Food history is a relatively new scholarly discipline, going back only about thirty years.  It evolved from two seemingly disparate human endeavors, cooking and recording general history.  The late food historian Karen Hess observed in 1981: “Few scholars are cooks—and fewer cooks scholars. Perhaps this accounts for the fact that no other aspect of human endeavor has been so neglected by historians as home cooking.” And not only has home cooking been neglected as a subject for historians, so have the history of food ingredients, inns and restaurants, food philosophy, and food in culture—until the last three decades.

Before then, accounts of culinary subjects were “regarded as relevant only to a kind of anthropology of ceremony,” in the words of Paul Freedman, editor of Food: The History of Taste. He goes on to point out that the history of cuisine had been viewed as part of the history of fashion, “hence of frivolity.” In other words, not a serious subject for a historian to explore.  But how that has changed!  The turning point seems to be the publication of Food in History by Reay Tannahill in 1973. It was a bestseller then and is still in print and in the revised and expanded edition published in 1988, Tannahill commented: “When the idea of Food in History first occurred to me, I was mystified by the fact that no one had already written such a book.” Indeed, The New York Times book reviewer observed: “Here at last is what may serve as the first textbook for what should become a new sub-discipline; call it Alimentary History I.” Tannahill continued, “And it came to pass. Since 1973 there has been unprecedented academic interest in the subject and a spate of books on different aspects of it.”  And whether you call it alimentary history, food history, or cooking history, for me it is completely fascinating.

In Savage Barbecue:Race, Culture, and the Invention of America's First Food, Andrew Warnes searches for the origin of barbecue and is alternately overly scholarly and very interesting, especially when he finds great quotes, like this one from journalist David Dudley: "Barbecue's appeal isn't hard to fathom and may explain why barbecue cookery seems such a Neanderthal corner of modern gastronomy.  It elegantly embraces several stereotypically Guy Things: fire building, beast slaughtering, fiddling with grubby mechanical objects, expensive gear fetishes, afternoon-long beer drinking, and, of course, great heaps of greasy meat at the end of the day.  Top this off with the frisson of ritual tribal warfare and you've got the mother of all male pastimes."

Another scholar, Richard Wrangham, in Catching Fire, tracks the origin of cooking over fire back to Homo erectus, the immediate precursor of Homo sapiens, some 1.8 million years ago.  This was about the time mankind first controlled fire, and he notes: "Effects of cooking include extra energy, softer food, fireside meals, and a more predictably food supply during periods of scarcity.  Cooking would therefore be expected to increase survival, especially of the vulnerable young.

Both books are highly recommended but with a warning that they tend to be quite academic in places.  Warnes is a Lecturer in American Literature and Culture at Leeds University in England and Wrangham is the Ruth Moore Professor of Biological Anthropology at Harvard University.

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There has been misinformation flying around on certain Chilehead blogs about the National Fiery Foods & BBQ Show. Some folks have been trying to compare our show with a competing show in Texas (which was recently purchased by new people who just managed to put up a website, and no longer has the backing of a certain food magazine that can’t seem to publish a magazine any more).

One comment claimed that the National Fiery Foods & BBQ Show was much larger (that part is correct), but the show in Texas was ‘more fun’ because of free alcohol and parties. Question: exactly why do companies exhibit at shows? Is it to have fun and get free booze? Or is it to promote your product to the largest possible audience? That’s the difference between a festival and a trade show.

Exhibiting at any show is costly and time consuming. Sometimes it’s a lot of fun. So if you’re going to spend that money, doesn’t it make sense to direct your energy where you’ll get the most bang for your buck? The Fiery Foods & BBQ Show is the place.

And about that imagined absence of buyers at the Fiery Foods & BBQ Show. We’re in our 23rd year, and every year our buyer list expands—you do the math. It’s a proven fact that many buyers come to our show every year and make their buying decisions based on what they see.

We appreciate everyone who participates in the Fiery Foods & BBQ Show, either as a buyer, exhibitor, or attendee. Trying to decide which show will be the best for your company? That’s your call. But at the end of the day, Albuquerque is still home to the biggest, the longest running, the Hottest Show on Earth!

Lois Manno
Editor, www.fiery-foods.com
Sunbelt Shows

PS:  Chilehead blogger Scott Roberts has a poll up about what show you would attend in 2011 if you only had one show to go to.  If you like our show, please take his poll (3 seconds max) that is here.

