[Sca-cooks] [OOP] Culinary History from the Dark Side

[Volker Bach]

--- Susan Fox <selene at earthlink.net> schrieb am Sa, 29.8.2009:


> Wow.  One does not think of the
> other side living under the same circumstances.  Of
> course, there had to be wartime cook books on both sides
> with propaganda to use rationed food properly.

The genuinely scary part is that this book predates the war by two years. Its cuisione is largely optimised for the demands of a war economy as envisioned at the time (nobody expected the kind of privation the war would eventually create), but it was sold in fairly large numbers and advertised heavily in peacetime, and a lot of the transparent war preparedness measures - reducing meat consumption, favouring local producem, fuel economy - are disguised as 'health advice'.

It's a pretty chilling realisation. This was not any decision from above, BTW - the authors (domestic economy teachers, a heavily politicised occupation at the time) took it upon themselves to prepare the people for the great struggle to come. 

Brrrrh. 

YIS

Giano Balestriere


 
> Thank you for the dose of perspective!  [But I do
> think that potatoes are lovely.]
> 
> Cheers,
> Selene
> 
> Volker Bach wrote:
> > Everyone in Germany knows the sight of sad, ageing
> people trawling flea markets for the books and memorabilia
> of "back then, you know what I mean". I never thought I
> would join their ranks, but today I found the most
> fascinating item, a cookbook dated to 1938 at a very
> affordable EUR 8 (about ten to twelve bucks, I think). 
> > This is, to my surprise and slight shock, noit just a
> cookbook that was published in Germany in 1938, it is a
> genuine Nazi cookbook. And in many ways, it reads like
> something out of a bad war movie. "Ve haff vayz of makink
> you talk, English pigdog" level of bad. 
> > To start with, it's called "1000 Kochvorschriften",
> which roughly translates as "1000 cooking regulations". And
> no, that is not the normal word for 'recipe' in German. It
> begins with a short preface that begins "We saluzte the
> German girls and women" and ends with the reminder "to
> increase and guard the health of the people is the
> responsibility and duty of the German housewife. In
> fulfilling this duty, may the book be your true comrade in
> your labours!".  
> > The nexct chapter is about basics of cooking, and it's
> mainly about how instructions mustr be strictly followed,
> fuel and food not wasted, nothing cooked longer than
> absolurtely necessary, native produce preferred, and we are
> reminded repeatedly of how lovely and healthy potatoes are.
> 
> > I haven't found anything about how to distinguish
> decadent degenerate food from proper German food, but the
> publisher advertzises a smallish (and apparently
> unsuccessfuil) klittle book on proper nutrition for people
> of various races. I don't think this wis still available
> anywhere, though I'd love to read it. 
> > Just wanted to share this. The book is amazing It's a
> pity tone doesn't really translate, it reads like Feldwebel
> Schultz.
> > 
> > YIS
> > 
> > Giano
> > 
> > 
> >         
> 
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