“Food is our common ground, a universal experience.”
—James Beard
James Beard was an American culinary expert, known for championing regional eating and simple American cuisine = in essence, he was the first chef to recognize and honor the “Farm to Table” Philosophy. He was born in 1903 in Portland, Oregon and died on January 21st, 1985, in NYC. “He was a pioneer foodie, and the host of the first food program on the fledgling medium of network television.” Anointed the “Dean of American Cookery,” by the New York Times in 1954, James Beard “laid the groundwork for the food revolution that has put America at the forefront of global gastronomy.” Beard has influenced and nurtured a generation of future American chefs through his cookbooks and cooking schools. James Beard was a prominent American Chef, Cookbook Author, Teacher, and Television Personality. He was THE “OG” innovator of TV cooking shows. James Beard was masterful at his craft. He founded then taught at The James Beard Cooking Schools in NYC and in Seaside, Oregon. He emphasized “American cooking with fresh and wholesome ingredients, to a country just becoming aware of its own culinary heritage.” Beard taught and mentored generations of professional chefs and food enthusiasts. He published more than 20 books. He was a trailblazing chef whose cooking style encompassed the Best of American, French and Chinese Cuisine. James Beard’s memory is honored by his foundation’s annual “James Beard Awards.” www.jamesbeard.org
Beard’s earliest memory of food was at the Lewis and Clark Exposition in 1905, when he was 2 years old. The Lewis and Clark Exposition was a worldwide fair, held in Portland, Oregon in 1905 to celebrate the centennial of the Lewis and Clark Expedition. The exposition’s four-month run attracted over 1.6 million visitors, and featured exhibits from 21 different countries. In Beard’s memoir, he recalled: “I was taken to the exposition 2 or 3 times. The thing that remained in my mind above all others—I think it marked my life—was watching Triscuits and shredded wheat biscuits being made. Isn’t that crazy? At 2 years old, that memory was made. It intrigued the hell out of me.”
At age 3, James was bedridden with malaria, and the illness gave him time to focus on the food prepared by his mother, and the family’s Chinese cook, Jue-Let. According to Beard, he was raised by Jue-Let and Thelma—his Chinese nanny. Both Jue-Let and Thelma instilled in James a passion for Chinese culture. James referred to Jue-Let as his “Chinese Godfather.” After high school, James briefly attended Reed College. Afterward, he then began to travel throughout Europe. Starting his journey in Portland, Oregon, Beard traveled aboard a British freighter to Liverpool, England, and subsequently to Paris, France. In Paris, Beard experienced French Cuisine at its bistros and central market, Les Halles. Les Halles most commonly refers to the former central fresh food market in Paris. Les Halles was the heart of Paris’s food supply; the market housed in impressive glass and iron pavilions. The market was eventually moved and its historic buildings were demolished in 1971 to make way for the Forum de Halles, a bustling underground shopping mall with a distinctive glass canopy and surrounding public spaces. During this period and the widespread influence of French Cuisine, Beard became a Francophile: “A Francophile is a person who has a strong affinity or appreciation for the people, culture, language, history, or government of France.”
Beard returned to America in 1927 and located in NYC. He and his friend Bill Rhodes capitalized on the “Cocktail Party Craze,” by opening Hors d’Oeuvre, Inc., a catering company. This led to Beard lecturing, teaching, and writing and also to the realization that “part of Beard’s mission as a food connoisseur was to defend the pleasure of real cooking and fresh ingredients against the assault of the Jell-O-Mold People and the domestic scientists!” He published his first cookbook in 1940; “Hors d’Oeuvre and Canapes,” which was a compilation of his catering recipes. According to fellow cooking enthusiast Julia Child, this book put him on the culinary map. The onset of World War II rationing ended Beard’s catering business. Beard enlisted in the Army for a brief stint, where he was trained as a cryptographic specialist, but he primarily served with the United Seamen’s Service, setting up sailors’ canteens in Puerto Rico, Rio de Janiero, Marseillies, and Panama. When he returned to New York in 1945, Beard became totally immersed in the culinary community. Between 1945-1955 he continued to write several seminal cookbooks. He contributed articles and columns to Women’s Day Magazine, Gourmet Magazine, and House & Garden Magazine. He served as a consultant to many restaurants and food producers and ran his own restaurant on Nantucket. Beard became the focal point of the entire American food world. From 1946-1947 Beard hosted a live television cooking show entitled; “Love to Eat,” on NBC. This began his ascent as an American food authority. In 1955, Beard established the James Beard Cooking School. He continued to teach cooking to men and women for the next 30 years, both at his own cooking schools in NYC and Oregon, and also around the country at women’s clubs, other cooking schools, and civic groups. He was a “tireless traveler; bringing his message of good food, honestly prepared with fresh wholesome
American ingredients.” Additionally, Beard brought French cooking to the American middle and upper classes during the 1950s, appearing on TV as a cooking personality. Author David Kamp noted that “Beard’s was the first cooking show on TV. Beard’s prominence during the 1950s marked an emergence of a sophisticated, New York based, nationally and internationally known food culture.” Furthermore, Kamp wrote that “it was in this decade that Beard made his name as James Beard, the brand name, the face and belly of American Gastronomy.” Beard created a network of fellow food celebrities who would follow him during his lifetime and then carry on his legacy after his death.
