Considering the chef as social conscience

The recent "G9 Conference" of eco-conscious chefs in Lima, Peru, has drawn the gimlet eye of British restaurant critic Jay Rayner of the Guardian newspaper in a column called "Reality Check, Please."

The meeting, officially titled the 2nd Summit of the International Advisory Board of the Basque Culinary Center, attracted an international group that included culinary man of the hour Rene Redzepi from Noma in Denmark; his predecessor, Ferran Adria from just-closed El Bulli in Spain; and France's Michel Bras. Apparently, a lot of heavy thinking was on the agenda. Among their pronouncements:

We dream of a future in which the chef is socially engaged, conscious of and responsible for his or her contribution to a just and sustainable society ... through our cooking, our ethics and our aesthetics, we can contribute to the culture and identity of a people, a region, a country ... we can also serve as an important bridge to other cultures ... we all have a responsibility to know and protect nature.

To which Rayner replies: 

Blimey.

Let's be clear. There is nothing wrong with a bunch of very talented, very serious cooks having these thoughts. The night they all sat around the fast-emptying bottle of Fernet Branca hugging each other, staring intently into each other's eyes and saying solemn things like "I am a bridge to other cultures" must have been a complete doozy. But there are some things which really should be kept behind closed doors. Yes, of course good chefs ought to be serious about their ingredients. Yes, they have a responsibility to source stuff ethically. But they also need to remember that they aren't secular saints. They are chefs cooking dinner for very, very rich people.

What do you think? Has the chef-with-a-social-conscience movement reached its peak? Or is it just beginning -- and not a moment too soon?

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-- Russ Parsons

Photo: From left: Chefs Dan Barber of the U.S., Rene Redzepi of Denmark, Ferran Adria of Spain, Gaston Acurio of Peru, Michel Bras of France, Yukio Hattori of Japan and Alex Atala of Brazil. Credit: Enrique Castro-Mendivil / Reuters

Canning it: Food and water in an emergency

Even in densely populated areas there is no guarantee you will have access to food and water in the event of an emergency.  Here are some tips from the Los Angeles County Master Food Preservers on what you can do to be prepared.

Digging deeper into urban homesteading

If while reading Thursday's article by Veronique de Turenne on urban homesteading in Altadena, you found yourself wondering "could I do that?" there's a lot of material to help you get started in the Los Angeles Times Home section.

• Here's an overview of all kinds of information on food gardening, chickens, beekeeping and other topics.
• Then there's this roundup of community gardens.
• And our own Susan Carpenter had a series on trying to live more sustainably, which is gathered here and here, with a finale here.

-- Russ Parsons

Photo: Steve Rudicel and Gloria Putnam and their Nubian goats. Credit:  Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times

 

Hunting down the greenest lunchbox

Writer Heather John was on the hunt for the ultimate lunchbox -- something eco-friendly, low-maintenance, functional, BPA-free and with waste-free containers that were reusable. (No plastic baggies need apply.)

Did we mention this was for her 2-year-old? Read on about the lengths John went to find the perfect lunchbox -- and check out this photo gallery of lunchboxes that might do the trick for you.

Photo: LL Bean lunchbox, $12.95. Made from polyurethane-coated nylon, with an easy-to-clean, BPA-free, PVC-free lining. Credit: LL Bean

Earth Day equals free salad at Mixt Greens (and hope for our planet)

Earth Day is April 22. It's also the one day a year when everyone pretends to think about the health of the planet while generally doing something Earth-unfriendly (like driving a car to work, using a Styrofoam cup or spraying their curled bangs super high with aerosol Aqua Net -- wait no, the latter was just me in fifth grade, way before Earth Day). But that doesn't mean that you can't change your ways this year. Ride your bike or take the bus to work and get yourself a tasty meal of salad at Mixt Greens. The eco-friendly restaurant is offering a free tote bag full of green goodies to the first 150 customers who arrive at one of its two L.A. locations on Earth Day. Inside the bag you'll find recipes from chef Andrew Swallow's upcoming cookbook, "Mixt Salads," a salad and packets of herb seeds to plant in your kitchen garden (you do have one of those, right?). 350 S. Grand Ave., L.A. (213) 587-7970. 5757 Wilshire Blvd., (213) 587-7975. www.mixtgreens.com.

-- Jessica Gelt

Photo: Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times

A closer look at how restaurants are serving up sustainability [Updated]

 

Whether for the bottom line or for the highest of ideals, more restaurateurs -- such as Neal and Amy Knoll Fraser, who are moving their restaurant Grace to downtown, and the new salad chain Mixt Greens -- are working toward "sustainability."

