TDG: The eGullet Interview: Julia Child

[Fat Guy]

Mamster chats with Julia about The Book, The Woman, and The Legend . . .

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[Jinmyo]

Good show, Matthew.

Nice to know that Julia uses the Web.

[Huevos del Toro]

You did it again Mamster! Great job!

I stumbled across an article in the December issue of Bon Appétit by Julie Powell. Her book is slated to hit the shelves in the spring of 2005.

[docsconz]

I too am surprised that Julia showed no interest in Powell's work. I'm also surprised that Julia dissed Alice Waters. I wonder what is behind that.

[Andrew Fenton]

"For the jokes." Hee!

At least you didn't try nuking a lobster, Mamster.

[SethG]

Great article, Mamster.

Several of us here at the "G" have been cooking together from her book with Jacques Pepin, and it has been noted that Julia has reduced the butter in her recipes quite a bit since the Sixties.

Yet whenever I read an interview with her, she vigorously defends full-fat, all-the-time cooking.

Did you and she discuss whether her cooking has changed at all (besides the pans, I mean) and why, given her stated positions on the fat issue?

[mamster]

Seth, we didn't discuss that; I wish I'd brought it up. When I asked her about updating <i>Mastering</i>, I figured she'd say that <i>The Way to Cook</i> and <i>J&J: Cooking at Home</i> constituted updates, but she denied this and said that <i>Mastering</i> represents the basics and the basics don't change.

docsconz, given the intro to <i>Mastering</i>, I was actually expecting her to dis Alice Waters more; I think she was more dissing a straw-man Alice Waters who believes that all ingredients should be organic, hand-foraged, and served lightly sauteed. I mean, <i>Mastering</i> does tell you a bit about how to select vegetables, and its recommendations are still pretty sound. The idea that Italian food isn't very interesting because they don't do much to the food is rather boggling, though, especially since I spent a day making lasagna bolognese about the time I did this interview.

[PopsicleToze]

That was a great article. Thank you.

I did keep up with Julie's log. At 39 yrs old, I found her language and nightly drinking put me off a bit. (Don't throw anything -- just being truthful.) As far as her expecting Julia to greet her as a kindred spirit, I can only imagine Julia's perception of Julie's language and attitude at 91 years old ??

I did keep reading the blog and began to like Julie, but I imagine Julia read a few of the first posts and just refused to read anymore. I can't say I blame the lady.

[alacarte]

Mamster does it again! I especially loved the part about her trying to microwave a lobster. And the last line was a great kicker.

You were kidding about the McChoux de Bruxelles, right?

[cakewalk]

"... I don't intend to be limited."

This from a 91-year-old. It makes the heart swell!

She comes across as being truly her own person, unimpressed with food trends and fads. A very impressive interview. Thanks.

[Fat Guy]

I can see how JC could have, at first, perceived JP as a wannabe/stalker/needy/Ed-Grimley sort of character. But at this point I can't see an excuse for JC's evident disdain. JP is giving JC a tremendous amount of publicity with a generation to whom JC has not been particularly relevant, and JP long ago crossed the threshold from casual-blogger-groupie to established-niche-writer. I think it would be well worth JC's time to take another look at JP and how she represents a new generation in character, attitude, taste, and style. The basics do change, and as long as you understand that you could live to 175 and still not be old.

I would like to see JC write the introduction to JP's book.

[Mayhaw Man]

Great job on the interview. I enjoyed it.

I do wish that she would get it together to write a memoir. Her early life and how she came into cooking is (from what I can gather from pretty diverse sources) apparently a pretty interesting story.

It is interesting that she expressed no interest in the Julie/Julia Project. I was a reader throughout and think that if Julia took the time to read some of it she might change her opinion, but as always, I stand ready to be corrected.

[Venado]

"Ninety-one years old, and still breaking hearts." I love it!! If we are able to live to that age, I surmise that we, too, shall be able to say and do as we wish...and rightfully so.

I enjoyed the interview very much, and it brought back memories of a time, when I apprenticed and worked with a Frenchman, who had three restarurants in Paris before WWII. And, having Julia's original book, for over thirty years...I am sensitive to what she says and does...and for me, she is dead on in her comments.

And, over the years, I have followed her, and her friend and collablerator Jacques Pepin...and feel they have been true to their classic French training, while embracing some changes in hardware, as well as the nuances of changing times.

In Texas, Willie Nelson is oft quoted as saying: Dance with the one that brung ya...and that seems to sum up Julia's outlook today, as she stays the course with her beliefs.

Venado

[mamster]

I wish I had not been kidding about the McChoux de Bruxelles, because that would be funny. "Hey, these aren't McNuggets."

The funny thing is, I think Jamie Oliver represents the "new basics" as well as anyone. He's eclectic and unabashedly internationalist, and JC thinks he's great. I have a feeling JC may still come around on JP; we'll see.

[hannahcooks]

You know, I actually had a dream the other night in which I met JC, and the one thing I could think to say to her was to ask her if she was going to write a memoir or not.

Good to have that answered (ish). I wish they'd put the French Chef series out on DVD!

[srhcb]

wow!

[FoodMan]

The funny thing is, I think Jamie Oliver represents the "new basics" as well as anyone. He's eclectic and unabashedly internationalist, and JC thinks he's great. I have a feeling JC may still come around on JP; we'll see.

