Lean Cuisine

          There are several themes that run through the selections from Secret Ingredients, but on of them hit me the hardest, as I sit here eating a Bacon Pasta Romano Lean Cuisine.  I have never thought deeply about the idea that American cuisine has become based mostly on convenience and driven by a lack of time, until now.  However, I have been a poster child of this trend for many years.  I own pots and pans and my dorm has a kitchen, but I have a soccer game in an hour and I just got out of band, plus I need to crank out this blog post, so I picked a Lean Cuisine.  Four minutes in the microwave and here I am eating, no matter that it doesn’t taste as something I could have cooked myself.  In high school I was no different, juggling soccer, marching band, work and school, I ate more frozen Perogies and Easy Macs than I can count.

            The piece “Secret Ingredients” explores the way in which some people just cook better food than others; they have a magic touch, a secret ingredient that they add.  The author remarks that she thinks this magic might be leaving the world, the people who posses the talent are less and less common.  This sad occurrence can be blamed on many things, American laziness, women entering into the work force, and an increase in convenient food products.  No longer is it necessary for women to be in the home cooking meals from scratch.  Anyone can open a box of Hamburger Helper and follow the instructions, and we do. 

            My parents have never been big users of boxed dinners, but my mother has been known to cook casseroles, the topic featured in “Nor Censure Nor Disdain.”  Although this piece is told in a very comical tone, there is certainly underlying commentary on America’s need for convenience.  With casseroles, it is not necessary to put in fresh ingredients, although the author recommends it.  My mother’s go to casserole, which I actually very much enjoy, is the very epitome of ease.  Hungry Jack Casserole (classic name I know) is basically a few cans of baked beans mixed with ground beef and barbecue sauce.  Pour all that in a casserole dish and top it with Pillsbury buttermilk biscuits and cheese, bake 30 minutes.  Easy as pie, actually easier and it’s delicious, but the only thing fresh is the meat.

            Although it seems that the fresh produce and meat movement is coming back into American culture, thinking about how much we value convenience over quality is frightening.  The basic values of cooking are at stake and many people haven’t even noticed because they simply don’t have time to cook.  We would much rather spend our time running around, microwaving Lean Cuisines, then nurturing our bodies with quality food.  Maybe when people take the time out of their busy day to put together a fresh meal, the magic will be back.