105 Comments

PSA: At least 20% of my motivation for writing this was so I could post that video of British food hero Keith Floyd.

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And we thank you for it, just what I needed on a Sunday morning. I watched it with my dog, namesake - Floyd 😂

Great post. It's true and sad that highly worthy skilled people are overshadowed by the latest bright young shiny thing, it's always been that way but social media just makes it on a larger scale.

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I think you're right, it does feel like social media perpetuates and feeds this particular system. Thanks for reading Tamara and thanks for your support. Send my love to Floyd! What breed is he? We have a little mittelspitz called Otto.

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Floyd is a Border Collie - he sends his love back to Otto.

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Have to admit I have never heard of Keith and his French mentor(???) so I really appreciate you working them in. What a hoot! I will be tracking them down.

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He was quite the celeb in the UK, but no further afield I believe. Great fun though, amazing character.

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He was well known in Sweden. My mum used to watch him. I remember that scene! Thank you for posting!

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Oh really! Good on the Swedes. I didn't know that.

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Yes, Wil! Yes! I couldn’t help but nod along in agreement as I read this.

Social media has changed our consumption of food and changed our expectations surrounding cooking: from an in-depth craft to just an enticing yet flavorless bite. (In many ways, social media’s treatment of food mirrors the desire meal kits and delivery services aim to satisfy for so many…) With the short-form format of these “cooking” videos, no one bothers to savor the technical details or the “why”. Food has become just a prop, in many ways.

I truly feel that only long-form food content, like cooking shows or books, really savors the whole experience and process of cooking, honors it. And only someone immersed in that world/process (like a chef) can truly understand it from start to finish. (That’s not to say the home cook can’t learn a thing or too, but they have knowledge gaps a chef doesn’t.)

And when you task a short-form creator to create long-form content (like a book), those gaps in knowledge show. When food content creators who don’t have formal culinary training or bother to become truly self taught and proficient get book deals, they don’t understand the depths of the world and knowledge that they’re being tasked to put into words.

This trend in publishers jumping to offer book deals to content creators/just anyone with a built-in audience is disheartening. And it’s sad to know that there are some really talented writers and/or people with a deep knowledge of a certain craft or topic who will likely forever be overlooked by publishers simply because they aren’t seen as valuable, in the sense that they don’t already have an audience. Social media has enticed publishers to just follow the numbers. It seems they don’t want the challenge of sifting through all the writers out there and then marketing a book from scratch. Instead, they’d rather find an internet celebrity with a built in audience and coax them into writing a book to then be able to call them an author. Is that type of authorship well earned? Does anyone really benefit from reading what they write? Maybe some, but in large part I think it just creates more dampening, soundless noise. It’s bad enough the internet is so full of noise…now bookshelves may become a reflection of that reality.

All my rambling to say, this piece hits home, was validating to read, and the ideas are applicable beyond the food space. Cheers!

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Margaret! Thanks for such an interesting comment. I was nodding along to this the whole way through as well. I hope that platforms like Substack help encourage and grow people who do really care about the longer forms. That's why I kinda sympathise with "creators" who are growing up with short-form, algorthim-based platforms. They're being trained to create in a shallower way.

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1) I like that you brought it full circle with the potatoes in the end. 2) I have zero patience for the "ugly" outrage farms that populate social media. 3) The "bad" aren't "quite" as irritating, possibly because they mask their cynicism and disrespect for food slightly better. 3) Everyone seems to be in a hurry to be famous without putting in the time and effort and, yes, publishers are just as much to blame. I was going to say "Don't get me started, Wil" but I'm all riled up now and that's not necessarily a bad thing. This was a thoughtful piece, I enjoyed reading it (sometimes there is a strange comfort in indignance), and now I should really go start thinking about what monstrosity I'm going to create for my next Tik Tok shocker. Cheers, MCP

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Ha. Thanks for this, Michael. Let me know when you want to collab on your next monstrosity. Diet Mountain Dew-braised chicken breast with a glaze of Gentleman's Relish maybe? We'll be superstars in minutes.

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I've been working on a Flamin' Hot Cheeto and Dairy Milk encrusted sturgeon with Red Bull jus recipe that's just a bee's dick away from perfection. I'll let you know when I'm ready to collab.

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To paraphrase my great aunt Ethel, I'm getting rigid.

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My grandmother always insisted upon the word "tumesce" in polite company. .

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Beckett oft used "tumescence" to describe the loinal stirrings of his sordid characters. Your grandmother has good taste.

