Never Trust A Skinny Chef!

KYHeirloomer · #1 01-02-2008, 10:58 AM

Everybody's heard that expression, right. But at what health cost to the cook?

Was just reading, in "Best Food Writing 2007" an interesesting article by John Grossman that originally appeared in Gourmet.

What John did was stick next to Tory McPhail, executive chef at Commander's Palace, and record everything Tory ate. As is usual with chef's at upscale restaurants, Tory never sat down to a meal. But he was tasting all through the day, assuring that everything met the quality he insists on. Nothing big, you understand. A teaspoon of house-made mozzarella, a quarter teaspoon of sugarcane vinaigrette, a tablespoon of seafood gumbo.

This list is then taken to a nutritionist, who figured both caloric and nutritional values.

Are you ready? Better sit down.

On a typical day, Tory consumed 3,482 calories. Recommended amounts for an active male: 2,500. But calories are just the tip of the iceburg. Among other potential problems:

About half those calories came from fat. Sodium intake was 5,000 milligrams (about twice the RDA if we still used RDAs). Cholesterol: 731 milligrams---also twice the recommended levels.

It's an article well worth reading. And, maybe, should serve as a wake-up call for some of us in the industry.

C Cina · #2 01-02-2008, 01:32 PM

I know at 37 all the eating, tasting, and one long meal a day are starting to catch up with me. I've been good about not eating anything fried, but don't tell me i can't have any more than a taste of that slab of Foie...

ChefDrizzle · #3 01-02-2008, 02:22 PM

yeah ive read that article before.. its pretty amazing.. a lot of times i never have a square meal all day long till about 1am.. mainly cuz ive been eating a gaufrette here, munchin on a crouton there, tasting little spoonfuls of soup and sauce all day long.. basically it keeps supressing the appetite.. cant be healthy for you lol.

Salliem · #4 01-02-2008, 06:50 PM

Since I have food allergies to just about everything that is made in the kitchen where I work, I don't have that problem, typically I take something to work, if I cook anything to eat while at work it is usually a piece of chicken with a salad, I also work out about 4 times a week.

Chad Aaland · #5 01-02-2008, 07:38 PM

Interestingly enough, it's better for you to snack all day than eat square meals. The rationale is that with small helpings, you're body is constantly fighting it and burning it off, while with a full meal it's like a big crash of food that it has to take on all at once. Guess which is more efficient?

KYHeirloomer · #6 01-03-2008, 05:58 AM

While that may be true, Chad, the issue is one of total quantity and nutrition. Chefs don't realize how much they actually eat, during a shift, and what it's nutritional value may or may not be.

As the article maintains, the constant tasting done by chefs can have serious helth consequences. 5,000 milligrams of sodium, for instance. The author called that a "heart attack headline." And so it is.

shroomgirl · #7 01-03-2008, 08:55 AM

so as with wine, taste and spit.....NICE....

better yet, send it out untasted....not happenin.

buonaboy · #8 01-06-2008, 03:34 PM

That's interesting, but... Our life revolves around food. To be a good chef (or at least a passionate one) you are constantly thinking about food and preparations. I try (in vain) to combat it by getting a fair amount of exercise: I bicycle to work when I can -maybe 3 times a week @8 miles each way, and on occasion, mid way trough a double shift I take a walk around a nearby lake , 3.5 miles at about an hour. -but what made the most difference was when I was down a cook and worked saute for about three weeks. When I saute, I sweat, drink about 1.5 gallons of water in a shift and only taste what can coat the back of a spoon - not to mention the physical and mental stress of 6 burners and 120 covers.
So I'd probably be healthier if I sauteed every night -but I've been in kitchens for 17 years, and worked hard to become the chef of my own place.....so therein lies the conundrum.
-ciao
mike

the_seraphim · #9 01-07-2008, 08:35 AM

but surely with the amount of water we drink in the super heated kitchens we work... we sweat out allot of salt and water... so the sodium mixed with the tap water would be a good thing to counter the salt loss from sweat, also the constant running this way and that would help burn off the calories and the cholesterol

also cholesterol consumed in small quantities throughout the day rather than in 5 eggs at breakfast is easier to deal with for your body...

my cholesterol level is 3.... and i eat eggs everyday...

just excersise!