Chef Jose Andres Delights and Inspires

by David Orr · 2010-05-07 11:00:00 UTC
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Jose Andres, the chef and mastermind behind a number of immensely popular restaurants across the country, was featured in a fantastic segment on 60 Minutes this past Sunday. Chef Andres, originally from Spain, took the US dining scene by force 20 years ago with the introduction of molecular gastronomy (the concept of using chemistry to deconstruct traditional dishes and maximize flavor in nontraditional forms).

Although watching Andres create and describe his dishes to a salivating Anderson Cooper was entertaining, by far the most inspiring and important message from the segment was what Andres had to say about things beyond his restaurant.

Andres believes that the future of food is vegetables and fruits — describing them as "so much more sexier than a piece of chicken." To hear an internationally known and critically acclaimed chef say that "meat is overrated" is a tremendous shift in perception (he's not the only one either — check out Mario Batali's Meatless Mondays). Its an exciting prospect to think about superstar chefs beginning to advocate eating less meat — not just for the health of ourselves and our planet, but for the revolution it would cause in cooking.

Andres is also a committed volunteer to a local culinary program that provides training to former drug abusers, prisoners, and the homeless, and in turn feeds thousands of hungry people. "Chefs of America," he says, "should be more outspoken about the way we are feeding America. Not only about what I'm feeding them in my restaurant, or in the great restaurants of America — its only 1, 2 or 3 percent of Americans that eat in those restaurants. We should be more committed about the other 97 percent of Americans that don't come to our restaurants." A truly inspiring sentiment.

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Photo: Screen grab from CBS Online

David Orr is a sustainable cook, writer and activist.
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