Frank Beacham's Journal

Potato chips were accidentally invented 169 years ago this summer in Saratoga Springs, New York by an irascible chef trying to get even with a customer

Potato chips were accidentally invented 169 years ago this summer in Saratoga Springs, New York by an irascible chef trying to get even with a customer.

The chef, George Crum, is widely credited with inventing potato chips during the summer of 1853 when a customer at Moon’s Lake House sent back his fried potatoes because they were thick and soggy.

Crum wasn’t pleased by this, so he thinly sliced the potatoes, fried them in grease and showered them with salt. The “fries” were too thin to eat with a fork and Crum hoped to annoy the fussy customer.

To his surprise, the formerly disgruntled diner loved the “potato crunches,” as Crum originally called them. Potato chips were born. They quickly became popular at the restaurant, and were originally known as Saratoga Chips.

Crum was born in upstate New York to a black father and a Native American mother, and before becoming a chef, he worked as a guide in the Adirondacks. He later opened his own successful restaurant. A basket of potato chips was on every table and were available for takeout.

Crum died in 1914 and never patented his creation. But his culinary contribution did not go unrecognized: In 1976, he was honored with a plaque near Moon’s Lake House.

Thanks New York Times!

Otto Frederick Rohwedder's marvelous bread slicing machine was introduced 94 years ago today

Otto Frederick Rohwedder and his bread slicing machine

We’ve all used the expression, “It’s the greatest thing since sliced bread.”

In celebration of all good things, we note today is the birthday of Otto Frederick Rohwedder, the inventor of the bread slicing machine.

Born in 1880, Rohwedder’s bread slicer produced the first package of machine-cut and wrapped bread. It was revealed on his 48th birthday in 1928 — 94 years ago today.

Bakers didn’t love the first version of Rohwedder’s invention, which he started working on in 1912. They feared the individual slices would quickly go stale.

Rohwedder tried to ward that off by holding the loaves together with sterilized hairpins, but the pins kept falling out.

Finally, he added a step that automatically wrapped the bread, too. Eventually Wonder Bread bought a version of Rohwedder’s machine.

Sliced bread was banned very briefly in 1943, to wide chagrin. The move was intended to control bread prices and save on wax paper during World War II.

Headlines heralded the lifting of the two-month ban: “Housewives’ Thumbs Safe Again,” read one. It wasn’t just housewives, though. In 1963, reporters noticed a Band-Aid on President John F. Kennedy’s finger and asked him what had happened. The President laughed and replied: “I cut my finger when I was cutting bread, unbelievable as it may sound.”

Spam, the canned meat, was introduced on this day in 1937 — 85 years ago

Jay Hormel and some of his company’s canned meat products, including Spam, in 1946

Photo by Wallace Kirkland

Spam, the canned meat, was introduced on this day in 1937 — 85 years ago.

Hormel Foods introduced the mix of pork shoulder and ham, whose name is derived from “spiced ham.” (No, it doesn’t stand for “Something Posing As Meat.”) Since then, Spam has been a muse for poets, comedians and chefs, and it helped win World War II.

Jay Hormel, Spam’s creator, said he was the first to successfully can ham. Cooking the meat inside the can produced a natural gelatin, increased shelf life and made it useful in battle.

President Dwight D. Eisenhower wrote a letter praising Spam, and the former Soviet premier Nikita Khrushchev said his country couldn’t have fed its troops without it. Hawaii embraced Spam during the war, too, and the affection never ceased. The state consumes the most in America, with seven million cans a year, or five cans per person.

“In all of its high-sodium, gravy-drenched glory, Spam has, in every sense, found its way into my heart,” Anthony Bourdain, the late chef, said during a visit to Hawaii for his show “No Reservations.” “I get it now. I feel inducted into the Church of True Knowledge.”

Thanks New York Times!

