How the Hot Dog Found Its Bun: Accidental Discoveries and Unexpected Inspirations That Shape What We Eat and Drink PDF
Preview How the Hot Dog Found Its Bun: Accidental Discoveries and Unexpected Inspirations That Shape What We Eat and Drink
How the Hot Dog Found Its Bun Accidental Discoveries and Unexpected Inspirations That Shape What We Eat and Drink Josh Chetwynd illustrations by David Cole Wheeler For Jennifer and Becca Copyright © 2012 Josh Chetwynd ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, except as may be expressly permitted in writing from the publisher. Requests for permission should be addressed to Globe Pequot Press, Attn: Rights and Permissions Department, PO Box 480, Guilford, CT 06437. Lyons Press is an imprint of Globe Pequot Press. Illustrations: David Cole Wheeler Text design: Ann Pawlick Project editor: Julie Marsh Layout: Maggie Peterson Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available on file. ISBN 978-0-7627-7750-1 Printed in the United States of America E-ISBN 978-0-7627-8528-5 Contents Introduction Starters and Small Plates Bisquick: Tardy train traveler Brown ’n Serve Rolls: Fire alarm discovery Buffalo Wings: Late night munchies Caesar Salad: Empty refrigerator Cheese: Not your average bag Cobb Salad: Celebrity restaurateur Kellogg’s Corn Flakes: Distracted, disagreeable brothers Nachos: Ravenous army wives Tapas: Fruit flies Wheaties: Messy cooking Main Courses Chicken Marengo: Broken supply line Chicken Tikka Masala: Fussy customer Chimichanga: Fryer slip-up Fettuccine Alfredo: Finicky new mom Filet-O-Fish: Religious rules French Dip Sandwich: Extra sauce Philly Cheesesteak: Hungry hot dog vendor Sandwiches: Focused gambler Tempura: Missionaries’ menu TV Dinners: Overstocked turkeys Desserts Chocolate Chip Cookies: Missing ingredient Chocolate Molten Cake (Chocolate Lava Cake): Celebrity chef flub Cookies ’n Cream Ice Cream: Short work break Crêpes Suzette: Clumsy waiter Granny Smith Apples: Garbage discovery Rhubarb: Bumbling builders Tarte Tatin: Ditzy sister Candies and Snacks Cheese Puffs: Rabbit food Chewing Gum: Deposed dictator and a nosy accountant Doughnuts: Seafaring captain Graham Crackers: Sex-ruining snack Jelly Tots: Camera-ready treat PEZ: Antismoking mint Pop Rocks: Failed drink additive Popsicles: Cold night and forgetful kid Potato Chips: Take-no-guff chef Pretzels: Holy rewards Twinkies: Strawberry afterthought Additives and Extras Alka-Seltzer: Newspaper discovery Artificial Sweeteners: Sloppy scientists Baking Powder: Adoring husband Corn Starch: Indomitable chemist Hot Dog Bun: Small carts and glove thieves Ice-Cream Cone: Debatable world’s fair find Maple Syrup: Native American domestic clash Marmalade: Stormy oranges Mayonnaise: Victory spread Nutella: Post–World War II austerity Tabasco Sauce: Civil War epic Whipped Cream: Student’s failed hypothesis Worcestershire Sauce: Forgotten barrel Drinks Champagne: Devil’s bubbly and a timely pilgrimage Coca-Cola: Headaches and prohibition Coffee: Dancing goats Cognac: Savvy Dutch merchants Gibson Martini: Wry bartender, ingenious diplomat, or San Francisco pride Irish Coffee: Dangerous flight Kool-Aid: Post office complications Ovaltine: Foul-tasting health drink Pink Lemonade: Accidental carnival creation Tea (and Iced Tea): Mystic brew White Zinfandel: Lucky fermentation Kitchen Inventions and Innovations Cellophane: Stained tablecloth CorningWare: Nuclear warheads Dishwashers: Klutzy maids Linoleum: Bedroom paint can Matches: Unplanned friction Microwaves: Melting candy bar Paper Towels: Mistaken delivery Saran Wrap: After-hours lab worker S.O.S Pads: Desperate door-to-door salesman Stainless Steel: From gun contract to utensils Styrofoam: Wartime insulator Tea Bags: Sample packaging Teflon: Guinea pig, refrigerator coolant, and fishing gear Acknowledgments Notes Selected Sources and Further Reading About the Author Introduction Luck touches every part of our lives. As the Roman poet Ovid once said, “Luck affects everything; let your hook always be cast. In the stream where you least expect it, there will be a fish.” In the culinary world, hearing luck and food in the same sentence isn’t always a good thing. It can conjure up thoughts like, “You’re lucky you didn’t get sick from that week-old pizza!” But when it comes to the creation of great dishes, satisfying drinks, and useful kitchen utensils, it’s a concept that can captivate us. Consider, if you will, the Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup. Back in the 1970s and 1980s, the chocolate-peanut-butter marriage was celebrated with a highly successful ad campaign featuring two people colliding and their beloved foods intermingling. Their campy verbal exchange—“You got peanut butter on my chocolate!” “Your chocolate is in my peanut butter!”—would end with unintended gastronomic bliss. Decades on, these spots still resonate (for proof, just check out a parody of the ads on YouTube from the animated comedy series Family Guy). Why? Because we love happy culinary accidents, and, as it happens, there’s no shortage of them. Nachos and Popsicles. French dip sandwiches and potato chips. Microwaves and paper towels. Luck, in fact, is the resonating theme of this book. It drives so many of those culinary instances of unforeseen good fortune that have kept our bellies full and our kitchens running smoothly over the centuries. Behind these lucky discoveries are usually acts of serendipity, a concept first coined by Horace Walpole in 1754. He’d read a book about Serendip (modern- day Sri Lanka) called The Three Princes of Serendip and was fascinated by the title characters, who “were always making discoveries, by accident and sagacity, of things which they were not in quest of.” Using that quote as a definition, he started describing some of his work as serendipity. What makes serendipity so fascinating is the combination of the lucky find and the smarts (or to use Walpole’s fancier term sagacity) to capitalize on the breakthrough. As Albert Einstein once said about discovery: “The really valuable factor is intuition. . . . There is only the way of intuition, which is helped by a feeling for the order lying behind the appearance.” The intuition to turn what looks like a blunder into something special comes up often throughout this book. Take the ever-popular cereal Wheaties for instance. A fella was cooking up some gruel when a bit dripped onto an open stove, crackling over the
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