Cooked: A Natural History of Transformation
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- Create Date：2021-04-20 13:55:53
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Michael Pollan
- ISBN：0141975628
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Summary
THE INSPIRATION FOR THE NEW NETFLIX SERIES
The New York Times Top Five Bestseller - Michael Pollan's uniquely enjoyable quest to understand the transformative magic of cooking
Michael Pollan's Cooked takes us back to basics and first principles: cooking with fire， with water， with air and with earth。
Meeting cooks from all over the world， who share their wisdom and stories， Pollan shows how cooking is at the heart of our culture and that when it gets down to it， it also fundamentally shapes our lives。
Filled with fascinating facts and curious， mouthwatering tales from cast of eccentrics， Cooked explores the deepest mysteries of how and why we cook。
The New York Times Top Five Bestseller - Michael Pollan's uniquely enjoyable quest to understand the transformative magic of cooking
Michael Pollan's Cooked takes us back to basics and first principles: cooking with fire， with water， with air and with earth。
Meeting cooks from all over the world， who share their wisdom and stories， Pollan shows how cooking is at the heart of our culture and that when it gets down to it， it also fundamentally shapes our lives。
Filled with fascinating facts and curious， mouthwatering tales from cast of eccentrics， Cooked explores the deepest mysteries of how and why we cook。
Reviews
Kelly
，
This book is a lot of fun。 It's inspiring as well， don't read too hungry。 This book is a lot of fun。 It's inspiring as well， don't read too hungry。 。。。more
Yumi
，
This book has me all kinds of worked up。 If you have some great stories like this one， you can publish it on Novel Star， just submit your story to hardy@novelstar。top or joye@novelstar。top
Sally
，
This book has helped me understand the brilliance of cooking and has inspired me to try new recipes， with a new respect for the unseen microcosmos！
Dana
，
I LOVED this book！！ My favorite thing about it was that it had a super cozy， homey feeling to it。 I love to cook and to read books on the topic of food， and I generally like Michael Pollan。 I learned interesting facts about cooking and food， and I also really enjoyed his tone as he discussed his thoughts and experiences。 Samin Nosrat， author of “Salt， Fat， Acid， Heat” makes an appearance in the second section， and I love her， so that was fun。
Jordan Sand
，
Once he got over his hatred of animal ag it was an interesting book which inspired me to ferment vegetables
Laurie Sand
，
There were moments， I admit， when I felt the urge to pitch this book across the room。 Pollan， as per usual， complains a fair bit about processed food， GMOs， and industrial animal agriculture， which can grate at times。 His repeated assertion that most Americans are eating meals comprised of prepackaged， single-serving entrees from the freezer aisle struck me as ridiculously out-of-touch。 I don't know ANYBODY who eats like that， much less a majority of people。 Further， if his opinion of the culina There were moments， I admit， when I felt the urge to pitch this book across the room。 Pollan， as per usual， complains a fair bit about processed food， GMOs， and industrial animal agriculture， which can grate at times。 His repeated assertion that most Americans are eating meals comprised of prepackaged， single-serving entrees from the freezer aisle struck me as ridiculously out-of-touch。 I don't know ANYBODY who eats like that， much less a majority of people。 Further， if his opinion of the culinary talents of the average person is truly so low， what makes him think that exploring all of the most complex and least accessible cooking techniques in human history will entice them away from an entree that costs $3 and takes two minutes to heat up？Ok， so much for the negatives--on to the positives！I found Pollan's handling of the gender politics of cooking to be quite deft and not at all controversial。 It appears that some other reviewers disagree， and I'm honestly not sure why。 I appreciated that Pollan acknowledged the historical trend of women's cooking for their families being less regarded than， say， the cooking of a man in a restaurant for pay。 And it's undeniably true that overall in this country home cooking has declined as a result of women entering the workforce and men not picking up the slack。Pollan waxes unusually philosophical， which I personally really enjoyed。 I am a person who loves both cooking and eating food， so it was fun to hear something so mundane raised to the level of philosophy and art。 Pollan is clearly on a very personal journey here。 Through the course of the book， we see him become a more confident and creative cook （and， interestingly， complain about societal ills less and less）。 I got the sense， particularly in the "air" section， in which Pollan learns to bake sourdough bread， that his experiences are conferring greater humility。 Although Pollan offers no solutions for making cooking more accessible for the average person in our stressful， time-crunched lives， neither does he claim to。 "Cooked" is about Pollan's own attempts to incorporate more traditional cooking methods into his own life and the impacts that this journey has had on him and his family。 