Food as Art

Apart from my obvious interest in food, art is my other passion, I enjoy discovering different types of art movements, reading about the meaning behind a piece of crap (and then realise maybe it is not as crappy as I first thought). But not until I was old enough to join the two together by appreciate food as art and chefs as artists, mainly being influenced by TV programmes such as Great British Menu which show the skills and dedication of some of the best chefs in the world in creating some heavenly-looking dishes..



For a long time I was determined that food is in fact art, and would argue to death with anyone who disagrees with me. Why isn't food art? Before the Mona Lisa became THE 'Mona Lisa' it was merely oil paint in their primary colours; before Coq au Vin became Coq au Vin it was only rooster and wine but both products become such pleasure to our senses after the artist or chef worked their magic. The topic of food as an art form interests me so much I decided to make it the title of my dissertation, it is when I started doing research for it I started realise it is much more complicated than I thought to define 'art'.

Some say art is a combination of skill and imagination, therefore food would definitely be qualified as art as it consists both. But then art can be differentiated into different parts, such as 'craft', 'fine art', 'pure art' and 'applied art'. Fine art and pure art have no use apart for one's aesthetic desires; however, a designer cannot design an applied-art form without having a function in mind. Applied art forms such as fashion, architecture and interior designs already have their own functions same as food has its own nutritional values, and the artistic value is only added afterwards; and fine art cannot be pure art if there is a function within the product itself. Food can only satisfy the aesthetic senses, it doesn't provide the same emotional satisfaction you would achieve by listening to a meaningful piece of music.

So food is not a form of fine art, but then what is? there are more so called 'art' exists that required much less to none skills or imagination at all., obviously art is a very subjective and opinions varies from person to person, but just because someone gives a the label of 'art' to a product does not make it more artistic than a plate of gourmet food. At times it really makes my blood boils to see some meaningless piece of so-called 'art' being sold for millions of pounds, like Mark Rothko's art, i tried so hard to get into his mind with all the literature about it, and went back to view his paintings again and again, but i still think its shite.

Then again, maybe its me who doesnt know how to appreciate such things, i guess it depends how one percieves things. I still think I am right though:p/

Slow Food Turda

I still remember when I was first introduced to Slow Food in a Gastronomy lecture, I have to say it wasnt the most memorable lectures I have ever had. Slow Food is an organisation which created the food movement against fast food. Their objectives include educating students and consumers about the risks of fast food, various political programs to preserve family farms, promoting taste education, and mainly preserving local and traditional food products.

After the lecture a member of Slow Food UK gave us a tasting session on various types of meats, cheeses and perry. One of us students raised a question of how the majority of the general public would not be able to afford the high end of the organic food markets since in UK, the key to keep food production authentic and ethical is to have a rich producer, and therefore a hefty price tag on each package.
The man from Slow Food dissapointing said that the general public should eat less but better, using the same amount of money to buy organic food even though you only get half the portion, if you are lucky. To me that was a ridiculous answer, so we should eat less and pay more in order to maintain these objectives, in that case the majority of the country would not get involved in this organisation in any way! More to the point, is it just a lifestyle preference rather than a political food movement we are discussing here?

I didnt have a great start with Slow Food; until one day ?I had the opportunity to work with Slow Food Turda. It was a programme sponsored by my university for a number of students to go to Turda, a small town in Romania, to experience what exactly Slow Food do.

I did not know what to expect, my first impression of Turda was very that the lifestyle is very simple. I was so excited to see the local marketplace on the first day. There was radishes EVERYWHERE; literally every single store there were beautiful radishes in massive bunches with bright pink colours. It was quite amusing, but you understanding straight away that they only sell seasonal produce, which is extremely different to the UK with our water-flavoured tomatoes.

We were planned to go to three villages to give presentations and food tastings to the villagers to educate them in how their products can be sold in other countries without damaging the traditions; as well as legislation and general hygiene information.