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I used to spend a lot of time in Juárez back when it was one of my favorite Mexican cities. Back in the late '70s, I was producing custom car shows at the El Paso Civic Center, and in the '80s I was visiting NMSU a lot to research chile peppers, so a trip across the border was not only commonplace, it was a lot of fun. There was a great mercado, my favorite tile shop, a very nice furniture store, and of course the La Florida Bar and one of my favorite restaurants, Martino's on Avenida de Juárez. Mary Jane and I took our first trip together when we visited El Paso and Juárez in 1984, and of course we had to dine at the romantic Martino's, which was like a trip back to another century, with waiters in tuxes, elegant service, gourmet food, and a wonderful menu including Boquilla Black Bass, a delicacy from Lake Boquilla in Chihuahua. I remember getting nearly drunk because of bar-hopping with Doug Kane, and when my brother Rick visited, I warned him that the margaritas at La Florida were very potent. He didn't listen and I caught him when he passed out and fell off the bar stool.

 

After Mexican Mafia thugs sprayed Martino's with a hail of bullets and slaughtered the customers and waiters in late 2007, the restaurant sadly closed after more than 80 years in business. With soldiers from Ft. Bliss in El Paso banned from going there, and students from New Mexico State University strongly advised to stay away, tourism in Juárez is dead. In October 2008, the Las Cruces Sun-News reported, “The U.S. State Department issued a travel advisory on Tuesday, warning Americans of daylight shootings at shopping centers in Juárez and suggesting applicants for U.S. visas at the consulate in Juárez not pay in cash to avoid getting mugged while in line.” That year, more than 2,000 people were murdered in that border city.

“What's Up,” the El Paso entertainment blog, commented: “The drug war in Mexico has taken 800 lives so far this year (2010) along with another casualty: the Avenida de Juarez. The once-thriving stretch of bars and nightclubs known by El Pasoans, especially teenagers, as the Juarez Strip has become a ghost town and a symbol of the estrangement between El Paso and Juárez, two communities once closely bound by commerce, culture, family and yes, fun.”  All of this is incredibly sad to me.

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I never imagined that a single red chile enchilada could burn me out. After all, I've been eating New Mexican red chile enchiladas for 35 years, and although some red chile sauces are hotter than others, they usually run medium-hot at the hottest. But yesterday, Lois (the SuperSite editor and art director) and I had a business lunch at Abuelita's Restaurant at 6083 Isleta Boulevard in Albuquerque's South Valley, about three miles from my house. Fall was in the air, so I had a bowl of green chile stew plus a red chile enchilada a la carte. The stew was tasty and medium in heat. But it took me ten minutes to finish that single enchilada. It was just killer hot and I had to wait between bites for capsaicin dispersal. I called the server over and asked her if the chef had put habaneros in the red chile. Nope, she replied, it was just that last year's dried red chile crop they purchased was unusually hot. It was a perfect storm of the right combination of capsaicin genes colliding with some stress on those particular plants that produced an abnormally high amount of capsaicin. And I tried to wolf down that enchilada only to find that I had to treat it with extreme respect.

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Chile peppers are hot, and we love them for it! From mild bell peppers to the insanely hot Bhut Jolokia, peppers can have an incredible heat range. But have you ever wondered why our favorite chile peppers are so hot? Join an American ecologist, his weary team of graduate assistants and scientists, and a curious journalist as they trek through the jungles and deserts of Bolivia in search of the answer.

Read the article from the Smithsonian Magazine by clicking here!

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Or...

We have the preliminary results of our Digital Magazine survey. After 70 responses, we know this: our readers are 61% male and 39% female; 40% of them are 36-45, 37% are 46 or older, and a mere 23% are 35 or younger; 85.7 % said “Yes” or “Maybe” about subscribing; 58% wanted editorial content very similar to the SuperSite, but 19% wanted us to add more babes, booze, etc. Everyone wants recipes and more recipes, and got 'em. When asked about their favorite cuisines, the response was American Southwest and American Barbecue taking first, Mexican second, Asian third, and Italian fourth.

We continue planning the design, content, and engineering of a digital magazine called Burn: Peppers, Spice, and Smoke, or something like that. We have secured the domain iburn.com and will be producing a smart phone/pad app in conjunction with the magazine, plus a lot more features.

