A couple of summers ago, my whole family discovered together how fabulous eating fresh could really be. On a lark, I challenged us to eat food sourced exclusively from within a 150-mile radius of our suburban Washington DC home for a month, and that “experiment” turned into a new paradigm of eating for us. I didn’t realize it at the time, but the idea of eating locally was taking root in all of us. And for me, it was blossoming into a true passion.

We all looked forward to the road trips to farms to buy pastured meat, or visiting farmers’ markets and learning how different varieties of tree fruits ripened serially through the season. My kids loved shucking fresh sweet corn and all of us loved eating it, boiled, grilled, or fried in local butter with pale, tender lima beans, onions and tomatoes. Milk in glass bottles became “that yummy milk” according to Louis. Catherine would bring her allowance money to the market to buy her own quart of plums or slab of farmstead feta.

After the month was over, we welcomed bananas, avocados and tortillas back to our table. But we had tasted local food, and it was good. We could never go back completely to our old ways. Eating locally is an approach to food that encompasses everything from gardening to gourmet, from fresh to kid-friendly, from healthy to hearty, and involves our entire family in a way that we all can embrace. I believe that every family, no matter how small or large, no matter how busy or economically challenged, can find a way to embrace eating locally at a level that works for them.

With Edible Chesapeake, I hope to share my passion, and the passion I have found in all the folks who are farming, raising livestock, tending orchards, keeping bees, grinding grain, baking bread, running restaurants, shopping, eating and enjoying local food all across our region. If you’re not already one of the “passionate ones,” I’m betting it won’t take too many issues of Edible Chesapeake for you to tip. And if you are, send us a comment and tell us where we should go to find your idea of local at its best. It’s going to take many years, many talented writers and photographers, and lots of eating, to tell all the stories that are out there now, and those that are just beginning.

CHESAPEAKE CHEF

BY JOHN SHIELDS

THE CHEAP CHICKEN DILEMMA

“A chicken in every pot.” That was the famous slogan of President Herbert Hoover who, in 1928, promised a new era of prosperity where all citizens of the U.S. would be able to afford chicken whenever they liked. Chicken has, up to the very recent past, been a bit of a luxury item. In many ethnic traditions the chicken dinner was reserved for holidays and feast days. Even in my youth, Sunday afternoon was the time that generations of the Shields clan would gather at Nanny and Pa’s for a weekly get together—and a time to reconnect. The Sunday suppers happened quite regularly, but were “special” shared meals. And chicken was the centerpiece.

Fast-forward to the late 20th century and we find that President Hoover got his wish—and then some. We don’t raise chickens anymore, we manufacture them. They’re not birds – they’re units. Luckily the word is out about how factory-farm chickens are created and processed. And now a determined group of farmers have gone back to raising chickens the way chickens should be raised and respected. Our responsibility as consumers is to make the wiser choice.

The other day I was in a hurry and stopped by the supermarket to snag up ingredients for dinner. I wasn’t sure exactly what I wanted to prepare, but the weather was blustery and cold. I had some root veggies on hand at home so I was leaning toward a casserole- ish kind of dish. Chicken was my first choice and I headed to the poultry case. I looked high and low for a naturally raised, non-Franken bird, but to no avail. Only a slew of pale, but full-figured, oven roasters; brought to you by Big Bird Mega Farm—and I just couldn’t do it!

I know too much about how these birds come to market. And then there are the economic, social, health-related, environmental and moral ramifications that go along with all this. Oy! It’s just too much for me to process in the supermarket and still be able to operate those warm and fuzzy self-checkout gizmos. No wonder pharmaceuticals are doing well these days.

Out of the market I came, bird-less. The good news is that I went home and made a hearty root vegetable stew with wild rice and minted yogurt instead—quite tasty if I do say so myself. But this experience led me to speak with many of my friends about the great chicken dilemma. From my very unscientific polling, the most common comment I heard was that everyone wants to use free-range (local, if possible) or organic chicken, and enjoys using “real” birds when they find them. The second most common comment was that finding such a creature can be a real challenge.

next column =>

Quite a number of higher-end grocers, á la Whole Foods, and small independents are stocking free-range organic birds. Another favorite poultry producer of mine is Springfield Farms in Sparks, Maryland, where David and Lily Smith raise and process free-range chicken in a beautiful, almost idyllic setting. Beyond all the political ramifications of what kind of chicken to buy, Dave and Lily maintain that the biggest factor is—and should be —taste. And they are right. Try a free-range, all-natural variety next to a conventional factory-farm chicken and there really is no contest.

Folks who are having trouble finding a store that carries the natural chicken may try an approach that is gaining popularity in suburban D.C. Neighbors get together and form a buying club to order chicken and other meats from small local producers, who deliver the orders on a regular schedule to a predetermined location. This is similar to the community supported agriculture (CSA) model where farmers drop off produce weekly for their supporting members.

Another often-repeated comment in my chicken poll concerned price. Many people perceive free-range, local chicken as expensive. And it is more expensive initially, but really need not be depending on how we use the chicken. A friend of mine, Joan Cade, who grew up with a large family on the Stony Creek remembers that their chicken supper really needed to stretch to feed the clan. Her rather clever mother would announce at the start of the meal that she would be making the family’s favorite dish, chicken croquettes, with the leftovers. Joan said that everyone ate sensibly to ensure there would be leftover meat for the anticipated croquettes. Psychologists today call this delayed gratification— something many of us could use a little more of.

During the Great Chicken Survey I asked folks what they would do with a big roasting chicken to stretch the dollar. For most, roasting the chicken would be the first meal, follow by recipes such as chicken soup with dumplings, chicken pot pie, chicken salad and chicken casseroles made with noodles and lots of fresh vegetables. Nancy Milner of Baltimore told me that instead of roasting her chicken she puts it on the Weber grill, then turns the smoky leftover chicken into enchiladas and topping for spinach salad or homemade pizza. My hair stylist Candice Fishpaw uses her leftovers to fashion tacos, chicken cacciatore, or just a good old-fashioned chicken sandwich with mayo.

The bottom line is: eating delicious, free-range chicken need not be expensive if you plan well and make the most out of the flavorful bird. The majority of recipes using leftover chicken are paired with veggies and grains that are good for you and always vary with the season. So take the free-range (local) chicken pledge and whip up some tried and true family recipes—as well as new creations to call your own