WE held our first presentation in a villager's back garden. The owner showed us around the garden and told us how she grows everything herself to support herself and her family. Coming from a very cosmopolitan background, I was so surprised how simple life is in Turda. We cut up local traditional cheeses and commercial pre-packed cheeses, as well as fruit jam for locals to taste the difference, and dressed the table with fresh vegetables and fruits and explained how in countries like UK, consumers crave for fresh produce as such. Not many villagers turned up, but our spirit was still high.

The second village we went to has more locals turned up for the presentation. After the presentation we were invited by the local host for lunch in their garden under the lovely weather. We had some Romanian goulash and home made wine, one of the ladies told me the sausages in the pot of goulash was made by the host family. It was surprising enough to hear that they make sausages out of fresh mince. But I was more surprised by the fact that the mince was from its their own pig! An old lady from the village showed us around, she showed us the hills and told us how the soldiers fought there in the world war; she showed us the meanings of each symbol on all of the cemetries; She took us to the top of the hills to see the views on Turda. Turda was no longer a strange place to us, it has meanings and history everywhere.

The last village we went to was the most special to me. There were a lot more of us on the last day, I wasnt really needed to prepare the presentation therefore I started 'babysitting' the local kids andI was so touched by how friendly they are. I dont speak Romanian and they don't speak English but we managed to communicate and had lots of fun. It was almost unreal to see the amount of animals there are in each household, I have never stood so close to a cow before. It may sound amusing but it was true!

We ate some of the best polenta I have ever tasted, some gorgeous cake and some donuts. These food were so tasty as it is, but we appreciated it even more so because we know its from the gardens of all the family farmers in front of us, and we know they worked hard and are proud of their food. A young Romanian journalist explained to us that the Romanian locals are sceptical about changes because of their political background of being a communist country. People have no faith in improvements, therefore even though they are proud of their food, they may not have the confidence or belief that they can make any changes. We tried to explain with the help of the council and stamina from the villagers, things could improve. But in the back of our heads we could all understand why the villagers would have no faith.

One of the translation ladies took us to see her brother in law, as we were in the car driving on a bumpy road, suddenly she turned and drove onto a hill and carried on driving. I was edament that she was joking, the hill was bare, I mean who lives on a hill with nothing? My jaws literally dropped when we arrived. She told me that those tiny little huts that scattered around the hills are the accomodation for each farmer for half the year in order to pet the animals. The hut was dead simple, so simple I wont even be able to stay for a night. There wasnt even a bed, only a few cloths put together and a bucket of water. On the ceilings there are rails which they put the big blocks of cheeses.
I looked around me and inhaled deeply, it was all green and there were cows and chickens running around, the villagers must have thought I was crazy for being so amazed at the hills but I was speechless at the perfect simplicity.

I am not sure how much I have contributed in this trip, or even given any help at all. But I have learnt so much not just about food, but lifestyle in general, and how simple things could put a smile on people's faces. It made me almost a bit ashamed of our attitude in life, moaning about not having this season's latest fashion or not being able to afford an iPod seem to be so pathetic. These people work for life, but not luxury and yet they are much more satisfied with life than any of us.

If anyone asked me how would the majority of people in UK afford Slow Food products, I would say not everyone can afford it because it costs a lot to maintain the local traditional foods, but if we don't start from there, one day the traditions will be lost, and even the richest person in the world wouldn't be able to buy such local food.

Delia Smith

Delia Smith has got to be the first chefs (or COOK, as I have once been seriously told by Paul Levy on the phone during an interview, whilst being completely hungover) that I have seen on TV. I must have been about 10, still living in Hong Kong and not really understanding what the English woman was saying, although I understood she was teaching us how to boil an egg.


I was never a big fan of Delia's cooking in the first place, maybe it's her tone of voice, or the fact that she was teaching how to boil an egg, but I have always found her cooking fairly boring. Delia published the book How To Cheat At Cooking in February 2008, which created an uproar by the whole army of celebrity chefs. It is true that frozen mash and pre-crisp bacon are not real cooking, as Aldo Zilli has pointed out by trying out some of the recipes in her new book, that the mushroom risotto tastes like 'pig piss down your neck'.