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Sorry to be a comments hog, but I also wanted to sing the praises of long form recipes for experience-honed “simple” dishes. I found a recipe for salt & pepper tofu online a couple of days ago which explained in detail the rationale for timings, ingredients and process. It made the difference between a soggy mess and the beautifully crisp, flavourful nuggets I produced for lunch yesterday.

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No need to apologise at all. I totally agree! I think I made a specific point in one draft of this (I think edited out) that even simple recipes benefit from this detail and empathy. By which I mean really putting oneself in the shoes of the person at home, not able to ask questions, trying to replicate a dish. I must add that Nic Miller's reviews are a great education in recipe writing.

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Oh, agree on all this, Wil! And Nic’s a star.

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And thanks for reading, Nicky.

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Always interesting!

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Cooking is an art, baking is a science. If you enjoy horror films produced by people who don’t know the difference between bread flour and pastry flour, check out the baking videos. Every time I see one my hair goes up in flames.

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It's a frightening world out there.

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Marmite on a steak? Like, what the literally hell is going on here. People have lost their minds. This was a great read and I’m so happy someone is calling it out. The bad food along with the life story about how a Pad Thai changed someone’s life and you have to scroll endlessly to get to the recipe has always bothered me. You’re doing the Lords work my friend.

That For The Chefs page is gold. I live on that page!

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Literal hell. I need to proof read and I wish they would let you edit your comments on here lol

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Thanks, Adam. Really grateful you're here reading. Do you know the Allez Celine account? Really funny as well.

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I haven’t but I’m about to now. Thanks for the info. Do you follow Chef Pier? He’s pretty hilarious as well.

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I'll check him out. Thanks

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I wanted to close my iPhone like an old clam shell phone when I read the line about the steak marinated in Nutella 😂

I loved this post. I was worried it was going to be a curmudgeonly rant about “kids these days” and their “little apps”, but I appreciated the nuance and thoughtfulness you brought to the discussion. Your points made me consider how much of a grey area social media cooking can be. I agree with the examples you provided of cooks with no training sharing recipes that skip important steps, and I feel lucky that I’ve been able to avoid that ilk. When it comes to connecting to culture and heritage, though, social media cooks can be a powerful bridge, especially for those of us who come from cultures that use the “dash a dis, and dash a dat” method of passing down recipes 😂 not many West Indian recipes are written down in cookbooks, and often what is published is a bland watered down mess that appeals to the Western palate, but would never be served in a West Indian home. I appreciate the West Indian social media cooks I’ve found on YouTube and TikTok because they’ve helped me find recipes from the islands that I love, but didn’t know how to cook. Maintaining a connection to my heritage is important to me because it’s so easy to lose it when you don’t live there. I love having their recipes in my recipe book right next to the ones my mother and grandmothers gave me because it helps me keep the connections.

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Thank you so much Starbie. That means an awful lot to me. And thank you for such a thoughtful comment. Man, I really feel lucky receiving such feedback on my work. And, yes, it was important to me not to actually rant (which despite the title I don't think I'm doing😝)

I see more than ever now how big this subject is. What you say about these platforms giving a connection to heritage when one lives far from the place that heritage resides shows how important they can be. Would you mind sharing some names of your favourite west indian social media cooks? Id love to watch them.

And thanks again. You've given me even more to think about and I'm really grateful for that.

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I have so many faves, but the first two that come to mind are Jamdownfoodie on Tiktok and Candy Tha Glam Cook on YT. Jamdownfoodie makes mostly Jamaican dishes and Candy makes Guyanese dishes, and both of them have provided recipes that have become regulars in my home!

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It feels like a recent social media generated phenomenon but in reality this stuff has been going on for a long time. Jack Monroe is a classic example of someone utterly incapable of making a decent plate of food who was platformed in the papers for her poverty cooking and given a deal which has resulted in seven (yes, seven) books of inedible rubbish. Andy Lynes reviewed her last publication if you wanted to explore further. I’m resolutely only buying cookbooks that have been recommended by a trusted source, that come from a trusted author or that I’ve had the chance to give a thorough going over in my local bookshop! Still have way too many though …

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Publishers definitely are enticed by what is hot. And obviously social produces many of these hot right now moments/people. Hopefully this fad will fade or evolve.

Btw, the confit potatoes were learnt by Shaun at St. john, before he put his minor tweaks and served them in the style that QCH are known for now. Some say the St. John version is a modified pomme paillasson, but I'd say it's clearly a large enough change to be it's own thing.