Pierre Salinger was born 97 years ago today

Pierre Salinger: A Personal Remembrance

Pierre Salinger was born 97 years ago today. He was White House Press Secretary to Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson. Also, Salinger served as a U.S. Senator in 1964 and was campaign manager for the Robert F. Kennedy presidential campaign.

He later became known for his work as an ABC News correspondent, and in particular for his coverage of the American hostage crisis in Iran and the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland.

It was at ABC News that I got to know and work with Salinger. In 1978, he was hired by the network as its Paris bureau chief. He became the network's chief European correspondent based in London in 1983. Under Salinger, I worked in Paris for about six weeks — doing a variety of stories.

Because Salinger was as much a French cultural ambassador as newsman, he was a lot of fun to be with. He was far more casual about news stories than his choice of food and drink, which he took very seriously. We ate at some amazing restaurants, where Salinger was always treated more like an important food critic than a VIP guest.

For a while in Paris, ABC booked me into the exclusive Hotel Saint Georges. After a period of working several days in a row with no time off, Salinger ordered a limo and put it at my disposal for an entire day to go anywhere I wanted. I was amazed by his generosity.

Such luxury is long gone from television news today, but in the era of Pierre Salinger it was still very much alive. He lived life to the fullest and made sure those around him enjoyed the fruits as well. Later, after leaving ABC, Salinger hosted a program in the early 1990s on the A&E cable network called Dining in France. No one was better qualified!

Salinger later made a permanent move to France, making good on his promise that, "If (George W.) Bush wins, I'm going to leave the country and spend the rest of my life in France."

Salinger died in October, 2004 of heart failure near his home, La Bastide Rose, in Le Thor, France at the age of 79.

The origins of the fortune cookie...

Ever wondered about the origins of the fortune cookie? They are almost certainly not Chinese.

The fortune cookie may trace to Japan, reported the New York Times, but they were made popular in America by Chinese or Japanese immigrants in the early 20th century. Several U.S. companies claim to have made the first fortune cookies.

The largest in the world is Wonton Food, Inc., based in New York City. The factory opened in Chinatown in 1973, but has since moved to Brooklyn. They make over 4.5 million fortune cookies each day. In 1992, the company introduced fortune cookies to China.

Until World War II, fortune cookies were known as "fortune tea cakes" — likely reflecting their origins in Japanese tea cakes.

Fortune cookies moved from being a confection dominated by Japanese-Americans to one dominated by Chinese-Americans sometime around World War II. One theory for why this occurred is because of the Japanese American internment during World War II, which forcibly put over 100,000 Japanese-Americans in internment camps, including those who had produced fortune cookies. This gave an opportunity for Chinese manufacturers.

Fortune cookies before the early 20th century, however, were all made by hand. The fortune cookie industry changed dramatically after the fortune cookie machine was invented by Shuck Yee from Oakland, California.

The machine allowed for mass production of fortune cookies which subsequently allowed the cookies to drop in price to become the novelty and courtesy dessert many Americans are familiar with after their meals at most Chinese restaurants today.

Though the Chinese are credited with inventing ice cream, it was introduced to the United States by Quaker colonists who brought their ice cream recipes with them

Though the Chinese are credited with inventing ice cream, it was introduced to the United States by Quaker colonists who brought their ice cream recipes with them.

Some of the founding fathers, including Benjamin Franklin, George Washington and Thomas Jefferson, ate and served ice cream regularly.

On June 8, 1786, the first ice cream advertisement appeared in Post Boy, a New York City newspaper. “Ladies and gentlemen may be supplied with ice cream every day at the City Tavern by their humble servant, Joseph Crowe,” the ad read.

The first ice cream was sold in New York City at 75 Chatham Street, which is now Park Row.

Residents of Washington, D.C. would be exposed to ice cream three years later, when Alexander Hamilton’s wife, Elizabeth, who discovered it in New York, introduced ice cream at a ball.

First Lady Dolley Madison is also closely associated with the early history of ice cream in the United States. As the wife of President James Madison, she served ice cream at her husband's Inaugural Ball in 1813.

