Homage to Julia Child Continues

Part two of my homage to Julia Child begins with Julia on television with The French Chef. In 1961, Julia promoted Mastering the Art of French Cooking on a National Educational Television book review show on WGBH in Boston. She brought her own hot plate, bowls, whisks and pans and whipped up an omelette right there and then! It was the first time anyone really demonstrated and explained technique on television, and it was a smash hit!

WGBH and the iconic Russ Morash (producer of This Old House, The New Yankee Workshop and The Victory Garden) took a big chance and produced The French Chef with Julia. It debuted in the summer of 1962 and ran for ten years. The first few episodes were almost circus-like in their production – helpers hiding behind the counter handing Julia things or taking them away. They had no choice but to shoot the entire episode in one take. There was no such thing as editing something out. 

In one of the first episodes, she again demonstrated how to make an omelette. But it wasn’t just about the eggs and the filling. She talked about the pan, its size, material, shape, handle, and measurements. Way more information than anyone had ever thought about when making breakfast!

When finally to the point of preparing the actual omelette, she tells us to not use more than two or three eggs - it should cook in just 30 seconds. She explains carefully how hot the pan needs to be (really hot) and then how the butter should look (the foam has subsided but has not begun to brown). Add the eggs, stir with a fork and shake toward the far side of the pan. After a quick cook, you just slide it onto the plate. Voila! 

She made it look so easy and it really isn’t that easy! But that was the great thing about it, she made us feel like we should at least try. If she can do it, I can, too. Right? How many people had eggy messes to clean up? 

As The French Chef went on, Julia taught us about chicken (from Cornish hens to capons), how to cook a whole fish, how to make crepes, French tarts and, of course, beef bourguignon. During the first season, on The Potato Show, she was preparing a potato gratin. As she prepared to flip the potatoes in the pan, she tells us, “When you flip anything, you just have the courage of your convictions, particularly if it is sort of a loose mass, like this is.” She then flipped it and potatoes went all over the stove! No editing, so she soldiered on! She stated, “Well, that didn’t go very well. I didn’t have the courage to do it the way I should have. But you can always pick it up, and if you’re alone in the kitchen, who is going to see?” It was moments like that that endeared Julia to budding gourmets across the country!