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Really! Well, I am grateful for this further insight into the history of those dear potatoes. (a more intelligent edit of this article would have admitted I'm sure Shaun was influenced by someone else as well). Thanks for reading, it's really appreciated.

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Thanks for the shoutout! This was such a fun read. I imagine the annoyance towards celebrity chefs and food network tv personalities was similar back in the day, but the scale is so massive now. The content is endless and most of it isn't great. Have you seen the "everyone's so creative" tiktok stitcher (assuming it's made its way to instagram)? Cracks me up. https://www.eater.com/23709545/everybodys-so-creative-tiktok-tanara-mallory-interview

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Loved this read this morning! Me - I love the long form- and the fast world of tiktok is not for me! This is because I am not a video creator- I am me with my own voice and a happy, confident self taught home cook. And loving that substack can be a creative platform for me to share my stories, love of food and personal transformation through food. More of this good common sense please. So very grounding! Bravo 🙌

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Thanks so much. Really appreciate your thoughts and thanks for reading!

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Made my morning- looking forward to reading more of your works!

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You're very kind. Delighted you've joined me here!

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You were quite generous with the “good” content creators. I‘d be very interested in a more detailed critique of their videos, just like with the cornflour thing. Or maybe just what techniques distinguish a professional cook from these content creators. Or do you think the short form makes it impossible to show recipes on that higher level?

Anyways, very nice and balanced article with great recommendations ☺️

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Ah, what a great comment. And I can't argue with you, Feli. I did rather take the generous route here didn't I. 😉

But this is why the comments here are such a positive thing. You've really got me thinking. There definitely could be a positive way of critiquing these creators, drawing out what isn't working and thinking about what could make them better. Not just trashing them. Because I'm certain any form when used in the right way can be successful. I'm going to think about this and how I can do the idea justice. Thanks for the inspiration! And thanks for your support of the newsletter!

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Such an interesting read! Short-form content is so complex and at times, chasing the 'next viral thing' is tempting! I've fallen for it. However, this piece has encouraged me to keep going with my home culinary school. I like the idea of really earning accomplishments the old fashioned way and want to move away from instant gratification. Also, can you and Will maybe do a collab newsletter? :)

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Thanks so much, Sarah. And I'd jump at the chance to work with Will. I'm new to the idea of collaborations (I spend most of my time writing very much alone in a basement in Finland) but I know Will would be a joy to do something with. Do you have any ideas??

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Yup! You could collaborate on a highly achievable seasonal 3 course menu perhaps for a spring dinner party to celebrate the new season and it’s abundant produce. I’ll happily contribute to the pudding or cocktail!

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Good piece!

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I was back and forth with this piece. Not sure if I was saying anything worth saying. Your two words mean a lot, Karl. Thanks.

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Absolutely worth it. Iirc you floated the idea a month ago and it came out awesome!

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So the example you gave about the creator who dumped cornstarch into a sauce without a slurry is NOT a peccadillo. I have similar issues with people that post facile macaroni and cheese recipes and don’t indicate that milk should not come to a full boil or your cheese sauce is going to be grainy. Sure, the recipe can be simple, but technique is what makes things great. Likewise, I don’t think it’s an extra cheffy thing when people take the time to specifically discuss what kind of salt they’re using in a dish. Small instances like that create an ability chasm. People with kitchen experience or professional training, or even years of dedicated cooking would understand they need to make a slurry. But someone who is just learning would try to re-create this and be unsuccessful and not understand why. If you are fed on a diet of social media people who assume you know better - or just edit out important details - you would be deterred from cooking because nothing turns out.

Also….I have tremendous issue with the Pasta Queen for all the reasons you outline in your wonderful article. She’s pretty, has an accent, got a bombastic personality, a beautiful kitchen, and clearly lots of money - so Amazon gave her a cooking show. But her recipes are well…stupid! I hate saying that, but so much of what she cooks is highly generic, but it has a high gloss finish because of how it’s packaged and who she is.

Nigella is also one of my food heroes, and she gave me the side benefit of realizing that I was also interested in women. Ha!

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Regarding the ugly chefs, there is a lot to unpack, it is far deeper than making rage bait for views. Essay incoming.

