Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: ABSTRACT Historical scholarship on the topics of food, cooking, and eating has flourished in recent years. Within this growing body of literature, chefs have recently been introduced as a legitimate subject of historical investigation. However, to date, no clear theoretical or methodological model has been developed to study this underutilised and under‐theorised historical subject. Drawing upon anthropological readings of history, this article aims to provide a theoretical framework for the historical analysis of professional cooks. It suggests that, when examined from a cultural perspective, professional cooks are unique subjects of historical investigation that act as a window onto broader cultural and social transformations of the specific contexts in which they are embedded. The intention of this article is to bring thematic and methodological clarity to the category of professional cooks and reflect on the analytical utility that they can bring for cultural historians.
Source: History Compass
DOI: 10.1111/hic3.70007
Author: Jed Hilton
Institution: University of Exeter
Language: English
Subfield: Food Science
Domain: Life Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $2,900
OpenAlex ID: W4407184076