Cooked

I was hopeful to learn more about food and its origins and the linkages to the four elements but found that none of the episodes really had ang linkages to the titles of air, fire, earth, water. I think the whole content could have been given in an hour in total.

More of the same. On the surface this idea had a lot potential. You quickly find that it was less of an Idea and more just a Title.

The bulk of this series is random information, plenty of holier-than-thou critiquing of modern technology, and a whole lot of "Stuff I Know" shoved at you by Michael Pollan. Not that any of it is wrong, it's just bland, smug and unnecessary.

Netflix clearly gets viewership out of these things, however. The most telling scene is a crossover bit with Simin Nosrat of Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat, another aimless Netflix doc that explains why everyone else is wrong.

Fine for casual viewing, but don't expect any epiphanies here.

I have watched this series 4 times now, and each time I do, I learn something new. This is purely meant to remind everyone the beauty in cooking and how much it means to carry on cultural traditions. It is also an eye opener for big corporations and how much they have affected our lives.

This is not about politics, race, or any other nonsense one will try to create from this. Remove your bias, and open yourself up to being more comfortable in the kitchen. It will be life changing for you!

Many better documentaries out there. Episode 2 titled "Water" felt like a huge waste of time. It was incredibly tedious and had nothing to do with the theme at all. Ironically, the author has close ties with Samin Nosrat whose similarly categorized documentary "Salt Fat Acid Heat" is just so much more concise, on-theme, and educational. It doesn't even do a good job romanticizing cooking, which is ultimately what it seems to be trying to do.

• One frustrated viewer.

I always like the way Michael Pollan divides him musings into food categories that connect to cultural beliefs and historical discoveries, as he did, for instance in Botany of Desire. He did this in Cooked by devoting each episode to one of the ancient elements of fire, water, air, and earth. I won't say what foods and cultures they correspond to; discover the connections yourself. Allow Pollan to take you to unexpected places of cooking excellence and expertise.

I grew up in a large, somewhat stressed family that relied on prepared convenience food much of the time. I am talking Tater Tots, Hamburger Helper, fish sticks, pot pies, and canned chili, so I don't have great role models for cooking food that is fresh and natural, eco-friendly, and nutritious. Nevertheless, I aspire to do so.

If you are like me, you can't always cook an evening meal, but this series inspires me to try to do so a little more often.