Editorial Review

Reviews

An extraordinary book!, October 12, 2008
I recently added this book to my cookbook collection, which numbers more than 1,000 volumes (probably more like 1200 but I'm still cataloging). It has immediately become one of my favorites (and definitely my #1 favorite in English). If you are a serious cook, love to read cookbooks like novels, and view recipes as suggestions rather than as requiring strict adherence to precise measurements, then this is the book for you! (Did I say I LOVE this book?)

I make all of the desserts for my husband's restaurant. If I snag some particularly luscious fruit and want to make it into a dessert, this is the book I reach for first. I don't WANT to be told how to make a fruit sorbet. I already know how. But I love having a list of suggested flavors and products that go with what I already have. It's like having an uber-creative friend at your side saying "hey, why not try THIS?"

And if you are not an experienced cook, this book provides invaluable guidance that a recipe book never could. It is wholly different from every food book I have ever read.

The book is clever, useful, and obviously the product of prodigious research. To the authors, I send my humble gratitude. You have made my life immeasurably easier, and my dishes far more interesting than ever before.

This book is a must-read if you love to eat or love to cook. I have already bought six copies and have given two as gifts. It's THAT good.

Amazing Answer to a Prayer, October 15, 2008
Bought this book w/o a whole lot of information about it. Can't believe it -- I now have the resource I've been looking for --

I'm a cook with some years of experience, a huge cookbook collection, a list of classes taught by renowned experts and cookbook writers, and still I yearned for a reference that gave me the info on what goes with what (w/o me researching my whole library or classnotes. I guess I need "permissions" and this book gave it to me.

Tonight I made redfish (snapper in the book) with a crust of almonds, chives, parsley and dill (methodology learned in all those classes). Served w a favorite zuchinni recipe that included the "go-to" ingredients for snapper, and roasted potatoes with light sprinkling of rosemary and salt (again, a "go-to" herb for the main dish).

It wasn't overkill (my worry) -- it just plain worked and I did it w/o a single recipe. Cut my cooking time in half and raised my personal culinary "thermometer" by a ton of degrees.

If you cook, know methodology and are looking for a silent but knowledgeable help in the kitchen, buy this book. It's a gem!!!

Flavor, because you can't live on Bread and Water alone, September 16, 2008
Flavor is the basis for all food, without it, the world would seem less colorful, lifeless, and bland. Food isn't just about what you can taste in your mouth but also what you can see with your eyes, what you smell with your nose and what you feel in your heart. That's what is presented in this book. (The authors wrote two other acclaimed books, Culinary Artistry and What to Drink with What You Eat.)

Culinary Artistry showcased was that food can be art. That colors structure on a plate can evoke emotions the same as any other art work. And like any art work, is in the eye of the beholder.

What to Drink with What You Eat gave us the understanding that beverages (not just wine) can be paired and should be thought of as a condiment rather than an afterthought

The Flavor Bible talks about, well, flavor; but more then that, it talks about what flavor is and how we perceive it, receive it, balance it and emphasize it. All coming to the climax which is a very in depth list (3/4ths of the book) of ingredients detailing its profile (weak, strong), seasonality, and every herb, spice, fruit, vegetable, meat, fish, poultry and alcoholic related item and what would go exceptionally well with it.

So, if it is so good, why did I give it only 4 stars? The list for the most part is just an update from Culinary Artistry; most flavor companions haven't change since the days of Escoffier. The "new" list does give mention of the seasonality of produce and also the break down of different cuts of meat such as beef, lamb, pork, and poultry into their respected parts and given their own listings.

Culinary Artistry was my best friend going through culinary school and now I have a great addition that I am sure I'll end up burning through as well. I look to this book every time I cook to add that extra something to a dish. So if you are even the slightest bit interested in cooking or making good food taste even better then you can't go wrong buying this book.

Great reference when experimenting with flavors, December 3, 2008
I absolutely love this book! I first discovered it when it was cited as a reference for a cookbook and am glad I did. While I am not a trained chef, I am an avid home cook that enjoys writing my own recipes, experimenting with foods, and as of late, entering recipe contests. This book helps me be more daring in my flavor combinations and has inspired new recipes.