It's no coincidence that Pollan wrote this book when his only son was on the cusp of leaving the nest。 Cooking became a way for Pollan to bond with his son on a more adult level， and also to navigate the new emotional terrain of becoming an empty-nester。 Pollan also makes the excellent point that "。。。even better。。。is the satisfaction that comes from temporarily breaking free of one's accustomed role as the producer of one thing--whatever it is we sell into the market for a living--and the passive consumer of everything else。" Because home cooking is， from the capitalist perspective， so inefficient， it is an act of rebellion。 When you cook a meal for your family that takes much longer for you than for the corporation that could make it quicker and perhaps even more cheaply， it is a subversive act。 Making and creating for the simple joy of doing so is a rejection of the message which is all-too-pervasive in our culture: that the only things worth doing are the things you get paid for。 。。。more
Grace Di Cecco
，
Great audiobook！
Cali
，
Sometimes achingly boring， sometimes intensely interesting， and sometimes ridiculously funny。 I read about half of this book for a biology class （~pg200-400） and not I’m feeling the strong need to stop eating white bread， start pickling my own vegetables， and maybe drink a little more alcohol。 The author neatly covers the sciences， history， politics， economics， and more of fermentation and its effect of humanity。 And then includes little asides and gems like these:- “Well， it’s really quite simp Sometimes achingly boring， sometimes intensely interesting， and sometimes ridiculously funny。 I read about half of this book for a biology class （~pg200-400） and not I’m feeling the strong need to stop eating white bread， start pickling my own vegetables， and maybe drink a little more alcohol。 The author neatly covers the sciences， history， politics， economics， and more of fermentation and its effect of humanity。 And then includes little asides and gems like these:- “Well， it’s really quite simple。 If the milker is calm， the cow is calm。 And a calm cow doesn’t shit as much in the milking parlor， which means her milk will likely be cleaner。 This is why the milk is always better when women do the milking。” Several things about this little story came as news to me， not least the disturbing fact that there might be any shit in milk， ever。- How do you ask a nun whether she believes the government’s crackdown on raw-milk cheese is rooted in sexual repression？- After the American troops landed in Normandy in 1944， they destroyed several of the dairies where Camembert was made because they reeked—of what the troops assumed had to be corpses。 Oops。- I wasn’t sure how hard Father Ian wanted to push the analogy of Jesus as a fungus breaking down the Old Testament in order to create the New。The authors many stories throughout life related to some sort of fermentation as well as their varied and in depth personal research added a lot of information and humor。 Overall a good read。 Probably not something I would have read by myself， there’s only so much someone can read about bread making before becoming either inspired or bored out of their mind （I became the second rather quickly） vegetables and alcohol fermentation proved to be more interesting。 。。。more
Sharad Pandian
，
Choice excerpts to give you a taste of the book:Everyone， it seems， makes his own compromises， whether in the interest of convenience or cost， but everyone else’s compromises are abominations。 （83）This might sound like a sentimental conceit， but compare the one-pot dinner to the sort of meal（s） that typically emerge from the microwave: a succession of single-serving portions， each attempting to simulate a different cuisine and hit a different demographic， with no two of those portions ever ready Choice excerpts to give you a taste of the book:Everyone， it seems， makes his own compromises， whether in the interest of convenience or cost， but everyone else’s compromises are abominations。 （83）This might sound like a sentimental conceit， but compare the one-pot dinner to the sort of meal（s） that typically emerge from the microwave: a succession of single-serving portions， each attempting to simulate a different cuisine and hit a different demographic， with no two of those portions ever ready to eat at the same time。 If the first gastronomic revolution unfolded under the sign of community， gathered around the animal roasting on the fire， and the second that of the family， gathered around the stew pot， then the third one， now well under way， seems to be consecrated to the individual: Have it your way。 Whereas the motto hovering over every great pot is the same one stamped on the coins in our pocket: E pluribus unum。 （158）Once I committed a couple of hours to being in the kitchen， I found my usual impatience fade and could give myself over to the afternoon’s unhurried project。 After a week in front of the screen， the opportunity to work with my hands—with all my senses， in fact—is always a welcome change of pace， whether in the kitchen or in the garden。 There’s something about such work that seems to alter the experience of time， helps me to reoccupy the present tense。 