college . At the time, doing both the vocational track AND the college prep track did not compute.
@Auspicious, I realize your quote says specialization is for insects. But that list includes a lot of skills. I’ve “set a few bones” ( not setting bones really, but dislocations ), and I don’t think everyone should be expected to try that.
I promise not to post any more on this. I promise to try.
I used to have breakfast or lunch with customers and subcontractors a total of about five times per week. Otherwise I packed breakfast and lunch. In fact two days a week there was a “eat with Dave” meal in the big conference room. My version of the open door policy is that if you don’t walk out your door and talk with people on their own turf the door isn’t open. I would go in early and make the rounds of all the coffee stations and make coffee.
Now we do take-out once a month and otherwise cook three meals a day.
Don’t try too hard. Respectful and civil discussion is what leads to understanding.
I think moving what was Home Ec and shop into vocational curricula was ill-advised. Those are life skills.
Mr. Heinlein’s words (I believe from the iconic “Stranger in a Strange Land”) need not be literal. I am short three: haven’t planned an invasion, written a sonnet, or died gallantly. I believe I have the knowledge and experience to plan an invasion but it hasn’t come up. I don’t think I can write a sonnet. I’m prepared to die gallantly for the right cause and have gone in harms way but so far have been smart enough to avoid dying.
If you have not read “Stranger in a Strange Land” I highly recommend it. There is much food for thought in there.
We have drifted rather far from Subway bread. I’ll have a foot-long on wheat, turkey, lettuce, tomato, peppers, salad peppers, olives, onions, cucumbers, and pickles. Once across with spicy mustard. Cut into three pieces. Back in the day that was airplane food for me. Also lunch on yard work days.