The first section of the book is a great introduction to flavor. It talks about what is perceived by the mouth, what is perceived by the nose, and my personal favorite, what is perceived by the heart, mind, and spirit. It has great passages from chefs from all over the country talking about things like balancing flavor.

The second section expands on this further by talking about things like seasonality, taste, weight, volume, function, region, and flavor affinities. This helps set up the flavor matching chart since many of these dimensions are used to describe key aspects of each ingredient.

The final section, and bulk of the book, is comprised of matchmaking charts. Simply look up a listing alphabetically and you will be presented with a list of ingredients that pair well with it as well as 'flavor affinities' that include the featured ingredient with more than two additional ingredients. This book gives you the ability to look up cheeses, chile peppers, cuisines, fishes, flavorings, fruits, herbs, ingredients, meats, oils, peppers, salts, spices, tastes, vegetables, vinegars and more! Overall these charts are very extensive and include a variety of ingredients from around the world. If you are interested in an ingredient there is a good chance you will find it in here. Also in this section you will find different tips and comments from Chefs that relate to the ingredients as well as examples of dishes (without recipes) that incorporate the ingredient. These can be great in bringing the combinations to life and jump starting ideas.

It is also worth noting that this is really a reference book. There are no recipes in this book. However, this does not bother me at all as I have tons of cookbooks and come to this book when I want to create something on my own.

This is quite a fantastic reference book that I cannot say enough about! I believe it is something that an avid cook who likes to experiment and create their own recipes would find not only helpful, but enjoyable to have in the kitchen.

Interesting combinations...., January 10, 2009
This book has a short introduction with comments from many great chef's giving snippets of sundry approaches to balancing taste. It contains an overview of what goes into "flavor": taste, mouth feel, aroma, plus "the x-factor"(our emotional reaction including presentation, associations, etc.). But the "meat" (pardon the pun) of the book is a listing of most of the common flavorings with lists of flavors that compliment each other. The listings are also interspersed with advice from famous chefs. The authors are not fans of traditional recipes so do not expect "cook by numbers". However, the authors are students of flavoring, so do expect many suggestions for ways to be more creative (or, more systematic and sophisticated in your creativity).

Positives: the introduction is a fun and quickly read, the advice from the chefs is excellent, the flavor combinations are very helpful (I have several new developments underway) and the listings are quite comprehensive (there are a few ingredients missing -- like one quoted chef recommends palm sugar which is not listed, but as it is not available locally either that may make little difference).

Negatives: lack of an index. The flavors are alphabetical, but good luck finding a specific tidbit from a favorite chef. It glances on, but only glances on technique. It would be helpful to flesh out how to get different flavors out of the same ingredients by changing technique.

Overall: a fun book that spurs creativity. I recommend it -- but will not give five stars to any reference without an index.

The next step in the evolution of a cook, August 17, 2009
I started learning to cook by following recipes that were either handed down to me or that I got out of a cookbook or magazine. When comparing this method to professional chefs who pull together wonderful, creative dishes with seemingly effortless ease it seems amateurish and simplistic, however it is a necessary phase. By following recipes I learned crucial techniques as well as what a well prepared meal should look and taste like.

The next phase started when I tried to create my own recipes by first substituting one ingredient for another and later by going off the reservation completely by trying food combinations that I had never encountered in my recipes. Sometimes this worked, sometimes it led to disaster. Enter The Flavor Bible.

A few reviewers have criticized this book for being a mere collection of lists of ingredients. Far from that, I see it as the Rosetta Stone for serious home cooks and professional chefs alike. As I have learned to use fresh, locally grown foods more I am often searching for a way to combine them. Trying to find a recipe that allows me to take advantage of a bumper crop of artichokes, sweet onions and garden grown thyme can be challenging. By using The Flavor Bible I look up artichokes and I can see what ingredients compliment it and I can put together a great tasting dish. However, this is only one element of the book.

