Scoffing at the past – have students become better cooks?

From the ‘Vegetable Splodge’ of the 1970s to the ‘Seafood Chow Mein’ of today, on Saturday 17 October between 6.45 – 7.45pm Simple Scoff 2.0 looked at how cooking has changed over the last forty years through the latest Warwick collaborative cookbook, ‘Simple Scoff ‘. 

Led by Professor of History Rebecca Earl, a panel of past and present University members – including former BBC correspondent Torin Douglas, author of Simply Scoff 1.0 Serena Macbeth, and SU president Isaac Leigh – examined the culinary shift from the 1970s to the present day.

Back then, a tin opener and a saucepan were all you needed, whereas today modern cooking appears to require a wider range of untensils.

Alongside the panel, University Development Chef Graham Crump whipped up recipes from the old and new cookbooks – and served them to the audience.

The first recipe, a tuna mushroom pasta bake, reflected the simpler cooking past of the 1970s, heavy with tins and a distinct lack of flavour. 

On the other hand, the second dish, salmon and pea pasta, suggested that overall students are becoming better and more adventurous cooks.  

The panel also reflected on the shrinking gender divide in cooking talent: Douglas commented that in the past, having a girlfriend often meant ‘living in the lap of culinary luxury’. Now, students of all genders are cooking  meals.

However, the question arose as to how realistic some of the recipes in the new cookbook are – as whilst students claimed that the second pasta example given out was the better, you would be hard pressed to find a fresher stocking crème fraiche or chia seeds in their fridge.

The audience then proceeded to discuss some of their own cooking disasters – including Isaac’s first day trip to the car park due to a burnt piece of toast.