The Skinny on Chefs

I was recently in my local cooking store when I overheard a woman asking about the schedule of cooking classes. In fact, she was asking about one of my cooking classes. In an attempt to be helpful (and add another student to my roster) I piped up and introduced myself as the cooking instructor. She took one look at my 5’ 1” 100 pound frame and blanched. She put down the schedule and said with conviction, “I don’t trust skinny chefs.” And with that, to my astonishment, she turned and left. This is a phrase I’ve heard before, usually followed by a mild chuckle or an “I’ll take my chances” wink from the prospective student. I suppose the adage implies that a skinny chef doesn’t like their own cooking, so why would anyone else? But what about Thomas Keller, Charlie Trotter and Alice Waters? And then there’s Daniel Boulud, Traci des Jardins, Patrick O’Connell and so on. The list of skinny chefs is long and distinguished. People the world over have entrusted their appetites (and their wallets) to food cooked by these skinny masters. I would never be so bold as to put myself in the same category as the chefs listed above, but I know how I stay thin and I must assume they follow a similar practice. I cook mostly from scratch and therefore I eat real food. I know what goes into my meal because I put it there. I use whole, natural ingredients as much as possible and put them together in interesting ways. I eat less because what I eat is satisfying and delicious. Most people who are overweight did not get that way by eating home-cooked meals. More likely a diet of processed foods, soft drinks, fast food and large portion sizes are the culprits of their bulk. Perhaps it is not the skinny chefs one needs to worry about, but the skinny marketing executives from the likes of Frito Lay or Coca Cola. If they’re not consuming their company’s products, why should you?