good analysis, bad image
The Gurgling Cod:
The problem with Kimball, and what makes him think in this way, is the fundamental joylessness that permeates every corner of his enterprise. I use and like some of his recipes, but they generally emanate from a presumption that eating is a burden, and food is nasty, and only relentless experimentation can prevent you from failing as a cook by revealing the least intolerable way to prepare a given dish. If you doubt my argument, conduct the thought experiment of imagining the America's Test Kitchen Kama Sutra.