I don’t want you to get the idea it’s made a Buddhist of me， but in the kitchen， maybe a little bit。 When stirring the pot， just stir the pot。 I get it now。 It seems to me that one of the great luxuries of life at this point is to be able to do one thing at a time， one thing to which you give yourself wholeheartedly。 Unitasking。 （195）By now you will not be surprised to learn that Gaston Bachelard had a few things to say about the element of air。 In a book called Air and Dreams， he points out that we categorize many of our emotions by their relative weight; they make us feel heavier or lighter。 Perhaps because uprightness is the human quality， we imagine human emotions arranged on a vertical scale from ground to sky。 So sadness is weighed down and earthbound， joy is aerial， and the sensation of freedom defies the bonds of gravity。 “Air，” Bachelard writes， “is the very substance of our freedom， the substance of superhuman joy。” Elation， effervescence， elevation， levity， inspiration: air words all， alveolated with vowels， leavening the dough of everyday life。 （252）To view the problem this way is to despair of ever baking a truly great whole-grain bread。 The white flour industrial complex so completely dominates the food landscape （including even the artisanal corner of that landscape） that to wish for anything substantially different seems， well， wishful and nostalgic。 To bake the bread I wanted， I didn’t just need a better recipe。 I needed a whole different civilization。 （278）What’s interesting here is that so many cultures seem to have one powerful， smelly food that they prize with as much fervor as other cultures despise it。 In some places， that culturally defining food is notable for its pungency rather than its odor—think of hot chilis in Mexico or India。 But many， if not most， of these iconic foods—natto， stinky tofu， cheese， fish sauce， sauerkraut， kimchi—get their power from fermentation。 And， just as curiously， the devotees of these strong ferments （or spicy foods） frequently take pleasure in the fact that people from other cultures can’t easily choke them down。 One of the things a food can do for people is to help define them as a group—we are the people who like to eat rotted shark。 It could be that the success of this self-definition depends on other people finding the very same food inedible or disgusting。 In the same way that disgust can be used to draw lines between humans and other animals， it can also help draw lines between cultures。。。The taste of fermented foods is the taste of us， and them。 （369-70） 。。。more
Alex Schwerdt
，
This took quite a while to get through but was fascinating when I got into it！ I loved reading， however， only got through it but by bit because I read it at night and I kept falling asleep。。。irritating when it was so interesting， while also FULL of detail。 And that is why it took so long。 I geeked out on all of it！ Weekend cooking with Samin？？？ Is he for real？ Like they are just best buds！ I love it and am legit jealous！ 😂I can’t wait to get to testing some of his learned methods in my own kitch This took quite a while to get through but was fascinating when I got into it！ I loved reading， however， only got through it but by bit because I read it at night and I kept falling asleep。。。irritating when it was so interesting， while also FULL of detail。 And that is why it took so long。 I geeked out on all of it！ Weekend cooking with Samin？？？ Is he for real？ Like they are just best buds！ I love it and am legit jealous！ 😂I can’t wait to get to testing some of his learned methods in my own kitchen。 。。。more
Philip Antoniades
，
An ode to preparing food in a variety of ways， and it should make you want to try some or all of them。
Tegan
，
This book was fantastic！ While it sometimes got a little too bogged down in complex scientific processes for my understanding， I loved the case studies interspersed throughout and how Pollan learned in his own kitchen， too。 I learned so much from this book！ Recommended！
Hannah Zylstra
，
Interesting for sure， but I like some of his others better。 Still， lots of good 'food for thought' （sorry）。 Interesting for sure， but I like some of his others better。 Still， lots of good 'food for thought' （sorry）。 。。。more
Syon Bhanot
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Has some really interesting parts that make you think deeply about what we eat and how we eat it - but it’s perhaps a tad overly long。 I think cutting it down 25% or so would have made it better。 There’s a fair bit of fluff。 But Pollan is always very readable！
Alison
，
My #5 re-read of the year is another of Michael Pollan's。 They've all been great -- informative， thought-provoking -- but tend to reiterate a lot of the same messages and food philosophies thus blending together in my mind。 My #5 re-read of the year is another of Michael Pollan's。 They've all been great -- informative， thought-provoking -- but tend to reiterate a lot of the same messages and food philosophies thus blending together in my mind。 。。。more
Helen
，
A well written， informative and entertaining book， especially for a fermentofile like me！ Loved it！
Laura
，
