In this section of the book I expected to learn all about the different ways in which air controls how we cook. I was expecting discussions on altitude and humidity. I was unpleasantly surprised as I began to read what seemed to be a Biology lesson. If I am honest, the majority of this section came across as a bit boring. The style was similar to everything else that we have read by Pollan.
Fortunately, as I neared the end of the section my attention was drawn to the comparison that Pollan made between the Hostess plant and the local Bakery. I was appalled by the image of the Hostess plant as additives were being continually added to the mix and 100% whole wheat was not as it seemed. White flour was the first ingredient listed on many of the labels, thus, the product is not as pure as the claim states. When Pollan visits the bakery everything changes, from his language and the way he describes the facilities. I want to travel to the bakery and try the delicious bread that I could practically taste while reading.
I was also surprised by the fact that he only really talked about the effect that air has on the process a handful of times. The section probably should have just been called "Bread" and left at that. I did enjoy that he discussed how our sense of smell plays a role in what we taste and what we are interested in eating. This was closer to what I was expecting to read throughout the entire section.
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ReplyDeleteWhile I agree that this section had more to do with "bread," perhaps what this section should be titled, as is true with most of Pollan's work, is "nature." Moreover, it seems that his overarching desire is no longer "eat food, not too much, mostly plants" - but rather, "eat Nature." From fermentation processes as a necessary course to bread had folded with bacteria to the most unprocessed grains to make our foods - air is certainly a factor, but nature is the guide. And Pollan seems to hold that nature should be our food-guide as well, and perhaps there is truth in this to an extent, but I am not giving up Nutella to spend days hunting truffles in the wilds of North Carolina.
ReplyDeleteYeah the air thing threw me too. It didn't make sense. In the back of my head the entire time I was reading I was thinking "When is he ever going to talk about air?" This was the hardest read I've had from one of Pollan's books thus far, just because I'm not a biology major and have always struggled with disinterest when it comes to biology as a subject. That being said, he was very thorough in his explanations.
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