Paul Kierstead wrote:
And Julia stole everything. And, of course, never claimed otherwise.
It is tricky, we all borrow and lift from here and there, though they should acknowledge it far more often. I think CI's bigger transgressions involve not admitting they have done it before. Especially when they knock their own recipes.
Paul,
In my mind Julia never stole anything. I also do not think she ever claimed to innovate cooking techniques. Julia took well known French cooking techniques and translated them in a way that was accessible to Americans. This was a gift that was discussed by Jacques Pepin in his biography. Jacques Pepin writes about reading the manuscript for "Mastering..." and wishing that he could write that way.
Stealing is appropriating without right. Stealing is taking from an identifiable source without attribution.
BCP steals by taking recipes from identifiable sources without attribution. The Zuni dry-brining technique is one example. They compound their ethical breach by claiming to discover the specific technique by exhaustive testing and experimentation.
BCP also claims to innovate techniques that any experienced cooks knows. Their July, 2010 Memphis-Style Rib recipe included a totally disingenuous claim about combining charcoal grill and oven cooking to simplify the recipe.
"The only question was the order of operations: grill to oven or oven to grill?
Since a crust bark was on of the main goals, I figured it made sense to start the ribs in the oven and finish them in the grill..."
BCP also uses purposely flawed/incorrect recipes and claims to develop the best recipe; in fact, they end with the recipe that everyone has always used. In their claimed development of Caldo Verde, kale soup, they went through turnip greens, collard greens and chard before magically discovering Kale.
BCP also dumbs down recipes to provide an excuse for development. Their gnudi recipe omitted semolina, giving them an excuse to test all sorts of bread crumbs.
Finally, BCP actually threatened to sue an innocent blogger who had the temerity to provide an attribution by stating her recipe was adapted from Cook's Illustrated.
Not that I have strong feelings on this subject.
CC
ps: What's this have to do with dry aging. Shall we start a new discussion?