This book was a joy to read。 Along with hard facts， insights and philosophy the book is intermixed with the authors personal journey and memories。 I feel that reading this book has reminded me of the basic but imminently important aspects of life， to appreciate food， it’s origins and the symbiotic relationship we share with so many different organisms。 A must read！
Dana
，
I reviewed this book on my blog。 I reviewed this book on my blog。 。。。more
Rocco Cervantes
，
Loved it！ Definitely inspired my love for food even more。
Greta
，
I like some of the analysis， but other sections feel preachy or bizarre
Liz
，
In Cooked， Pollan takes us through the history of cooking methods looking at the elements: fire， air， water， and earth。 Promise this is much more engaging and exciting than it sounds。 Pollan's written a lot about food， but this is probably my favorite of his books。 In each section， he embeds himself with a celebrated master of the cooking art he's tackling to learn how to create with each element in turn。 For fire， he learns about southern， whole-hog bbq; for air， to bake sourdough bread; for wa In Cooked， Pollan takes us through the history of cooking methods looking at the elements: fire， air， water， and earth。 Promise this is much more engaging and exciting than it sounds。 Pollan's written a lot about food， but this is probably my favorite of his books。 In each section， he embeds himself with a celebrated master of the cooking art he's tackling to learn how to create with each element in turn。 For fire， he learns about southern， whole-hog bbq; for air， to bake sourdough bread; for water， to braise; and for earth， to ferment。 The case he makes throughout is that cooking is a deeply human act that we should all seek to do a bit more of， despite the fact that our food industry is geared for us to do less of it。 。。。more
Vlad
，
Pollan's weakest yet。 Always well written， but rather boring in terms of concept （cooking with the elements） and in terms of information surfaced。 I've never written a book so good， but thankfully that's not the standard for the star ratings here。 ;） Pollan's weakest yet。 Always well written， but rather boring in terms of concept （cooking with the elements） and in terms of information surfaced。 I've never written a book so good， but thankfully that's not the standard for the star ratings here。 ;） 。。。more
Pablo María Fernández
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Luego de una introducción acerca de por qué cocinar está dividido en cuatro partes: fuego， agua， aire y tierra。 Me resultó un libro muy logrado， fácil de leer， con una exploración genuina por el mundo de la cocina， del comer， de los sabores y de las costumbres。 Como una buena receta usa en su justa medida referencias históricas， literarias （me encantó su rescate de la Odisea de Homero）， recomienda artículos y libros， trae a colación etimologías， da consejos prácticos， acerca la visión de un antr Luego de una introducción acerca de por qué cocinar está dividido en cuatro partes: fuego， agua， aire y tierra。 Me resultó un libro muy logrado， fácil de leer， con una exploración genuina por el mundo de la cocina， del comer， de los sabores y de las costumbres。 Como una buena receta usa en su justa medida referencias históricas， literarias （me encantó su rescate de la Odisea de Homero）， recomienda artículos y libros， trae a colación etimologías， da consejos prácticos， acerca la visión de un antropólogo de renombre， de un poeta o de un especialista en nutrición。 Logra que sea un libro sólido， fundamentado sin ser tedioso o técnico。 Se nota su pasión por todo lo que escribe （la de alguien que dedica su vida a un tema）。Como aprendizaje lateral también conocí un poco más de otras culturas， del famoso barbecue del que hay hasta reality shows y a los que no somos de ahí nos resulta un poco inexplicable ese fanatismo。 Pasa de esos fuegos grandilocuentes a la sutileza del agua con momentos Zen y aparecen figuras como la maestra de cocina coreana Hyeon Hee Lee con un estilo opuesto en el capítulo Tierra。 Yo lo sentí como un viaje por el mundo， por diferentes ciudades， con una multitud de voces interesantes bien articuladas por Pollan y aderezadas con investigación y conocimiento sobre el tema。Más sobre esta reseña y otras en: https://pablomariafernandez。substack。。。。 。。。more
Sandy Sopko
，
Pollan gave me a new perspective on all manner of cooking。 Interesting information about and ruminations on grilling， fermenting， braising， etc。 Very enjoyable for anyone who likes to cook or eat！
Alex Smith
，
Cooking is one of the things that helped me through 2020， so I knew when Michael Pollan turned his talent for vivid， poetic prose to the joy， art， and cultural importance of that practice I was bound to enjoy the result。 The book is divided into four sections， one for each of the classical elements。‘Fire’ explores the origins of cooking， in particular the hypothesis that it gave human ancestors access to the energy efficient sustenance required for our brains to develop， something that couldn’t Cooking is one of the things that helped me through 2020， so I knew when Michael Pollan turned his talent for vivid， poetic prose to the joy， art， and cultural importance of that practice I was bound to enjoy the result。 The book is divided into four sections， one for each of the classical elements。‘Fire’ explores the origins of cooking， in particular the hypothesis that it gave human ancestors access to the energy efficient sustenance required for our brains to develop， something that couldn’t happen if we had to spend many more hours chewing and digesting our food。 