Playa Cookery
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PLAYA COOKERY A Gift By James Shearhart This is dedicated to Alton Brown, because he’d probably enjoy the challenge of the playa, and he’d probably Get It. There will always be a place at my table for him…. All quotes in italics are referenced to the M.F.K Fisher translation of Physiologie du goût (The Physiology of Taste) by Jean A. Brillat-Savarin. Second Edition [Note for PDF edition – this was originally laid out for printing on a four-by-eight booklet, so there will be some strangeness in format. Deal with it.] 2 Introduction A man who eats well and who repairs his bodily losses with wisdom and discernment can withstand more exertion than any other living creature. One must be touched by a unique kind of madness to willingly take a vacation for the better part of a week in an environment that can kill an unwary person in less than three days. As indicated by the title, this is a book that may be useful for cooking in the area of Nevada called the Black Rock Desert, a singular 200 square mile area some 4,000 feet above sea level, some 100 miles northeast of Reno. That being said, this is not a book to help one survive in the desert, at least in the strictest sense. This work assumes that one already knows how to survive on the playa; that having adequate shelter and food and clothing for the time spent, that duct tape, rope, and rebar are one’s best inanimate friends, that one is fully able to take care of oneself, are already ingrained in the potential playa cook. This also assumes that one knows a bit about cooking in general, that one is fundamentally competent in the kitchen in the default world, that recipes are not indecipherable algebra to the intrepid cook. This is a work about personal culinary survival, with a modicum of style, for someone who has a modicum of culinary knowledge. There are no great lessons to be learned here, merely the fundamentals adapted to that which the environment and circumstances demand. This, by and large, is not so much a cookbook, than a curiosity that offers suggestions and recipes to the curious. Beyond the pork-and-beans eaten cold out of the can, the 99-cent ramen, the canned tuna and crackers, beyond the health-food bars eaten at fifteen minute intervals, this is will hopefully show you a way of being self-sufficient and primordially godlike on the playa, in that you can bring manna to the desert for friends and family to enjoy. 3 Beginnings Cooking is the oldest of all the arts…Cooking is also of all the arts the one which has done most to advance our civilization…. First things first. I am no doctor, nor dietician, nor health-food expert, nor lifestyle guidance councilor. The suggestions and ideas and methods and recipes found herein are by and large founded on the intelligence of a single individual who happens to count himself as an apolitically erudite omnivore who knows whence his food comes, and has small reservation as to the source. I’ve concocted these sections in the same view, as an individual who has no dietary restrictions stemming from health or ethics. You know what you are willing and able to ingest, I merely provide a selection of observations as to the activity of eating on the playa. The other factor to these ideas and suggestions and methods and recipes is they are presented for use by solo individuals or by groups of no more than four persons, so obviously the suggestion of, say, bringing a single camp stove for the week, isn’t gonna work for a camp of 15 persons. Adapt your math as the numbers dictate. That being said, let’s now explore the area in which we are to cook…. A Series of Casual Tendencies The playa as we tend to experience it consists of a hard-baked surface of silt alkaline of a pH value above seven, that has a tendency to break down from its usual cracked grey chunky clay crust to an astonishingly fine powder when trod upon, a powder that has a tendency to be lifted by the slightest of breezes and deposited wherever the hell it sees fit to settle. This occasional breeze also has a tendency to whip up to speeds clocking from 20 to 70 miles an hour, which tends to do nothing in the way of cooling one in the midst of the seasonal heat that can easily reach 100 degrees without trying too hard. And there are also the dust devils, or ancestors if you like, which wander about on their own, poking through the occasional campsite. And it also tends to rain at a moment’s notice, sweeping in and soaking everything before vanishing a little while later, turning the grey chunky crust into a grey soupy clay-like substance that tends to trap the occasional unwary foot when trod upon. At night, the temperature tends to drop pretty dramatically, usually down to the 60’s, which doesn’t sound like much unless you consider that this usually means a drop of at least thirty degrees in the span of a few hours. The chemical composition of the playa tends to be rather abusive to human skin, tending to be hygroscopic and mildly abrasive, which basically means the ground acts like a fine grain sandpaper that likes to suck moisture out of living tissue. This tends to be a harsh environment, one not particularly conducive to proper cooking, and, depending on the individual, one may tend to have a decreased appetite while out on the playa. So why bother with cooking anything? Why bother? The pleasure of eating is the actual and direct sensation of satisfying a need. The pleasures of the table are a reflective sensation which is born from the various circumstances of place, time, things, and people who make up the surroundings of the meal. Everyone has their reasons for being out on the playa. By and large, it stems from a particularly creative impulse, and while it may not be the first thing brought to mind when one thinks of artistic expression, the act of cooking can be a form of creativity. As with any other artistic endeavor, the interaction between the creator and the recipient of the creation can be rewarding for both, even more so, as this particular act of creativity is immediate: the cook cooks, and the eater says yum. The playa is a unique location and environment, a blank canvas if you will, upon which one may construct memories and experiences, and as any foodie worth the title will tell you, one of the prime factors in the whole culinary experience is the way food can trigger memory, how 4 taste and smell can transport a person’s thoughts elsewhere. Nostalgia isn’t born fully grown into memory, it’s created by experience, and many times food plays an important part in those memories. There is also the factor of human interaction. The basic function of hospitality, that is, to take in guests, make them comfortable, give food and drink freely, see to a certain level of their well-being, and then send them on their way with good will, is something of an art in and of itself. The concept of medieval hospitality, the laws of the hearth and table, are certainly applicable on the playa, in that it’s basically us humans versus the harsh landscape, and anyone that you invite to your table is, fundamentally, under your protection and is your responsibility until they leave. Given that, one might want to make an effort to enjoy the company of strangers when it occurs, as I understand this is how friendships begin. This, of course, is not the sole means of friendship-generating human interaction. One can set up an art piece on the playa and meet new friends at the 3AM bass-and-drum fest, and still come away with the kinds of memories that the playa tends to supply. But to invite strangers to your table and surprise them with foods they were not expecting can lead to a series of interesting moments, at the very least impressing them with your highly refined skills of self- reliance. The time spent on the playa can be unique, and these times of normality found in cooking can allow one for periods of clarity and reflection, a quiet pause from sun and stimulation, a little time for the mind to assimilate all that is going on, and not make one’s time on the playa feel like one big sleepless blur. 5 Getting It There, and Keeping It There There are probably more important things to think about when one is actually out on the playa, but when one is safe at home, and about to get their playa kitchen together, there’s one thing to keep in mind, beyond the obvious of bring enough to eat and drink to stay alive: Small Pack In – Zero Pack Out This phrase should affect nearly every aspect of your playa kitchen. But first, one of the big questions for the playa kitchen: What Kitchen Equipment Do I Bring? First and foremost – never bring anything to the playa that you would hate to lose. If you have a favorite kitchen utensil, leave it at home, and find a replacement, preferably inexpensive, or better yet, thrift store cheap. The equipment should reflect a sense of utility, wherein a single element can serve several purposes.