Meanwhile, I'd like more responses to the survey, so I'm keeping it posted here for a few more weeks.

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Good news for chile lovers: A recent study has found that long-term consumption of chile peppers may help lower blood pressure. Capsaicin is the compound in chile peppers that gives them their spicy kick; along with its heat properties, the compound works to relax muscles, including blood vessels.  The new study, published in the journal Cell Metabolism, is the first to examine long-term effects of capsaicin consumption in mice. Researchers found that long-term consumption increased the production of nitric oxide, which is known to protect blood vessels against inflammation and dysfunction. Many other health benefits are already attributed to chile peppers, such as reducing inflammation, headaches, and arthritis pain. Researchers of this most recent study concluded that further analysis should be done on humans to determine the full benefits of capsaicin. In the meantime, be sure to eat plenty of salsa!

Source:

Cell Metabolism: Activation of TRPV1 by Dietary Capsaicin Improves Endothelium-Dependent Vasorelaxation and Prevents Hypertension

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Check out the Events Calendar at the bottom of the Fiery Foods & BBQ homepage for fiery events taking place across the country. Use our handy events list to satisfy your craving for all things spicy! Here's a tasty sampling for the weekend of August 21-22:

• Mammoth Festival - Wine, Music, Food & Art, August 20 - August 22 in Mammoth Lakes, CA

• Diamond State BBQ Championship, Saturday, August 21 in Dover, DE
• Salsa Showdown, Saturday, August 21 in Holland, MI
• Taste of Los Alamos Fundraiser, Saturday, August 21 in Los Alamos, NM

Click here to see all upcoming events. Have an event to add to the menu? Contact us at fiery-foods@comcast.net.

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Or...

TELL US WHAT YOU THINK!

The SuperSite is a great resource, but it's not a magazine--it's an archive.  We think SuperSite readers deserve a new monthly magazine complete with fresh content from the best writers around the world, including articles, how-tos, recipes, and so on, but we want to make sure we create the kind of digital magazine our readers will enjoy.

A digital magazine looks exactly like a print magazine but with enhanced features including embedded video, recipes for easy printing, and links to related subjects all over the web.  It is delivered to subscribers via the Internet rather than USPS, and can be downloaded--it is compatible with mobile devices like iPhones, iPads, and Blackberries as well as your home computer.

A link to the new issue will be posted on the SuperSite home page the first of every month.  Magazine content will be unique and not repeated on the SuperSite but rather retained in a back-issue archive.  Subscribers can read or download any issue to their own devices, or print it out.  We will notify subscribers by email when a new issue is posted. The estimated subscription price will be $36 for a 3-year subscription, $15 for a one-year subscription. That means you get the best new content about the hot and spicy/smoky universe delivered to your mobile device...it's easy, convenient, and costs as little as $1.00 per issue!

Please take our quick, two-minute survey to help us plan the magazine here.

Dave DeWitt, SuperSite Publisher
Former Publisher, Fiery Foods & BBQ magazine (1997-2008) and Founding Editor of Chile Pepper magazine (1987-1996)

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It’s that time of year here in New Mexico—the air will soon be ripe with the fragrant scent of roasting Hatch green chiles; mouths will water, and tongues will burn. The 2010 Hatch chile season was off to a rough start this year as the New Mexico harvest was delayed due to weather, but this week, chileheads across the country can start salivating as stores put up “Coming Soon” signs for the popular crop.

A message blares on the homepage of Hatch-Chile Express, “Praise God, the 2010 chile season has begun!” The company, along with other producers in the Hatch valley area, is gearing up to begin shipping Hatch chiles this week. The harvest is a quick affair, lasting several weeks from late July to early September. Known for their distinctive taste and quality, the chiles are grown in the Hatch valley in southern New Mexico. Widely held to be the crème-de-la-crème of the chile harvest, Hatch chiles are perfect for roasting and freezing for later. New Mexicans are known for buying 25-100 lb. bags to satisfy their taste buds throughout the year.

If you’re located outside of New Mexico, you might have to wait a week or two for shipments to start appearing in local markets, but as many foodies know, the wait is worth it. Keep your eyes—and noses—peeled for this spicy favorite; they’re guaranteed to go fast!

Can’t get enough Hatch? Check out the Hatch Chile Festival this September!

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