Great Article mamster!!!

those were my thoughts exactly, it would be a very interesting show if she ever does go on Jami Oliver's , him hyperactively jumping around throwing stuff together and her calmly admonishing "Now calm down son, and whisk that butter gently into your sauce". I am glad she likes him and at the same time pretty surprised.

I would be very disappointed if I were JP as well, expecting a little recognition for the effort.

I was not too happy about her comments about Italian food though. Too bad she thinks it is not very interesting.

Elie

[rickster]

I do wish that she would get it together to write a memoir. Her early life and how she came into cooking is (from what I can gather from pretty diverse sources) apparently a pretty interesting story.

There is of course a biography:

Appetite For Life

[jhlurie]

We need to stand up and cheer Matthew for totally coming through on one of the hardest tasks ever put before a DG contributor. Every interview I've ever read until now with Julia sounded absolutely identical. But Matthew managed to squeeze blood from a rock, or whatever analogy actually works in this circumstance. Good show. As hidebound as Julia seems, this article actually explores that instead of glossing it over.

[ExtraMSG]

What does she think about Alice Waters, Deborah Madison, and other authors whose philosophy is to find the best ingredients and do as little with them as possible? Is that a good way to cook? "No," she said, plainly. She hammered this point again when I mentioned that people cook Italian more often than French today. "But I don't think Italian is very interesting," she interjected. "You don't do much to the food. You do as little as possible to it, which is very nice, but I don't think it's particularly interesting." With French food, she said, "you learn every method of cooking."

Italian is just easier. Most of what people are making is Italian-American. Boil some pasta, add a canned sauce, maybe some steamed or sauteed vegetables and you're done. And cheese. Don't forget cheese. The emphasis on the tomato, too, makes for flavor without much effort. I imagine with the same skill set most people would make a lot of bland dishes if they cooked French.

And she has collaborated with dozens of cooks on TV and in print. (Child shares my admiration for the Food Network's Sara Moulton and said she'd love to be invited to appear on Jamie Oliver's show.)

Didn't Moulton work for her or something? I have a weird thing for Moulton that I can't explain. I'd say it's Oedipal but she looks nothing like my mom.

But Child, who had eaten a plate of weisswurst for lunch before I called, is adamant that diets are a waste of time. "Oh, I don't believe in those things. I don't think they're necessary," she said. "I think what you need is self-discipline and portion control. I think restaurant portions are enormous. The food isn't very expensive, and people are happy to see a large plate of something. I think that's dreadful."

She has a knack for pointing out the emperor has no clothes. I wonder what she thinks of "small plate" dining. Not tasting menus, but the expansion of the tapas concept to non-Spanish food.

"As long as it's well cooked it's good; maybe they're better off having a chain because they've done it in a certain way and it's presumably good." I asked if she worried about chains displacing local restaurants. "It depends how good the local restaurants are."

Amen.

"Have you ever tried cooking a lobster in it? A horrible experience! You turn it on, the lobster begins leaping around, and it's an awful thing.

I tried this with yellow jackets when I was kid. Same result though they eventually explode. I didn't try to eat it.

Just for kicks, and because my editor thought it would be funny, I made this recipe. My wife and I ate it alongside some roasted sausages, Italian-style (so there). It's not inedible, but it looks like drowned shrunken heads. These are exactly the Brussels sprouts that scare the shit out of kids. It's an old-fashioned recipe, not in a cool retro way but an "I'm eating spackle" way, and there are simply better ways to enjoy Brussels sprouts. For example: shred them, brown them in a mix of bacon fat and olive oil, add water or stock, and braise until cooked. That's also rather Italian, though.

Both sound good to me. I've had endive cooked similarly at Carafe in Portland and it was fabulous. What good American doesn't like green vegetables covered in cheese sauce? Broccoli would disappear from the supermarket without cheese.

[fresco]

Great job on the interview. I enjoyed it.

I do wish that she would get it together to write a memoir. Her early life and how she came into cooking is (from what I can gather from pretty diverse sources) apparently a pretty interesting story.

It is interesting that she expressed no interest in the Julie/Julia Project. I was a reader throughout and think that if Julia took the time to read some of it she might change her opinion, but as always, I stand ready to be corrected.

I suspect that she has enough neural circuits still working to know that what may be billed as an homage is actually a sendup.

[EdS]

I suspect that she has enough neural circuits still working to know that what may be billed as an homage is actually a sendup.

I just read the first few weeks of that blog and I sure get the impression that Julie is mocking Julia Child and even making fun of the "old way". Perhaps the blog gets better but I don't have a chinois fine enough to filter out the crap for me to want to continue.

I don't think Julie intends any malice but I can't imagine Julia Child wanting to be associated with her given this "introduction". I think the concept is great but the execution is flawed by being written by a 39-year-old going on 19.

Edited December 2, 2003 by esvoboda (log)

[Jason Perlow]

Julie is 39? Nah. More like 29 or younger. She describes herself as

"Too old for theatre, too young for children"

EDIT: According to This Miami Herald article she was 29 in January. So she's 30, tops.

[EdS]

Julie is 39? Nah. More like 29 or younger. She describes herself as

"Too old for theatre, too young for children"

My error. I misread an earlier post in this thread and it's NolaFoodie who is 39 and not Julie. OK, she's about 29 going on 19.

Edited December 2, 2003 by esvoboda (log)

[Jason Perlow]

Although I have to admit her writing style is somewhat sophomoric for someone who just hit 30. But then again, so is mine, and I'm 34, and well, so is Bourdain's, who is older than dirt.