“dry-brining turkey.” How Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris is using her cooking skills as a political strategy

Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, has the potential to become the first president to have a platform on dry-brining turkey if she wins the election in November.

She advocates for the application of butter and herbs beneath the epidermis.

Harris has impressed actor Mindy Kaling with a surgically precise onion julienne. “I say this with respect, you’re kind of a show off,” Kaling told Harris in an online video. She has engaged in discussions regarding food policy with celebrity chef Tom Colicchio, instructed a Senate colleague on tuna melts, and baked oatmeal cookies with a campaign aide during her political career.

When Harris visited Kaling’s kitchen in 2020, she expressed her utmost dedication to the culinary arts, stating, “I take it very seriously.”

When Harris was a child, her mother advised her that she should acquire the ability to cook, as anyone who had a passion for cuisine would need to know how to prepare it. Harris continued to cook as she matured into a national figure. The vice president transformed a passion for baking, broiling, and sautéing, which could have undermined the chances of female politicians from a previous generation, into a political asset..

Jennifer L. Lawless, a professor of political science at the University of Virginia, stated that the United States is currently in a position where it is feasible for a female candidate, even one who is running for the highest office, to be entirely genuine about the significance of cookery to her.

Winning favors through food

Since the declaration of independence, there has been an association between American politics and food. Numerous farmers were among the nation’s pioneering politicians. They were in the food industry.

Adrian Miller, a culinary writer who is currently composing a book about Asian American chefs at the White House, stated that George Washington was hosting barbecues during his campaign for office.

In the early years of the republic, women who were prohibited from voting also employed cooking as a means of influencing policy. Women baked the traditional “election cake” and distributed the beer to the men who congregated to cast their ballots.

“Because they were preparing the food, the women were able to influence whoever they needed,” stated KC Hysmith, a food scholar who is the editor of the periodical Penknife.

Food became a means for politicians to establish connections with local communities as the nation expanded and immigrants introduced a broader selection of foods to the United States. It could also go disastrously awry, as evidenced by the instances in which President Gerald Ford attempted to consume a tamale that was still enclosed in its corn husk or when John Kerry ordered a cheesesteak with a slice of “fancy” Swiss cheese while stumping in Philadelphia.

The use of cooking as a political instrument
It was not that long ago that women in politics had no interest in the kitchen. Hillary Clinton informed the media that she elected to pursue a career rather than remain at home to bake cookies when her husband was running for president in 1992.

“Gender politics have dissipated quite a bit in U.S. politics,” Lawless asserted. “It allows women to do the kinds of things they feel comfortable doing.”

Harris’ kitchen is evidently a source of comfort and even pleasure for her.

According to Lawless, the number of women in Congress has multiplied over the past two decades. A greater number of women have been elected to state legislatures and as administrators. Stereotypes have dissipated as these women have demonstrated alternative methods of becoming successful politicians.

Today, cooking is a national fixation in the United States, and this sentiment has only intensified since the COVID-19 pandemic necessitated individuals to prepare their own meals when restaurants were temporarily closed.

“Consider the multitude of sourdough starters that are currently residing in various locations across the nation.” Jessica Harris, the author of the Netflix documentary series “High on the Hog,” stated, “We developed a connection with cooking and began to appreciate its meditative qualities.”

The prevalence of sharing social media cooking videos also increased during the pandemic.

Politicians frequently encounter difficulties when attempting to establish a connection with younger electors through the use of social media. However, Harris has discovered a method of interacting with social media that is consistent with her demeanor through her Instagram chats with chefs and YouTube cooking videos.

“What’s cool about the food world on social media is that there are all ages doing things in that space,” according to Hysmith.

Salutations to the chef.
If Harris is elected president, is it possible for her to continue cooking after she relocates to the White House?

There is a precedent.

President Dwight D. Eisenhower was a passionate gourmet who grilled steaks on the White House roof.

“People would be walking down Pennsylvania Avenue, see smoke coming out of the White House and think it was on fire,” according to Miller.

Miller, a culinary writer who previously worked in the Clinton administration, would recommend that Harris continue to post cooking videos if she were to become president. He observed that Jacqueline Kennedy incorporated a small kitchen into the residential wing of the White House.

Miller recommended that she engage in culinary conversations with both ordinary Americans and other U.S. and international politicians.