How the Hot Dog Found Its Bun: Accidental Discoveries And Unexpected Inspirations That Shape What We Eat And Drink

179 Pages·2012·8.777 MB·English

by  Josh Chetwynd, David Wheeler

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“This book is like a culinary version of One Thousand and One Nights. Each entry combines
the sturdiness and dependability of history with the readability and charm of a folk tale. o
I wish I’d had this volume at hand back when I was doing my live show on The Food w
Network. Hardly a day went by when I wasn’t asked about the origins of one dish or another.”

—Sara Moulton, host of PBS’s Sara’s Weeknight Meals t
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A smorgasbord of vignettes and tidbits about the quirky—and sometimes H
downright odd—origins of various kitchen inventions, products, and foodstuff
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Sometimes it’s neither art nor science that serves as the origins of the everyday kitchen
D Accidental Discoveries
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and food items we take for granted today. Sometimes, as Josh Chetwynd shows us,
some of our greatest culinary achievements were simply by-products of “damned good o
Unexpected Inspirations That Shape
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luck.” Within these pages you will discover the beginnings of kitchen inventions,

products, and foodstuff in short essays that dispel popular myths and draw lines between food F
What We Eat Drink
facts and food fiction, from the serendipitous creation of Granny Smith apples through open o AnD
pollination to the Caesar salad’s Mexican roots and more. u
n
Josh Chetwynd is an award-winning journalist who has served as a staff reporter at
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USA Today, the Hollywood Reporter, and U.S. News & World Report and as a broad-

caster for BBC Radio. His work has also appeared in such publications as the Wall Street I
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Journal, the Times (of London), Variety, and the Harvard Negotiation Law Review on s

topics as varied as sports, film, politics, and legal issues. He has previously written three books, B
including The Secret History of Balls: The Stories Behind the Things We Love to Catch, Whack,
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Throw, Kick, Bounce and Bat.
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Cover design by Bret Kerr US $14.95 / Canadian $16.95 Josh Chetwynd
Cover photographs licensed by Shutterstock.com;
back cover illustration by David Cole Wheeler
Lyons Press is an imprint of Illustrations by David Cole Wheeler
Globe Pequot Press
Lyons
Guilford, Connecticut
Press
www.LyonsPress.com
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How Hot Dog
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Found IBun
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How Hot Dog
s
t
Found IBun
Accidental Discoveries
and
Unexpected Inspirations That Shape
What We Eat Drink
and
Josh Chetwynd
illustrations by David Cole Wheeler
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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
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
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Contents
ix
Introduction
Starters and Small Plates
Bisquick: Tardy train traveler 1
Brown ’n Serve Rolls: Fire alarm discovery 3
Buffalo Wings: Late night munchies 4
Caesar Salad: Empty refrigerator 6
Cheese: Not your average bag 8
Cobb Salad: Celebrity restaurateur 9
Kellogg’s Corn Flakes: Distracted, disagreeable brothers 11
Nachos: Ravenous army wives 13
Tapas: Fruit flies 15
Wheaties: Messy cooking 16
Main Courses
Chicken Marengo: Broken supply line 19
Chicken Tikka Masala: Fussy customer 21
Chimichanga: Fryer slip-up 23
Fettuccine Alfredo: Finicky new mom 24
Filet-O-Fish: Religious rules 26
French Dip Sandwich: Extra sauce 28
Philly Cheesesteak: Hungry hot dog vendor 30
Sandwiches: Focused gambler 32
Tempura: Missionaries’ menu 34
TV Dinners: Overstocked turkeys 36
Desserts
Chocolate Chip Cookies: Missing ingredient 39
Chocolate Molten Cake (Chocolate Lava Cake): Celebrity chef flub 41
Cookies ’n Cream Ice Cream: Short work break 43
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CONTENTS
Crêpes Suzette: Clumsy waiter 45
Granny Smith Apples: Garbage discovery 47
Rhubarb: Bumbling builders 49
Tarte Tatin: Ditzy sister 50
Candies and Snacks
Cheese Puffs: Rabbit food 53
Chewing Gum: Deposed dictator and a nosy accountant 55
Doughnuts: Seafaring captain 57
Graham Crackers: Sex-ruining snack 59
Jelly Tots: Camera-ready treat 61
PEZ: Antismoking mint 62
Pop Rocks: Failed drink additive 64
Popsicles: Cold night and forgetful kid 67
Potato Chips: Take-no-guff chef 69
Pretzels: Holy rewards 71
Twinkies: Strawberry afterthought 73
Additives and Extras
Alka-Seltzer: Newspaper discovery 76
Artificial Sweeteners: Sloppy scientists 78
Baking Powder: Adoring husband 80
Corn Starch: Indomitable chemist 81
Hot Dog Bun: Small carts and glove thieves 83
Ice-Cream Cone: Debatable world’s fair find 84
Maple Syrup: Native American domestic clash 87
Marmalade: Stormy oranges 89
Mayonnaise: Victory spread 90
Nutella: Post–World War II austerity 92
Tabasco Sauce: Civil War epic 94
Whipped Cream: Student’s failed hypothesis 95
Worcestershire Sauce: Forgotten barrel 97
vi
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CONTENTS
Drinks
Champagne: Devil’s bubbly and a timely pilgrimage 100
Coca-Cola: Headaches and prohibition 102
Coffee: Dancing goats 104
Cognac: Savvy Dutch merchants 106
Gibson Martini: Wry bartender, ingenious diplomat, or San Francisco pride 108
Irish Coffee: Dangerous flight 110
Kool-Aid: Post office complications 112
Ovaltine: Foul-tasting health drink 114
Pink Lemonade: Accidental carnival creation 116
Tea (and Iced Tea): Mystic brew 118
White Zinfandel: Lucky fermentation 120
Kitchen Inventions and Innovations
Cellophane: Stained tablecloth 122
CorningWare: Nuclear warheads 124
Dishwashers: Klutzy maids 126
Linoleum: Bedroom paint can 128
Matches: Unplanned friction 130
Microwaves: Melting candy bar 132
Paper Towels: Mistaken delivery 134
Saran Wrap: After-hours lab worker 135
S O S Pads: Desperate door-to-door salesman 137
Stainless Steel: From gun contract to utensils 139
Styrofoam: Wartime insulator 140
Tea Bags: Sample packaging 142
Teflon: Guinea pig, refrigerator coolant, and fishing gear 143
149
Acknowledgments
150
Notes
163
Selected Sources and Further Reading
164
About the Author
vii
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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 pea-
nut 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.
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