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Food's better on a stick, cookbook author says

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By JEFF HOUCK | The Tampa Tribune

Published: June 21, 2011

THIS JUST IN: Scientific research shows that food served on a stick just tastes better.

That's what Matt Armendariz writes in his new book, "On a Stick!" ($16.95, Quirk).

OK. That's not exactly true, he admits.

Research or no, he says, just about everyone anecdotally confirms it anyway. Maybe it's because food on a stick tends to be eaten in fun circumstances. You don't exactly eat it by yourself in a dark corner of the kitchen.

"It's meant to be enjoyed in fun surroundings, at parties, at state fairs," Armendariz says. "Therefore, it's going to taste better."

Mankind has cooked food on sticks probably since the invention of fire. It's an easy way to cook. It holds whatever you're cooking in place. It's a bona fide cooking method. But let's face it: It's a lot of fun to think of crazy things to put on a stick. Even the most serious gourmand has to crack a smile at a tooth-sticking candy apple or a cute-as-a-bunny cake pop.

A Los Angeles-based food photographer and stylist, Armendariz began exploring stick-based food after considering a book about street fare. He changed courses after realizing the common denominator was that it all was served on a stick.

The easy thing would have been to do a book of stunt eating, with page after page of fair food. Pork chops on a stick. Candy bars on a stick. Fried butter on a stick. One trip to the bizarre-eating frenzy that is the Minnesota State Fair would have done the trick.

What he opted for instead was balance. For every Frozen Elvis peanut butter and banana covered in chocolate on a stick, he includes a Chinese meatball or coconut shrimp recipe. Stuffed olives are a natural for party platters. So are Japanese yakitori skewers.

"It's a novelty to eat on a stick, and it's fun and silly, but I wanted to include things you would want to make again," he says.

The type of stick used in cooking also has importance. Armendariz offers a skewer guide in the book as well.

Meat and fish do well with a sprig of rosemary skewers. Candy sticks are fun for dessert pops. Sugarcane is not only organic, it brings a sweetness that balances the flavor of grilled foods. Plus, you can eat it afterward.

"It's also perfect for heavier foods," he said.

Since the book came out, readers have thrown more suggestions his way.

"(Someone said to me), 'I want to see you do chicken noodle soup on a stick.' And I said, 'You can't do that.' And now I'm thinking, 'Well, maybe you could!' Who knows?"

jhouck@tampatrib.com (813) 259-7324

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