Cooking also made new sources of calories available， e。g。 potatoes， that could not be eaten raw， which gave us an advantage over other species。 American barbecue is presented as a spiritual successor to that distant past; entire animals cooked over a flame， typically by men。 Southern pit masters show the significance of food and traditions to cultural identity （a recurring topic） - is it barbecue if it’s not a whole pig？ How about if you add sauce？ What kind of wood do you burn？ The answers will vary from state to state， county to county。It’s out of the fire and into the braising pot in ‘Water’， which describes the comparably recent introduction of cooking vessels。 Pots opened up many new possibilities， including retaining nutrients and flavours otherwise lost to the flame， and the ability to turn tougher， less desirable scraps into something delicious via a prolonged simmer。 Food writer and chef Samin Nosrat helps Pollan learn to cook many such dishes。 This section also discusses how we tend to view production and consumption as antithetical - the idea of cooking as leisure， of doing something you can just pay someone else to do， seems to be fading away as industry encourages us to let them cook for us。 Indeed， it was even argued that cooking was a form of oppression in the 1960s， with KFC putting up billboards for family meals with the somewhat perverse slogan “Women’s Liberation”。In ‘Air’ we’re taken through the process of baking bread， which is truly one of the most rewarding （in my experience at least）。 Starting out with commercial yeast， Pollan quickly learns a sourdough starter is the way to go and ends up learning from several expert bakers in an attempt to produce that perfect loaf。 The question of flour is inevitable here， and white flour serves as a good example of the logic of modern food processing。 Whole grain wheat is stripped of most of its nutrition to provide a shelf-stable commodity， and then fortified in an attempt to restore part of what was lost and sold as innovative and healthy。 It’s clear such processes are designed to serve the interests of capital first， and people’s needs very much second。‘Earth’ is all about fermentation， but focuses on pickled vegetables， cheese， and beer。 We’re introduced to a cheesemaker nun with a PhD in microbiology （“blessed are the cheesemakers？”）， the growing counter culture of cultured foods， and the effervescence of home brewing。 Fermented foods are some of the strongest cultural signifiers， often potently flavoured and described as ‘rotten’ by outsiders - think hákarl， koji， fermented bean curd， even kimchi。 Food safety， pasteurisation， and the significant role of bacteria in our bodies are also covered here in detail。 Fans of the author will be amused by how wine， as a product of fermentation， presents him with a particularly fitting chance to indulge his frequent literary consideration of things as Apollonian and/or Dionysian。Cooked combines history， science， sociology， interviews with cooks of all types， and Pollan’s personal experience seamlessly。 In places it covers similar ground to Pollan’s earlier work The Omnivore’s Dilemma， but in a way that builds on and develops it through lenses of home cooking and community。 I shared the passion for cooking when starting this book， but I’ve finished it with a greater understanding - and desire to try some new things！ After a week in front of the screen， the opportunity to work with my hands - with all my senses， in fact - is always a welcome change of pace， whether in the kitchen or in the garden。 There’s something about such work that seems to alter the experience of time， helps me to reoccupy the present tense。 I don’t want you to get the idea it’s made a Buddhist of me， but in the kitchen， maybe a little bit。 When stirring the pot， just stir the pot。 。。。more
Luisa Ramalho
，
Uma carta de amor a cozinha， aborda temas muito interessantes em relação a cultura em torno da culinária， aspectos religiosos e místicos e a evolução humana。
David Busse
，
Starts strong。 I love Pollans philosophy towards food and am a home cook myself。 But by the end it feels more rambling than cohesive。 I think if he cut the length by 25% it would be a better book。
Bonnie Messinger
，
Great book， but by far the best part was the one on bread。 I’m inspired！
Laura
，
By the author of "An omnivore's dilema" this book explores the methods of cooking， fire， water， air and earth。 I love this exploration of back to cooking。 It is an inspiring book - I am almost ready to go back to sourdough or to try out making wine or beer。 Ultimately it has reminded me to savor the time I spend making things in the kitchen - even if it not completely from scratch - and to challenge myself to do more。 By the author of "An omnivore's dilema" this book explores the methods of cooking， fire， water， air and earth。 I love this exploration of back to cooking。 It is an inspiring book - I am almost ready to go back to sourdough or to try out making wine or beer。 Ultimately it has reminded me to savor the time I spend making things in the kitchen - even if it not completely from scratch - and to challenge myself to do more。 。。。more
M S
，