The English muffin did not come from England, but was invented in New York City

The English muffin did not come from England, but was invented in New York City.

Thomas English Muffins were invented at 163 Ninth Avenue. That’s where Samuel Bath Thomas, an immigrant from England, set up his bakery when he moved to the city in 1874.

By 1880, he was cooking up the muffins (similar to British crumpets) and delivering them to “hotel and restaurant by pushcart.” Soon, he needed to open up a second bakery — this one on nearby 20th Street between Eighth and Ninth Avenues.

When Thomas died in 1919, his family took over the business, eventually selling it and abandoning both locations. The ovens in the West 20th Street building were discovered by its occupants in 2006. It is now called “The Muffin House” and a brass plaque tells the building’s history on its walls.

Thanks New York Times!

On this day in 2009, Mick Jagger offered to buy an ice cream van but was turned down by its owner — who'd promised his daughter he would drive her to her wedding in it

On this day in 2009, Mick Jagger offered to buy an ice cream van but was turned down by its owner — who'd promised his daughter he would drive her to her wedding in it.

Guiseppe Della Camera had spent ten years restoring the rusting van to perfection after he spotted it on a farm. It was being used as a chicken shed. The restoration was such a success Sir Mick offered to buy the vehicle when he saw it at a show on Wandsworth Common.

“Jagger told me he'd really fallen in love with my van and asked me if I would consider selling it,” Camera said. “I was stunned when he offered me £100,000.”

The story of the original Coney Island Hot Dog

The story of the original Coney Island Hot Dog

In 1867, Charles Feltman, a German immigrant, opened the first hot dog stand in Coney Island.

He called his signature frankfurter the Coney Island red hot, and it was served with mustard, sauerkraut and diced raw onions.

Soon, Feltman’s red hots were all the rage. Al Capone is said to have devoured one every night as a teenager before his shift at a local nightclub.

Feltman’s hot dogs were originally made near the Brooklyn Navy Yard and sold from a pie cart. In 1871, an enormous Feltman’s restaurant opened in Coney Island. It took up two city blocks and could serve 10,000 diners at once.

It wasn’t long before other companies entered the competition. A young man named Nathan Handwerker worked for Feltman in 1915. The next year, he opened his own shop, Nathan’s Famous, down the street, where he sold his hot dogs for a nickel less.

Nathan’s ultimately became the dominant brand on the boardwalk. Feltman’s went out of business in 1954, eight years after Charles Feltman’s sons, who were in their 70s, retired and sold the business to a hotel owner.

Several years ago, Feltman’s of Coney Island returned, with two brothers once again at its helm.

Michael and Joe Quinn are relying on their complementary talents and skills to run the business — Michael is a Coney Island history buff, and Joe, who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, has the business approach of a military strategist.

For example, Joe focused on locking down the Feltman’s supply chain in January, when he first heard about the Covid-19 outbreak. The brothers have also had good timing: People are pandemic-buying hot dogs like crazy.

Since March, the company has seen a 100 percent increase in sales from supermarkets and a 200 percent increase in online orders.

“Usually sales peak starting Fourth of July weekend,” Joe said. “So far it’s like March and April have turned into July.”

Thanks New York Times!

The origins of barbecue...

Once upon a time, the Taino Indians of Jamaica got hungry, and they used the sweet wood of the allspice tree to cook meat over a slow fire. The wood they used was called barbacoa. That’s where the word barbecue comes from.

When Spaniards arrived in Jamaica in the 1490s, they enslaved the Indians and brought them to near extinction in about 50 years. African slaves were brought in to replace them.

In the 1650s, escaped slaves joined the remaining Taino in the forests and tried to fight the British and Spanish for control. The slaves learned how to preserve meat with spices because they didn’t know when their next meal might be. They shared with the Taino their method of smoking food in pits dug into the earth.

Barbecue has survived for more than 350 years from these humble origins.

Thanks New York Times!