What I don't understand is that food issues are so discussed these days, everyone is urged to buy organic food etc; and here comes the courageous Delia with her recipe book full of tinned food. Whatever her reasons are for publishing this book, I have to say this woman has balls.

For food enthusiasts who actually spend time to read about these food articles /blogs, they probably have never experienced a time desperate enough to buy a ready meal. But there are many people who has full time jobs and kids who just buy tinned and frozen food for dinner because they simply don't have the time to cook or even for shop for food. If they are going to eat junk food anyway, what is the harm in putting a bit of creativity in junk food? Another Jamie Oliver cookbook is not going to make certain people go back to the kitchen, but at least another Delia Smith's cheating cookbook would.

Having all these chefs going mad at Delia is almost like having Stevie Wonder commenting on the Cheeky Girls' latest progress; it is aiming at a completely different type of audience. People who'd buy Delia's cookbook would not have had the will to buy fresh ingredients to cook up a meal in the first place, hence the 'cheat' bit in the title. Anyway, I would have thought controversy is exactly what Delia would want, to gain attention when she is slowly blending into the background of the new generation of television chefs. I wonder if any chefs or food writers feel just a tiny bit backfired when everyone is talking about Delia's book.

Obsessions

Is it I or is Britain (the media) just seems to be obsessed with every aspects of food? Is our food organic enough? Should we vote against microwavable ready meals? How far has your meat traveled to be on your plate? How happy did the goose live before it’s liver become your pate? What is British cuisine? All these political, health and ethical issues about food never seem to leave us alone, it almost make me feel wrong every time I walk into Tescoand hide whatever isn’t organic as I walk out. One of the issues that concern me the most is the obsession with the attempt in revival of British cuisine.

Its always the case that people only appreciate things they once had and lost, Britain used to have a real cooking heritage but due to industrialization from a few decades ago, the country grew stronger and more jobs were available, causing people to leave home and work. The majority didn’t have time to cook anymore, they needed food that satisfies their stomachs and not their palette; they needed food that is fast and not time consuming, and that it is the birth of fast food chains and microwavable ready meals.

A generation later, British cuisine has slowly diminish into Wetherspoon’s meal deal of fish and chips with bread and butter, top with a cup of tea with a mini biscotti for a mere £3.10. Of course, the middle class can afford Waitrose’s premium steak and kidney pies -microwave-style that is.

So, the Brits have now lost their cooking heritage and they want it back. There are more and more television shows and chefs demonstrating real British cooking, and organizations such as Slow Food (as opposed to fast food) are emerging for a revival for British cooking heritage.

I understand what they are trying to do here, and completely agree with the whole gastronomic movement, but I find that blaming the lost of this heritage on industrialization is not very fair as a whole. Industrialization have brought more good things to the country than bad, it made the country wealthier, it provides jobs for the public, it developed and stabilized the economy. People should accept the consequences of industrialization rather than blaming it, you can’t have everything. After abandoning British cooking for decades, all of the sudden the Brits are kicking and screaming for it, the reason why the Brits want it back is the exact same reason of why they lost it in the first place –wanting what you don’t have, which is not necessarily a bad thing but you have to accept the consequences. Same applies to organic food, there are more and more people in Britain and organic farming just is not going to feed everyone efficiently; genetic modified food produce are designed to feed everyone at the most economical way. It is not the best way but it works. Its easy for celebrity chefs to say buy organic food or starve, unfortunately not everyone is earning millions of pounds a year, nor can everyone afford £7.99 an organic chicken, as my recent discovery of poverty has put me into reality of how pricey some food are.

