photo by Adam Dachis
Fat has been a controversial topic since the 1960s, feared for its effects on health, even though it is imperative in cooking. The result has been a proliferation of fat substitutes and preservatives, and a corresponding loss of understanding about natural fats, how to use them, and why. On July 17, Living Web Farms presents a class on this very subject: demystifying fats, from olive oil to pork lard, and their critical effect on the flavor and texture of the foods we love.
Mills River, NC- Most people know that our bodies need fat for insulation, energy, and protection, but our cultural relationship with this macronutrient has been tenuous at best for over fifty years. Even cooks who have embraced putting natural fats back into their foods are often still confused about sources, uses, and safety. “Fat is making a comeback,” says Asheville-based food writer and chef Meredith Leigh, “but we still have a long way to go.” Leigh serves as Education and Outreach Coordinator at Living Web Farms, where she will teach a class all about fat as an essential element of cooking, this coming July 17, 6pm at the farm in Mills River. Leigh shares that there are still people who regard fat as food to fear, and then there are people who have allowed fat back into their cooking, on a limited level. “It’s not uncommon to run into cooks who are no longer afraid, but are only using two types of fat in their kitchen because someone told them that was the only way to eat.” It turns out, there’s a lot more to the story about fat, and a host of other reasons to let our relationship with it mature and deepen.
“To say that fat is devalued and misunderstood in America is a fantastic understatement,” says Leigh, who aside from being a well-versed whole foods cook, is also the author of Pure Charcuterie, a book about a subject that is undoubtedly heavily dependent on fat. “In some parts of the world, the quality and the terroir of a fat—olive oil, for example– will utterly define an entire dish. Take it away, and the food will become haltingly different, and flat.” In other words, if you want your cooking to be good or better, fat is a thing with which you should probably get comfortable. Leigh plans to cover a range of fats from plant and animal sources.
The upcoming workshop is the third in a four-part series of “Essentials” cooking classes offered by Living Web Farms. Past courses have covered heat and salt. The series is aimed at taking cooks back to the basics and underlining the science as well as the practical application of the building blocks of good cooking. In the July 17 workshop, Leigh plans to demystify some fat-centered questions, including what effects fats have on health, and how the fat is chosen by a cook contributes (or detracts) from the desired dish. Participants will learn to use fat to inform flavor, and a vast range of textures in the kitchen, as well as to preserve foods.
“An understanding of fats and how they work elevates a person’s cooking by leaps and bounds,” Leigh continues. “Once you can assess and value fat, you’ll use heat differently, you’ll make different seasoning decisions, and above all, you’ll be able to drastically manipulate flavor in a way that is nearly undetectable to the eater. Indeed, you may find that fat can become a favorite secret ingredient.
”And best of all, “it can be nourishing and healthful, too,” Leigh assures.
To register for “Essentials of Cooking: Fat” visit here
JULY 17 LIVING WEB FARMS presents
ESSENTIALS OF COOKING: FAT at Living Web Farms
6:00-7:30pm
176 Kimzey Road Mills River NC 28759