Book Review: Omnivore's Dilemma Part 0

This posting is a general overview of myself in reference to my culinary life. This is part of a larger series on the book 'Onivore's Dilema'. (Parts 1 through 4 will be forth coming in the next week or two).

My early life up through college was similar to the average person. I grew up when fast food was coming into its own. I remember my first happy meal (and the Legos in the happy meal). I can remember sitting down dinners when my mother was not working and large family meals where everything was hand cooked. I also saw the transformation over the years to prepared meals and the invasion of fast food into my diet in high school. I was a busy child and teenager and was sometimes home until very late. However I did learn cooking through the Boy Scouts (though I let the skill atrophy in college). I was a omnivore and never even thought about where my food was coming from. I remember learning about the food pyramid as well (I just started reading the (Food Politics) and I never realized that potato chips were bucketed under vegetables. I wonder where a Twinkie is...).

In college I could get as much of whatever food I wanted. It was great. Towards the end of my undergraduate career I spent time in the single occupancy building and as all my friends moved off campus my eating suffered (since eating is a social activity for me). So I can remember they put in this meal card swipe area with a pizza hut. They had personal pan pizzas. I would get 2 mini pizzas (usually sausage) and a thing of breadsticks every day. Since I rarely ate lunch or breakfast this was my meal for the day. I know you are thinking, holy crap, how are you still alive? Luck maybe.

Then I went to graduate school and my eating habits stayed the exact same for a while. Weekly runs to Sam's Club to get a million frozen super-processed foods. Then something happened. I got a kitchen. I moved into my first apartment and I could cook. It didn't happen all at once but I started with cookies and muffins. Then my grandma would send recipes to me everyday. I usually cooked them (I loved my aunt's lasagna). One of my friends likes to discuss the time he had 'burger bundles'. Then one day something happened. I got bored.

All of my friends were away or forsook me for the weekend. I was pissed in a kind of weird way. I mean why should I be mad, they have lives. So I decided I was going to do something crazy. I have a very level and methodical head about me and so bridge jumping was out. So I decided I was going to be a vegetarian. Now those that know me now would say, 'So?' but at the time it was a huge thing. I was the devoted meat eater at this time. I never ate vegetables or fruits unless they were highly caramelized or deep fried. My dad had flirted with veganism previously for a couple of months due to an almost heart attack. But to me being a vegetarian was unthinkable. So I set the date for July 1st when I would no longer cook or eat meat.

Now I was vegetarian in the beginning because I was bored. Then I started reading about vegetarianism (and veganism) and learning about nutrition and then my life changed. I read 'Fast Food Nation' and watched 'Super Size Me'. All of a sudden the whole under belly of the industry was laid bare in a way I had never considered. Food is so important, why didn't I care where my food came from? It was an interesting question. Since then I have started going to farmer's markets to get food. I have toyed (with very limited success) to make bread for myself. What changed? One could argue as a graduate student I had a lot of free time to experiment (most people experiment with drugs and booze I experimented with expanding my horizons through reading and self-discovery). At least my experimentation was not illegal.

So why do I tell you all of that besides grandstanding on how great I am? I am going to review the four meals presented in this book in a series of posts and I wanted to let you know my background and where I come from. I think it is important to know the biases in the people you read. In the last year I have actually moved away from my vegetarianism some because of laziness (which I hate). However food is something that really interests me.

I give this book like 15 stars. It is a great book. Well put together with a high words per page count (which is important). Additionally there are lots of references for the extremely interested. This book also contains chapters on 4 different types of foods, fast food (the corn eaters), organic, pastoral, and hunting and gathering. So there is something in there for everyone. I appreciate that I feel that the author does not really take a side in the discussion. For instance is not 100% pro-vegan or 100% pro-eating meat. This is very helpful as you can identify with the author at all points. As I said I highly recommend this book and will be discussing my thoughts on the chapters, I wouldn't do that unless I really liked the book. :-)