This month, I’d like to talk about one of the most original and imaginative cookbooks I have ever read, “Death To Jar Sauce.” The author is “Nat” of the YouTube channel, “Nat’s What I Reckon.” Nat is not a chef, but a person passionate about inspiring people to eat healthier and to eat better. From the introduction: “Nat is a comedian, rock musician, mental health advocate and award-winning, bestselling author. Already an online creator with a fan base in the hundreds of thousands for close to a decade, Nat’s What I Reckon rocketed to global prominence when he took the world by storm in early 2020 with his isolation cooking content.” I was exposed to Nat through his videos on Facebook and those 10-15 minutes of culinary chaos were a salve to my weary psyche during the pandemic shutdown. What struck me was his delivery; it reminded me of how cooks really talk when explaining recipes that didn’t require precision.
What makes this book unique? It is essentially a cookbook as a graphic novel. Also, it is quite “sweary”. Like, there’s a lot of swearing. I want to clarify something. Nat’s swearing is different than, say… Bourdain’s macho cook personal insult swearing or Bad Manners’/Thug Kitchen’s culture appropriating and forced swearing.
What do I like about this book? It is a truly fun book to read. His Aussie upbringing shines through his language and the phrases keep the reader on their toes. Nat gives you a sense of who he is and why he feels the way he does about pre-packaged food. The content is good and the instruction is inspiring. “I dedicate this book to you, champion. Onya for giving cooking a red-hot go.” If you like his videos, you’ll appreciate the concept. The pages are peppered with tips, but it can be difficult to find them amongst everything else (Imagine taking a culinary class while on an acid trip). He has created a “Hectometer” which tells you how hectic the dish is, which I think was a nice addition.
What do I not like about this book? Well, the graphic novel format is fun, but it makes for much-wasted space and the procedures can be lost in the many asides and the frantic pacing. There are very few times you can quickly get the full recipe in a glance, the ingredient list is easily seen but the actions are a bit scattered. Many of my favorite cookbooks pack a lot of information onto each page, “Death To Jar Sauce” has only about 25 recipes in 300-plus pages. Lastly, and this is least important, the color palette is limited to white, black and pink.
Probably his most famous recipe is “End of Days Bolognese”. I have previously written about my interest in bolognese. I think all the recipes are worthwhile and Nat tries really hard to not include ingredients that aren’t easily found in an average grocery store or farmer’s market.
Overall, reading this was an afternoon well spent and I hope you enjoy the contents as much as I did. I made a small list of other cookbooks with aspects of graphic novel if the format interests you.
