Fat

Fat: An Appreciation of a Misunderstood Ingredient challenges popular beliefs about dietary fat and its role in human health. Jennifer McLagan examines how Western diets shifted away from traditional animal fats in the latter half of the 20th century, replacing them with processed vegetable oils and low-fat alternatives. The book presents scientific research that questions the link between animal fat consumption and heart disease, including critiques of influential 1940s studies. McLagan incorporates her experiences growing up in Australia and living in Europe, where attitudes toward dietary fat differed from those in North America. Beyond its historical and scientific analysis, Fat includes practical guidance for home cooks, with recipes and instructions for rendering and cooking with animal fats. The work earned both the James Beard Foundation Award and the IACP Cookbook Award in 2009. The text serves as both a defense of traditional foodways and a criticism of modern dietary trends, suggesting that the vilification of animal fats may have contributed to rather than solved public health challenges.

Readers appreciate McLagan's deep research into fat's culinary and cultural history, along with her clear explanations of different cooking fats and their properties. Many note the book dispelled misconceptions about cooking with animal fats. Readers highlight the recipes as reliable and producing good results, particularly the duck confit and pie crust recipes. Several mention successfully rendering their own lard after following the instructions. Common criticisms include: - Too much emphasis on meat dishes - Limited vegetable-focused recipes - Some ingredients hard to source - More scientific detail wanted about fat chemistry Ratings: Goodreads: 4.1/5 (219 ratings) Amazon: 4.5/5 (76 ratings) "Finally a book that helps me understand which fats to use when," notes one Amazon reviewer. A Goodreads reviewer writes: "Good technical information but I hoped for more variety in the recipes."

The Big Fat Surprise by Nina Teicholz Documents extensive research revealing how nutritional policy came to condemn dietary fats through flawed science and political influence.

In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan Traces the shift from whole foods to processed products while examining how nutritional science has shaped eating habits.

Pure, White, and Deadly by John Yudkin Presents the case against sugar as the primary dietary concern rather than fat, based on research from the 1970s that was largely ignored.

The Third Plate by Dan Barber Explores traditional food systems and cooking methods that embrace whole-animal cooking and natural fats as part of sustainable cuisine.

Good Calories, Bad Calories by Gary Taubes Investigates the scientific research behind fat consumption and challenges conventional wisdom about diet-related diseases.

🔸 During WWII, the British government encouraged citizens to save cooking fats for the war effort, as glycerin from these fats was essential in manufacturing explosives. 🔸 Jennifer McLagan has won multiple James Beard Awards, including one for her book "Bones" (2005) and another for this book "Fat" (2008). 🔸 Traditional cultures valued animal fats so highly that Native Americans would often consume the fatty parts of animals first, leaving the leaner portions for later. 🔸 The fear of dietary fat gained momentum in the 1950s with Ancel Keys' Seven Countries Study, despite significant criticism of his methodology and data selection. 🔸 The process of rendering lard (pig fat) was once a common household skill, and lard was the primary baking fat in North America until the early 20th century.