This blog may contain affiliate links. These links will take you to websites that sell items. If you use these links to buy items from these sellers you are helping to support Professor Kitchen at no extra charge to you. Thank you very much!!
__________
Do you own a grill?? I'll bet you do!
This article on the Northern Virginia website says that the Hearth, Patio, and Barbecue Association claims 75% of all American households own a grill!
According to the Statista website, the UK nearly matches the US with 70% household ownership and Ireland tops us both with 82%!!!
WOW!! Go Ireland!!
_____
_____
 |
| Ireland and grilling go together like, well, Ireland and grilling! |
Grilling is not new.
Grilling has been around as long as mankind and fire have co-existed. It's not exactly a new technology. That's really what makes this level of grill ownership so amazing.
We humans love our "new and improved" technology. We have all kinds of ways to cook food in today's modern society. Even with all of the modern tech, we still love to go old school and break out a grill from time to time!
But... Why???
_____
_____
Enter an Icon
The rise of the modern use of the grill can be traced back, as odd as it seems, to a time when people were embracing technology changes and rejecting the old, "antiquated" methods.
The 20th century was a time of great change and transformation. The old moguls of industry and finance were collapsing. The handful of Titans of Industry that held American culture, technology, and finances under their thumb had collapsed under the weight of their own self-importance.
The Great War had come and gone. In its wake, it left more destruction than was originally understood. The power of a generation of men and women who had learned to stand up for what they believed in on a global stage changed the way people thought and reacted to those in power.
 |
| Henry Ford, Icon of the Grill?!?!? |
Enter a man with a new way of thinking. A man with a head full of ideas that would empower people for his benefit as well as theirs. A man that understood that empowered people were productive people, productive people were prosperous people, and that prosperous people were happy people.
Enter Henry Ford.
More Innovation Than You May Know
His innovative ideas on manufacturing and worker productivity are well known. (As is his bigotry and hatred.) What's not so well know is his work on transforming Western home cooking culture.
You see, when the famous Model T was taking off, there were no highways, no interstate systems, no overpasses, underpasses, or continent-spanning roadways. Most of the world was strung together with glorified trails. At best, Roman cobblestone roadways were in use. Most of the time it was just dirt tracks.
_____
_____
_____
There were no Holiday Inn Express motels to stop at for the night. No McDonalds to grab a bite on your way to visit grandma. Very few gasoline stations, even, at which you could fill up that amazing new car you were able to afford because of Mr. Ford.
If you went somewhere where the drive time included mealtime, you had to pack your own meals. Now day's that's called "being thrifty." Back then it was called "not staving."
Having sandwiches all of the time gets boring so Henry thought that he would give his customers a way to have hot meals while traveling plus put a little extra money in his pocket. He started selling portable grills at his dealerships!
The nation loved it!!!
There's more to the story, but you're going to have to watch my video to find out what!
No comments:
Post a Comment