Consider the Fork

Have you read this gem of a book yet? I bought a copy at a thrift shop last week and finished reading it in two days. Rarely has a book with so much information been such an enjoyable read. In Consider the Fork: A History of How We Cook and Eat, British food writer Bee Wilson outlines the evolution of the kitchen and its contents with wit and skill. The paperback features history, science, and personal anecdotes on how our culinary tools—from spoons to pots to rice cookers—came to be and how their influence has shaped today's food culture. It is well researched and insanely detailed. Bee's style of writing makes it easy for readers to engage in her passion.

Here's an excerpt.

"Making toast is satisfying. You could say that's because it's such a comforting substance—the crispness, the heavenly aroma as yellow butter slowly melts into the crevices. But the satisfaction is also mechanical and childish: fitting the slices in the slots, setting the timer, and waiting for a ping or a pop.

For something so basic, the electric toaster arrived late. From the 1890's, gadget-crazy late Victorians could in theory use electricity to boil kettles and fry eggs, yet for toast they still relied on the toasting forks and gridirons of open hearth cookery. These were variations on the theme of prongs and baskets for holding bread (or morsels of cheese and meat) before the flame. Toasting, when you think about it is really roasting: applying dry radiant heat to something until the surface browns."

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