Contents
- The Case for Cultural Appropriation
- Martha Stewart Ruined Dinner Parties
- The USDA & FDA Nannies
- Conclusion
- Resources
Food has always been more than fuel. It’s culture, history, and sometimes, a battleground for absurd debates.
In a recent interview, Alton Brown delivered some spicy takes on everything from so-called cultural appropriation in cooking to how Martha Stewart’s perfectionism made us all too scared to host a dinner party.
He also reminded us that the USDA and FDA exist more for industry than for consumers.
If you like your food talk seasoned with truth, humor, and a bit of righteous indignation, then pull up a chair—this one’s for you.
The Case for Cultural Appropriation
Alton Brown makes a compelling, and dare I say, delicious case for why the outrage over so-called “cultural appropriation” in cooking is more than a little misplaced.
As he puts it, food is and always has been fluid. The idea that a dish “belongs” to one culture is about as sturdy as a soufflé in a wind tunnel.
“If a Greek family starts a pizzeria, or a Chinese family opens a shawarma joint, are they appropriating? Or are they just smart?” Brown asks.
The key distinction, he argues, is between appreciation and plagiarism. A chef who acknowledges, respects, and studies a cuisine isn’t stealing; he’s celebrating.
And he has a point. Culinary traditions have always evolved through cross-cultural pollination. Take fish and chips, a British staple, which actually has Jewish-Portuguese origins. Or General Tso’s Chicken, which is about as authentically Chinese as a fortune cookie.
To reject the blending of food cultures is to reject the very thing that makes cooking an art rather than a stagnant set of rituals.
Martha Stewart Ruined Dinner Parties
Martha Stewart may have taught America how to fold a napkin into an origami swan, but according to Brown, she also made us too scared to have people over for dinner.
“I know more people who stopped entertaining after the rise of Martha Stewart than those who started.”
The Martha Stewart brand of picture-perfect hosting made regular folks feel inadequate.
The anxiety over mismatched tableware and the lack of a sous-vide machine turned what should be joyful hospitality into a performance piece.
Remember when inviting friends over meant chili in a big pot and paper napkins? Brown argues we need to get back to that. “Hospitality should be about sharing, not impressing,” he says.
There’s a lesson here, and it goes beyond cooking. The modern obsession with curated perfection—from Instagram aesthetics to hyper-staged social gatherings—has drained the joy from simple pleasures.
If Jesus could break bread with fishermen and tax collectors without a tablescape, surely we can have friends over without worrying about artisanal coasters.
The USDA & FDA Nannies
Brown drops a bombshell about the USDA and FDA that should surprise exactly no one: these agencies were designed to support industry, not consumers.
“The USDA should absolutely have strict labeling rules and quality controls, but right now, it’s more about industry thriving than public health.”
Take food labeling.
Ever see “gluten-free” on a bottle of corn oil?
That’s marketing, not meaningful information.
While these agencies happily regulate what can be advertised as “organic” or “heart-healthy,” they’ve historically been less proactive about, say, making sure school lunches are actually nutritious.
Brown suggests taking a cue from Japan, where home economics is a required subject. “If we don’t teach kids about nutrition and cooking in schools, we’re dooming them to be farmed by two industries: food and healthcare.”
This line of thinking raises a lot of interesting questions about the effects of a nanny-state. Our society is becoming aware that the experts are often not looking out for our best interests.
Our only solution is to become more self-sufficient. Learn how to cook real food, avoid ultra-processed junk, and recognize that food labels are more about marketing than nutrition.
Conclusion
Alton Brown’s interview is a refreshing reminder that food should be an adventure. While I’m often irritated by our food-obsessive culture, I think Alton does a good job of staying grounded.
Cook what you love, host with humility, and question the institutions that claim to have your best interests at heart.