I think I am going to feel less guilty for my next trip to Tesco now J

Nobu

Nobu has the reputation of being a fine dining Japanese Restaurant in London, which is the exact reason I never thought I would be able to enjoy a meal there. Fortunately two of my close friends generously took me there on my 21st birthday. Nobu produced one of the most copied dishes such as the miso-black cod, and brought attention to Japanese cuisine to the level it deserves, I was really looking forward to it.

After hearing countless times of Nobu in the media, I had a feeling it was a restaurant with pretentious surroundings, which would make me feel uncomfortable to even breathe at a normal rate around other customers. I was wrong. The decoration was effortlessly elegant and crisp, the simplicity of the setting made me feel more at ease than I thought. As I was thinking how comfortable I feel sitting in the famous Nobu and enjoying the view of a sunny Hyde Park, the menu arrived and the three of us had never been so confused in a restaurant.

I understand that in Japanese Cuisine there are no clear sections for starters and mains as it does in Western cuisine, but the menu was so confusing that we find difficulties differentiating dishes from main course or starters. The only thing that would indicate the difference is the price for each dish, which are all pretty much the same so that didn’t help; it took us half the dining period to order.

The restaurant started to get filled up, and the type of customers are in fact, pretentious businessmen and spoilt wives and kids as I had imagined. My breathing rate slows down.

After a round of miso soup, a plate of perfect looking assorted sushi arrived, those little pieces of art taste just as good as they look. But it is highly questionable of whether it is worth £32 for ten pieces of sushi. We had scallops in black pepper sauce, which was highly unmemorable with a black-bean-like-sauce with some vegetables, as was the grilled salmon fillet with teriyaki sauce, the fillet was undoubtedly very fresh, but it was so well done that it almost tasted bland.

A borderline satisfactory with the main course, the dessert really did save the day. The coconut cake with chocolate streusel and passion fruit jelly, and the chocolate fondant with green tea ice cream were out of this world. Such well balanced between the richness of chocolate and the refreshing jelly and green tea with sprinkles of assorted seeds and nuts.

I was very appreciative for this trip to Nobu but I have to say that would be the last time I visit the restaurant. The food was good especially the desserts, however it was very overpriced for the ingredients it serves. I believe you could find food just as good in other parts of London with half the price, in fact, I know you could. Saying that, based on the type of customers on the night, it is definitely not the food Nobu concentrates on, but the reputation these customers give them, and the social status they give these customers.

The Modern

Although the restaurant was buzzing already in early afternoon, the high ceiling and full-length glass windows creates a spacious atmosphere for the Modern. The interior of the restaurant is fresh, crisp and like the name, very modern. Sofa seats and big indoor plants give the restaurant a revitalizing touch, which is especially important for those business people who has be slaving away in the concrete jungle of Manhattan.

The waiter arrived with a shallow bowl with a crab cake and small leaves sprinkled on top, followed by a pot of lobster bisque. As the waiter poured the creamy lobster bisque into the bowl the crab cake floats on top, there was immediately an intense aroma of seafood. The bright-coloured bisque was extremely creamy and smooth; the concentrated lobster flavour contains a hint of basil, which balances out the richness. The crab cake was still crunchy when I had my first bite, it has big chunks of fresh crab.

The fillet of roast beef was cooked to perfection, the outer skin is well cooked and the middle was entirely pink, the texture was extremely tender and the defined taste of beef is unmistakable the best I have ever had. The red wine jus and seasonal vegetables goes very well with the beef, however, the mushroom strudel seemed to be a bit bland compare to other characters on the plate.

Typically New York, you have got to finish the meal with a berry cheesecake! Except it was not the type of cheesecake you find in London with that huge brick of cream cheese that could feed a family of five for supper. It was delicate and sophisticated, cornels of vanilla ice cream with twirls of raspberry sorbet sitting of a bed of biscuit crumbs, top with fresh berries and a vanilla pod.
I thought waiters in New York would be smileier than those at the Modern, nonetheless it was a precise and flawless service throughout, undoubtedly it was one of the most satisfying meals I have ever had.