I’m too old for ticky tocky, and when reactions to ugly chefs started showing up on YouTube, I didn’t realize it was satire. You have to understand, a lot of American food really is a bunch of inedible processed slop mixed together and baked. It’s really not that much of a stretch to believe the same people who think velveeta is cheese, miracle whip is mayo, and cool whip is edible at all, have started making casseroles with cheetos soaked in milk. My only clue that it wasn’t real was that the creators all seem to be healthy, slim, fit women who clearly take very good care of their bodies: anyone reasonably educated about nutrition can look at them and know without a doubt that they do not eat what they’re cooking. (if they did, they would be overweight and tired-looking, with awful skin). I also noticed that when they do use whole food ingredients like butter and veg, they’re organic. For reference, there is no crossover whatsoever between Americans that are willing to pay a premium for organic and Americans that eat cool whip and velveeta.

When I realized that the point of the videos was entertainment, I found it entertaining. Very much so. I love watching them, actually. The ugly chefs are an accurate parody of how Americans eat. I am American, and I am regularly health shamed for refusing to put highly processed “food-products” in my mouth. One of the worst offenders, My Jane Brain, even (badly) fakes a Midwestern accent while she’s mixing her food massacres together because midwesterners 1. Have the worst diets in the country; and 2. will angrily claim that canned slop casseroles are “cultural” and therefore it’s bigotry to call inedible garbage exactly what it is. The fake accent was my tipoff that the content is satire and not simply rage bait.

I think it’s funny as hell that health conscious women are making this content to express our frustration with the American food system and how it feels to be presented with inedible processed slop day in and day out and told that it’s food. I also think it says quite a lot that no one in America can recognize that ugly chefs are a social commentary on the way we are expected to eat. A few days ago I had a coworker attempt to bully me into eating some kind of BS “cake” that had a paragraph of mystery chemicals for the ingredients. I see no difference whatsoever between that behavior and Zany Lany holding out a plate of velveeta cheeto mush with almost-meat on top, grinning and saying “it’s so good, you gotta try it!” I suspect she became zany after one too many coworkers or potluck moms peer pressured her to eat processed-food-products unfit for animals.

The cultural commentary, I think, was lost in translation. You won’t recognize it as satire unless you know how downright inedible typical lower and middle class American food is, as well as the intensity of the peer pressure to eat it. People who choose not to eat BS are heavily ostracized, to the point of being accused of mental illness. Food quality has gotten so bad in the US that nearly nothing is appropriate to eat unless you make it from scratch, after paying an unaffordable premium at specialty stores for clean ingredients. Prices are so high that most people think there’s something wrong with you if you’re willing to pay for quality, and you’re not rich. They’ve even gone and made up a new “eating disorder” (orthorexia) to pathologize healthy eating and gaslight people who do not want to be force fed allergens and dodgy chemicals into believing it’s mentally ill to avoid such things.

When I look at Jane Brain and Zany Lany, I see women like myself who are getting a little hysterical about how hard it is to eat healthy, using satire to make a statement about how disgusting the “food” is that we’re expected to eat. Even the recipes that aren’t overly inedible are a nightmare hellscape of dairy and gluten that you know, from one look at the chef’s clear skin and slim figure, is going straight in the trash. And yet the only commentary I ever see of ugly chefs is shallow accusations that they’re “wasting food” for views. I always have to cringe, because no one except an American thinks the raw ingredients in most of those recipes count as food. Thank you, at least, for not insinuating that any ingredient in slow cooked chip casserole belongs anywhere besides a trash can.

I wish someone would understand that ugly chefs are a cry for help from American women who are sick of being told daily that obesity is beautiful, industrial waste is good to eat in moderation, food intolerances are all in your head, and you’re a bad evil “almond mom” if you won’t feed your kids straight sugar with chemicals on top. Every year the anti-health propaganda coming out of the political left gets worse, and healthy food gets harder to obtain, and we are cracking. So when I see Zany Lany pour milk into a bag of doritos and boil it, I laugh hysterically at what is honestly excellent satire of the way other Americans expect me to eat.

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Though we do also agree the videos are a form of entertainment. People clearly enjoy being offended by these food creations.

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Thanks so much for this. As a student of literature many years ago I appreciate readings and analyses of texts (in the broad use of the word in this context) that defy the assumed understanding. I think your reading of these videos, the like of which I've never heard before, is fascinating. I remain unconvinced, however, that your reading corresponds with the "author" intent. From interviews I've read with Jane Brain for instance, who is Canadian I think, I read nothing of this satirical motive. It is also lost on every commenter I've ever seen below their posts also. But what the creator intends isn't everything of course and your reading certainly adds value to these videos I hadn't appreciated before.

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I enjoyed your essay.

It indirectly points out why there are such obvious political differences in this country. It’s not just politics and viewpoint, it is very much “lifestyle”.

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