[Updated 3:32 p.m.: A previous version of this post spelled the name of a salad restaurant as Mixed Greens.]

There's no legal definition for a sustainable restaurant, but sustainability — in restaurants, economies or relationships — generally means serving the needs of the present while preserving the ability to meet the needs of the future.

Chefs often take that to mean using locally grown produce, buying supplies from companies that respect the environment and encouraging frugal practices in their kitchens. By turning off lights, installing water filtration systems, recycling cooking oil for biodiesel and using hybrid vehicles for delivery, owners have branched out from just buying chickens that toddle free around a farm. Read more here.

Photo: Erica Gillespie tends to the lettuce growing in planter boxes at Mixt Greens in Los Angeles. The sustainable greens and herbs are fed with water lines and grow-lights. Credit: Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times 

Fried = healthy, CCH Pounder goes fishing, lunching without lunching, root beer roses and more

--Oscar nominees get together for the annual luncheon. But from the looks of this photo gallery, no one is actually doing any lunching. 

--Chile's wine exporters are feeling the economic squeeze.

--The Twitterverse is all about Mardis Gras this morning. Here, @chefrb shows us her....first stab at a King Cake. Nicely done. (Update: An earlier version of this post attributed the photo to @bonbonvivant.)

--If "Avatar" actress CCH Pounder invites you over for a fish banquet, don't fall for the "I've been cooking all day" line.

--Replacing paper coffee filters with reusable ones. A good way to keep trash out of the landfill?

--Would you pay more to have your strawberries smell more like strawberries? Or your roses smelling like root beer? Scientists find genes that could restore fragrances to flowers. The genetic research may also be applied to restore flavors to fruits and vegetables.

--A recipe for fried Greek Zucchini Fritters that still claims to be healthy? We're sold.

--Rene Lynch
On Twitter @renelynch

Photo credit: Victor Baeza, general manager of Calina winery in Talca, Chile, says the 170-acre operation's sales last year didn't budge from 2008's. Chris Kraul / Los Angeles Times

Got grease? Santa Monica sees it as green gold

Santa Monica, known for its eco-friendly initiatives, is launching a new effort to collect cooking grease and turn the waste into biofuel.

Photo credit: Ringo H.W. Chiu / For The Times

Sampler Platter: Make a bacon lamp, meet the White House Crustmaster, testing Campbell's Soup's noodles claim

The Crustmaster uses pies to lure Michelle Obama to the dark side. The original recipe for Worcestershire sauce is discovered (we assume it's the British equivalent of the original top-secret formula for Coca-Cola, but without cocaine). And the most practical how-to ever: making your own bacon lamp.

--Meet White House pastry chef Bill Yosses, a.k.a. the Crustmaster. CBS4 Denver
--Restaurant groups unhappy about health-care bill. Nation's Restaurant News
--"Emeril Live" may return to TV -- but not on the Food Network. ABC Action News
--The 10 most beloved and unhealthy gaming snacks. Topless Robot
--100 things restaurant staffers should never do: Part 1 and Part 2. New York Times
--Campbell's claims every can of chicken noodle soup has 32 feet of noodles. KING5
--Who would Jacques Pepin most like to cook naked with? Nigella Lawson. Gastrobuzz
--Original Lea & Perrins Worcestershire sauce recipe found. Daily Mail
--How to make a bacon lamp. Oddity Central
--Diners plan to spend 20% less on restaurant meals. Bloomberg

-- Elina Shatkin

Photo: Jacques Pepin's dream date, Nigella Lawson. Credit: Tina Fineberg / For The Times

Nothing starts a food fight like 'Organic'

 

When I wrote a column recently about my questions about organic produce, I expected that I'd get a lot of mail. Especially after I started with the statement: "I don't believe in organics."

Organics is an article of faith for a lot of people, and what I had to say was pretty far from the accepted dogma. Still, it was something I thought really needed to be said, and if, after more than 20 years of covering farming and food issues for The Times, I wouldn't say it, who would?

So when I opened my e-mail the morning the column ran, I had donned my asbestos undershorts, as we kids say. But a funny thing happened on the way to the firestorm.

There was plenty of mail, to be sure -- probably more than I've received for any story that didn't involve salt and turkeys. But the amazing thing was: Most of it was positive. I mean an overwhelming majority -- like by a ratio of 5 or 6 to 1.

Turns out, it seems like this was something a lot of folks have been thinking, but they were just waiting for someone else to be dumb enough to say it out loud first.

 

-- Russ Parsons

 

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Photo credit: Bob Chamberlin / Los Angeles Times