The James Beard Foundation’s Mission Statement is: “The James Beard Foundation believes in a vibrant, equitable, and sustainable independent restaurant industry that stands as a cornerstone of American culture, community and economy—and drives towards a better food system.” Since 1986, The James Beard Foundation has evolved from a body celebrating gastronomy to a changemaker and thought leader, driving impact across the country. Established nearly 40 years ago, The James Beard Foundation is leading chefs and the broader culinary industry towards a new standard of excellence. “Today we amplify and recognize, educate and train those committed to a new standard of excellence in independent restaurants—fostering a deep appreciation among food lovers for the industry’s vital contributions to American food culture –what we call ‘Good Food for Good.’ We bring our mission to life through the annual James Beard Awards, industry and community-focused programs and initiatives, advocacy, partnerships, and events across the country.”
Beard’s second cookbook was called; “Cook it Outdoors,” and was published in 1941. “The dust jacket promoted ‘Cook it Outdoors,’ as a ‘man’s book written by a man who not only understands the healthy outdoor eating and cooking habits, but who is an expert at the subtle nuances of tricky flavoring as well. And it will be invaluable to the woman who aims to please the masculine members of the household.’” “Cook it Outdoors” offered a dozen recipes for hamburgers, including the recipe for the San Francisco Burger with “garlic, man-sized patties, and toasted French Bread a-drip with butter;” the Baghdad Burger with “eggplant and BBQ sauce;” and the Pascal Burger with “ground lamb and milk-soaked lamb kidneys,” for example. “The Complete Book of Barbecue & Rotisserie Cooking,” was first published by Maco Magazine Corp., in 1954; then retitled in 1958 as “New Barbecue Cookbook,” in 1966 as “Jim Beard’s BBQ Cookbook,” and in 1967 as “James Beard’s Barbecue Cookbook.” The JBF continues, “These were the BBQ years, when presidents like Ike were photographed at the barbecue grill.” Beard’s definition of BBQ and Rotisserie Cookery was “elastic”—he included recipes and suggestions for picnic food, such as sandwiches, oil and garlic sauce for spaghetti—in a chapter entitled; “Serving Sauces,” and a recipe for “clam chowder for a big party!” This slim volume was an early example of a cookbook genre that remains EXPLOSIVELY POPULAR TODAY… especially among www.ribbqnews.com readers and patrons! “The Treasury of Outdoor Cooking,” was published in 1960. It was a lavishly produced book, brimming with photographs of food and reproductions of famous food and wine pairings from Manet, Paul Klee, Picasso and many more. The book continued in the vein of grilling, spit-and-skewer cooking, pit roasting, and cooking with smoke; but there was plenty more in the book, as well: “As early as 1960, Beard was recommending such essentials for the well-stocked larder as tortillas, canned foie gras, and cannellini beans.” Below are photos of some of the infamous dishes whose recipes are available to you on www.jamesbeard.org : including: Home-Style White Bread; James Beard’s Tomato Sauce, Pollo al Pastor—Spicy-Sweet Chipotle Roast Chicken with Onion and Pineapple; Beef Grilled in Betel Leaves; Creole Braised Chicken; Swordfish Brochettes; Tofu and Haricots Verts with Chraimeh Sauce; and Noodles with XO Pepperoni Sauce.
According to James Beard, to “entertain successfully, one must create with the imagination of the playwright, plan with the skill of director, and perform with the instincts of an actor.” His book, “Beard on Bread,” was initially published in 1973, revised in 1995 in paperback, and reprinted 7 times in its first year! “Like so many of Beard’s books, ‘Beard on Bread’ was both a harbinger of the culinary renaissance and fuel for the flames.” “Beard on Bread” is an icon of the times. As stated by bread baker and cookbook author Peter Reinhart, Beard’s book “was a must for any of us making bread!” Many members of The James Beard Foundation still talk about AND bake Beard’s Anadama Loaf and his Banana Bread. “Beard on Bread” sold more than 264,340 copies and was Beard’s Best-Selling Book in his lifetime. James Beard stated, “Good bread and good butter go together. They are one of the perfect marriages in gastronomy, and they never fail to cheer me.” Several collections of Beard’s columns and writings have been published since his death. The James Beard Foundation describes “The James Beard Cookbook on CuisineVu,” as “Beard goes high tech. Beard was working on this booklet before his death; unfortunately, he never got to see the finished product. Like so much else about Beard, ‘The James Beard Cookbook on CuisineVu’ was ahead of its time. No traditional paper cookbook, this was a computer diskette holding some 125 recipes taken from ‘The James Beard Cookbook.’ We only wish Beard had lived long enough to enjoy websites like www.starchef.com www.epicurious.com and www.foodtv.com .”
The James Beard Foundation continues, “Even though over the years we have told you countless times that James Beard wrote more than 20 cookbooks during the course of his career, somehow seeing them piled together on the floor of our office while we plied together this annotated bibliography was an awesome sight. The recipes they contain number in the thousands, and they span the regional cooking of America and the cuisines of the world. But the complete works aren’t merely the measure of the man or his vast culinary knowledge; they are the measure of the times, too. The James Beard Collection is a slice of American history. Written between 1940 and 1983, the books tell us through the language of food what we had and what we longed for, who we were and whom we hoped to become. Astonishingly, about half of them remain in print today. Besides serving as sources of reliable recipes, Beard’s books are a testament to our appetite and our interests, a premonition of the brave new epicurean world we are on the verge of discovering. He had an entrée (and an appetizer or two) to that new world, and he encouraged everyone to dig in.”
