Tim had asked a question on Facebook to his followers:
What can I do to make this next book my best book yet? I really don’t want to let you guys down.
Mitch Fanning, who writes about the world according to him, responded to Tim Ferriss’ question about the 4-Hour Chef on his blog. If I could summarize his desires in one sentence, I’d say he’d like some different ways to hack the foods he’s already learned to eat and enjoy. I like where he’s going.
Here’s my own contribution, inspired by Mitch.
Dear Tim,
As a “home chef”, I’m pretty excited about your new book. I’m intrigued by the mystery of what it could have. Your other two revolutionized the topics they cover, so I can’t wait to see what you’ll come up with for cooking.
To answer your question, there are a few things I’d love to see after having spent the last year generally following your ideas.
A more comprehensive list of foods that are allowed
I think the biggest question we get is “is this allowed?”, and most people quote your response of “If you have to ask, probably not.” (link) Now, I’ve always thought that wasn’t very fair of you, so I think this book is a good place to clarify some things.
There are even websites that purport to know exactly what’s allowed. My position has always been if Tim didn’t say it’s not, I’m skeptical.
I’d love to see a larger list of approved slow-carb foods, especially some of the odd stuff like sweet potatoes, yucca, squash, coconut products, and different non-grain flours.
Something else similar that I think would really help is:
A more comprehensive list of foods that you’d THINK are allowed but aren’t
I think squash is perfectly fine, but I know a lot of people disagree. Coconut milk is something else I think is OK, but I’ve had some sharp opposition. A list of foods we might think are OK but aren’t would be awesome.
But even more than those two, I think I’d like…
The real list of guidelines behind making decisions about food
A lot of what I read in 4HB are legalistic points. Do this, don’t do that. This worked because of this. That didn’t work because of that. All of that is well and good, but I think you gave us a lot of that type of stuff without teaching us how to make decisions.
Especially since everyone’s different, some really solid guidelines would be awesome. For example, a food is OK on slow carb if it’s glycemic index or glycemic load or carb content or whatever is a certain way. I think most of us use glycemic load to determine whether or not we want to try a new food.
The Paleo Solution
Finally, I’d love to see some cooking hacks
We all know eggs are a great part of our slow-carb diet, but people get sick of scrambled eggs quickly. It would be awesome to have a section talking about different ways to prepare base foods, like 10 chicken recipes, 10 egg recipes, 10 ways to spruce up beans, things like that. That would keep people from getting bored.
Another thing that would be awesome is a chapter on spices and herbs, ideas on how to use them, and how they benefit your overall health!
And lastly, what is your vision for a minimalists kitchen? Which tools are necessary, and how few can we get away with?
Like I said, I’m pretty excited about what your book can be, and regardless of whether or not I see any of these things in it, I’m sure it’ll be another best-seller and help a ton of people.
Good luck, and thanks in advance!
Jason,
Thanks for taking the time to read my blog and provide some kind feedback. However, more importantly, I’m elated to know I’ve inspired someone to take action (as that’s my primary motivator for doing anything).
Keep at it
Mitch, thanks for giving me the idea! I’ve talked about what I wrote to other people but never thought about putting it down somewhere.