Becky Selengut (born October 5, 1970) is an American chef, author and cooking instructor based in

Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is the List of municipalities in Washington, most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the List of Unit ...

. Known for her work in sustainable cooking, culinary education, and foraging, Selengut has authored cookbooks, including ''Good Fish'', ''Shroom'', ''How to Taste'', ''Misunderstood Vegetables'', and ''Not One Shrine''. She was an

International Association of Culinary Professionals The International Association of Culinary Professionals (IACP) is a United States–based not-for-profit professional association whose members work in culinary education, communication, or the preparation of food and beverage. It was started in 19 ...

Award finalist for her book Good Fish. She has also served as an adjunct professor in the Culinary and Nutrition Department at

Bastyr University Bastyr University is a private alternative medicine university with campuses in Kenmore, Washington, and San Diego, California. Programs include naturopathy, acupuncture, Traditional Asian medicine, nutrition, herbal medicine, ayurvedic medic ...

, taught as an instructor for

PCC Natural Markets Puget Consumers Co-op, doing business as PCC Community Markets, is a food cooperative based in Seattle, Washington. With over 114,000 members, it is the largest consumers' co-operative, consumer-owned food cooperative in the United States. Both m ...

, and spent ten years teaching at The Pantry Cooking School. She has contributed on

NPR National Public Radio (NPR) is an American public broadcasting organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It serves as a national Radio syndication, syndicator to a network of more ...

and her articles published on

Serious Eats Serious Eats is a website and blog focused on food enthusiasts, created by food critic and author Ed Levine. A Serious Eats book was published by Levine in 2011. Serious Eats was acquired by Fexy Media in 2015 and then by Dotdash in late 2020. ...

and ''Eating Well''.

Early life and education

Selengut was raised in

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

, where she developed an early passion for cooking inspired by her grandmother. She completed her alma mater at

Blair Academy Blair Academy is a coeducational, boarding and day school for students in high school. The school serves students from ninth through twelfth grades as well as a small post-graduate class. The school's campus is located on a campus in Blairst ...

. Selengut studied sociology at

Hobart and William Smith Colleges Hobart and William Smith Colleges is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Geneva, New York. They trace their origins to Geneva Academy established in 1797. Students can choose from ove ...

, where she was also a member of the 1989-90 William Smith Basketball roster. Selengut’s initial goal of becoming a surgeon led her to a career in

public health Public health is "the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life and promoting health through the organized efforts and informed choices of society, organizations, public and private, communities and individuals". Analyzing the de ...

. She later moved to Seattle from

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, to enroll in the

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW and informally U-Dub or U Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington, United States. Founded in 1861, the University of Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast of the Uni ...

's School of Medicine. She worked at a doctor's office while waiting to establish residency for in-state tuition. She became interested in culinary arts after seeing chefs in the area, eventually pursuing this new path. She graduated from the Seattle Culinary Academy with top honors in 1999.

Career

After completing her studies at the Seattle Culinary Academy, Selengut worked in various Seattle restaurants, including the internationally renowned Herbfarm Restaurant, where she worked under chef Jerry Traunfeld. She also worked under Chef Sabrina Tinsley at La Spiga. In 2004, she transitioned into private chef work and culinary education, founding her business ''Cornucopia'', which offers private chef services and cooking classes. In 2006, she created the educational website Seasonal Cornucopia, which provided resources on seasonal ingredients and their culinary uses. In addition to her work as a private chef, Selengut has engaged in diverse culinary projects, such as cooking aboard a yacht, foraging tours, and working with

immigrants Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not usual residents or where they do not possess nationality in order to settle as permanent residents. Commuters, tourists, and other short- ...

and

refugee A refugee, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), is a person "forced to flee their own country and seek safety in another country. They are unable to return to their own country because of feared persecution as ...

s to help them find employment in the

food industry The food industry is a complex, global network of diverse businesses that supplies most of the food consumed by the world's population. The food industry today has become highly diversified, with manufacturing ranging from small, traditional, ...

. She has also taught cooking classes at various institutions, including

and

. Selengut taught at The Pantry Cooking School for 10 years, where she developed and taught courses such as the Misunderstood Vegetables''' class. She has authored several cookbooks, primarily focusing on

sustainability Sustainability is a social goal for people to co-exist on Earth over a long period of time. Definitions of this term are disputed and have varied with literature, context, and time. Sustainability usually has three dimensions (or pillars): env ...

foraging Foraging is searching for wild food resources. It affects an animal's fitness because it plays an important role in an animal's ability to survive and reproduce. Foraging theory is a branch of behavioral ecology that studies the foraging behavi ...

, and exploring underutilized food items. Selengut co-authored ''The Washington Local and Seasonal Cookbook'' in 2008, highlighting regional and seasonal ingredients. Her second book, ''Good Fish: Sustainable Seafood Recipes from the Pacific Coast'' (2011), emphasizes the importance of sustainable seafood practices and was an IACP (

) book award finalist. ''Good Fish'' was also named one of the best cookbooks of 2011 by ''

Seattle Magazine Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the count ...

'' and a notable read by

. The book was later rereleased in an updated edition in 2018. In 2014, Selengut published ''Shroom: Mind-Bendingly Good Recipes for Cultivated and Wild Mushrooms'', named one of

's top 10 cookbooks of the year. This book explores the culinary uses of cultivated and wild mushrooms, showcasing a wide variety of flavors and textures. She released her fifth book, ''How to Taste: The Curious Cook’s Handbook to Seasoning and Balance, From Umami to Acid and Beyond'' in 2018. The book has also been released in both Taiwanese and Chinese editions. In 2024, Selengut released ''Misunderstood Vegetables,'' which focuses on lesser-known vegetables such as rutabaga, kohlrabi, and burdock root. The book has received critical acclaim, including a favorable review by Florence Fabricant in ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

''. Selengut has appeared in various media outlets, including

, and has written for publications such as ''

'' and ''Eating Well''. She was the co-host of the Field to Fork podcast, which highlighted local food topics in the Pacific Northwest. In addition to her written work, she has also given talks and keynotes on sustainability, cooking, and foraging. In 2010, Selengut co-hosted a podcast called ''Look Inside This Book Club'', where she and her co-host Matthew Amster-Burton humorously reviewed romance novels based solely on their "look inside" previews. Selengut’s work reflects on sustainable cooking practices and advocates for environmental consciousness in the culinary world. In addition to her work in cooking education, Selengut has maintained a strong connection to her alma mater,

, where she returned in October 2019 to give a talk as part of the Society of Skeptics lecture series.

Personal life

Selengut is married to April Pogue, a sommelier and general manager who previously worked at Loulay in Seattle under chef Thierry Rautureau, as well as other high-profile establishments.

Bibliography

* * * * * * *

References

External links

Becky Selengut
at

Becky Selengut
at EatingWell
Becky Selengut's Official YouTube ChannelBecky Selengut How to clean a geoduck
{{DEFAULTSORT:Selengut, Becky 1970 births Living people American cookbook writers American women chefs LGBTQ people from New Jersey Hobart and William Smith Colleges alumni Blair Academy alumni Writers from New Jersey American food writers American women food writers American non-fiction writers