American Culinary ABCs

According to the ‘Father of American Gastronomy,’ James Andrew Beard, “Good food has a magic appeal. You may grow old, even ugly, but if you are a good cook people will always find the path to your door.”

A frustrated thespian, Beard opened a food shop called Hors d’Oeuvre, Inc. in 1937 and accepted his rightful place in the culinary world. As Julia Child so eloquently put it, “In the beginning, there was James Beard.”

Cookbooks R Us

Until his death in 1985, Chef Beard pioneered the culinary art of cooking with basic instructions and recipes—making standard dishes using simple techniques. The James Beard Cookbook has sold over 1.5 million copies, attesting to its continued popularity with culinary beginners. By his own words, his cookbook is intended for people who “don’t even know how to boil water” and those who “wonder why their meals don’t taste like mother’s cooking.” Over the next 43 years, he published more than 25 cookbooks, all with the simple message that cooking could be both easy and fun.

A Culinary Foundation

Throughout his life, chef Beard mentored and encouraged people who were looking for a career in the culinary arts. To that end, the James Beard Foundation, established in his honor in 1986, is “dedicated to celebrating, preserving, and nurturing American’s culinary heritage and diversity in order to elevate the appreciation of our culinary excellence.” The foundation provides assistance in the following categories:

• Scholarships for aspiring young chefs ($251,150 awarded in 2005)
• Peer recognition awards for a variety of categories including cookbooks, restaurants, and chefs (more than 60 awarded annually)
• Culinary conferences and classes in partnership with educational institutions
• Food and nutrition education to children, families, and teachers
• Dinners and workshops to showcase culinary artists and visiting chefs
• Kitchen volunteer programs for hands-on experience for culinary students

A Life-Long Dedication

With no family to dedicate his life to, James Beard dedicated it, instead, to American cooking. Jonathan Yardley, Washington Post columnist said it best, “In the history of American cooking, there are three towering figures: Fanny Farmer, Irma S. Rombauer, and James Beard, whose many cookbooks and countless appearances in public forums encouraged us in the belief that cooking could be more fun than chore.”

Sources

Journeys Restaurant
James Beard Foundation

About the Author

Judi Sandall is a technical writer and a regular Chef School Review columnist. She is a graduate of the State University of New York, with a BA in English Literature.

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