Real Men Will Start Cooking…says hungry reporter

PERVAIZ SHALLWANI of the Associated Press has written a pretty convincing article about why manly men may start cooking more than steak and taters, following the trend in Western countries to pay more attention to what you eat, how it’s prepared, what goes into it, and most importantly, how it tastes.

A meat, potatoes and pasta upbringing in a family that gave little thought to food made Jason Weber an unlikely foodie candidate.

Yet when he got to college, he found himself glued to the Food Network, drawn in by “Iron Chef’s” kitchen battles and eagerly trying his hand at the bold Creole creations of celebrity chef Emeril Lagasse.

He’s hardly unique. Unlike so many of their fathers and grandfathers, men such as Weber are embracing not just an affection for food, but a gusto for making it and a willingness to spend big chunks of disposable income on the toys to do so.

“When I think about my friends, there is a huge cross-section of us who are interested in the culinary arts and food,” Weber, 31, a technology salesman, said recently as he headed to a Philadelphia gastropub to satisfy a craving for a gourmet cheeseburger and double-dipped Belgian fries.

Gone are the days when “man food” meant beer, grilling and Hungry-Man frozen dinners.

That’s partly because young men are an attractive demographic and the food world – from media to the makers of appliances big and small – has worked hard to make time in the kitchen appeal to them. It seems to be working.

At least until we see what Hungry-Man frozen dinners creates for the New Hungry Man. We hope this lasts longer than the last Metrosexual topics.

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