Discover 9 Delectable Fun Facts About Julia Child: The Culinary Queen of Paris and Beyond

1. Shark Repellent Recipe

Before she was whipping up culinary delights, Julia Child was busy outsmarting nature's very own Jaws: During WWII, Child's work with the Office of Strategic Services led to the creation of a shark repellent to protect downed pilots from ruthless underwater predators, which she later joked as penning her "first recipe" in her cooking career.
Source => intelligence.gov

2. Discovering Love & Cuisine

They say the way to a man's heart is through his stomach, and Julia Child was certainly no exception to this delicious rule of thumb: When she met her husband-to-be, Paul, who hailed from a food-loving family, she discovered her true calling as she tossed aside her old cook-less ways, and ventured into the world of culinary delights, only to eventually serve up a piping hot plate of French cuisine to America with her debut cookbook, Mastering the Art of French Cooking, and her legendary television show, The French Chef.
Source => en.wikipedia.org

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=> Fun Facts about Cooking

3. The Great Mayonnaise Mystery

While one may imagine Julia Child and her husband engaging in heated mayonnaise debates on the cobblestone streets of Paris, a discrepancy over the right amount of dijon may have piqued their passions but never landed in an official account: In her book, My Life in France, Julia Child discusses her painstaking efforts and determination in perfecting her famously delectable mayonnaise recipe, taking months to achieve culinary bliss, but never mentions any marital mayonnaise squabbles.
Source => goodreads.com

4. The Magical Culinary Haven

If Julia Child's kitchen could talk, it would surely say, "Bon Appétit!": This culinary haven within her iconic gray Cambridge abode not only served as the heart of her home but also as the muse behind her revolutionary first cookbook, Mastering the Art of French Cooking.
Source => alexprudhomme.com

5. DIY Pot Rack Inspiration

"Wall-hung cookware connoisseurs, eat your hearts out: Julia Child once inspired a resourceful woman to create her own DIY pot rack using a humble pegboard and hooks! Displaying her pots and pans within easy reach of her stove, she emulated the culinary legend's knack for thoughtfully designed kitchens, even though the particular pot rack wasn't part of Julia's original blueprint.
Source => carterfood.wordpress.com

6. Top-Secret Shark Fighter

Before she was cooking up a storm in the kitchen, Julia Child was on a top-secret mission to protect her country from sharks: During World War II, she worked for the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) as a research assistant, where she developed an experimental shark repellent that is still in use today, and received an award for her "drive and inherent cheerfulness" while dutifully typing over 10,000 names on white note cards to keep track of officers.
Source => en.wikipedia.org

7. Gas-tastic Kitchen Adventures

Little did we know, Julia Child was cooking up a gas-tastic storm in her culinary laboratory, with fire-breathing dragons included: Her magical kitchen at the National Museum of American History boasts an original six-burner Garland gas commercial range, purchased with her husband for $429 in 1956, and fiercely used till its donation to the museum in 2001.
Source => americanhistory.si.edu

8. Superpowered Soups

If Julia Child had a superpower, it would be souperpower! She'd whip up soups to make even Captain America's shield quiver in delight: Julia Child's favorite food was the classic French vichyssoise soup, made with potatoes, leeks, chicken stock, and cream. In fact, her last meal was French onion soup, albeit prepared by her assistant Stephanie Hersh and not featuring homemade croutons or her signature generous dollop of butter. Still, her culinary prowess remained unshaken, even starting a new cooking series on PBS with Jacques Pepin at the sprightly age of 85.
Source => thedailymeal.com

9. A Publishing Dare Turned Success

From a publishing dare gone rogue to the pièce de résistance of the culinary world: Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking faced the wrath of the chopping block when Houghton Mifflin turned up their nose at it. But the indomitable Judith Jones of Alfred A. Knopf was there to whisk it away to stardom, transforming it into an American classic, just like the delicious crepes it teaches you to make.
Source => en.wikipedia.org