Beside listing ingredients and pairing them with other flavors the book also lists cuisines that make use of the ingredient in question. You may also look up a specific cuisine (Indian, Thai, Tex-Mex, Moroccan, etc.) and find commonly used ingredients, Flavor Affinities and often, a paragraph or two from a professional chef. Something else that I liked was that you could look up seasons (summer, winter, etc.) and find what foods are best served when it is hot or cold outside.

The photographs (by Barry Salzman) are top notch and very inspirational. There are not very many of them but I don't think that there needs to be since this is not a cookbook you don't need to see what a particular dish is supposed to look like when completed.

If you are still a little rusty on technique and are unsure about relative proportions you may not be ready for this book. If however you have graduated from only using the recipes of others and would like to explore unique and wonderful flavor combinations, I couldn't recommend this book any higher.

A Great Reference for Experimental Cooking, March 24, 2009
This book is for the person who wants to understand flavor combinations, and a good assist toward cullinary creativity. It's definitely for the more experienced chef - it is assumed that the reader has an understanding of how to work with ingredients to make the classic flavor combinations that are recommended in the book. For example, the book will tell you that carrots and lime go well together. It does not tell you whether to chop, puree or juice the carrots, use lime juice or zest, or what other ingredients to combine with them. That's the part that's up to your creativity as a chef. Get into the kitchen and go wild!

Love Love this book, September 18, 2008
This book is the answer to most of your combination questions.I have created my own recipes from just looking up what I have on hand (anything from a meat to veggies and the book helps you combine just the right flavors.Have already given it as gifts!Love love this book,I spend time just dreaming up new dinners for my family.

The Perfect Book for Real Cooks, October 11, 2008
The Flavor Bible: The Essential Guide to Culinary Creativity, Based on the Wisdom of America's Most Imaginative Chefs This is a book for real cooks who want to explore new tastes. It's for people who love to play around in the kitchen, who go to their local farmer's market and find fresh romaine lettuce or chanterelle mushrooms and want to create something different. It's for individualists who don't want to be bound by someone else's recipe, but want to make an original dish of their own, guided by the world's great chefs.

I love this book, even though its not really a book!, September 4, 2010
It's more of a compendium of alphabetical listings of foods that are paired together. The format basically goes something like this:

Blueberries
Season: spring-summer
Taste: sour-sweet
Botanical relatives: huckleberries
Weight: light
Volume: quiet-moderate
Techniques: cooked, raw
Tips: Can subtitute huckleberries

allspice
almonds
apricots
bananas
blackberries
butter, unsalted
buttermilk
chocolate, white
CINNAMON
cinnamon basil
cloves...


It is like a book that is a giant index, which refers you to things that can pair well. This book is more for people who have a willingness to experiment. It gives pointers on what other people think might go good with an item, such as blueberries. You have to figure out your own proportions. Of course, responsible cooks probably want to taste the food they serve beforehand anyways. ;)
... Read more

Editorial Review

A fascinating exploration of the inside world of sommeliers, sharing their unique perspectives, extensive expertise, and best stories.

Rajat Parr’s profound knowledge of wines, deep relationships with producers, and renowned tasting abilities have made him a legend in the business. As wine director for the Mina Group, Parr presides over the lists at some of the country’s top restaurants. In Secrets of the Sommeliers, Parr and journalist Jordan Mackay present a fascinating portrait of the world’s top wine professionals and their trade. The authors interviewed the elite of the sommelier community, and their colleagues’ insights, recommendations, and entertaining stories are woven throughout, along with Parr’s own takes on his profession and favorite winemakers and wines. Along the way, the authors give an immersion course in tasting and serving wine; share strategies for securing hard-to-find bottles at a good price and identifying value sweetspots among the many regions; and teach readers how to make inspired food pairings. ... Read more

Reviews

Chock full of good advice, November 2, 2010
Let's start with the worst part of this book: the title. I had to hold my nose and buy it despite the horrible do it yourself, self improvement/self congratulatory vibe of that clumsy moniker. But don't let that keep you from buying this informative and entertaining book, whether you are in the wine trade, a serious amateur, or just a wanna be.

Ed Anderson's excellent photography is one of the draws. There are some really stunning portraits of Dominique Lafon, Jean-Marc Roulot, Freddy Mugnier, Etienne de Montille and others.

Another plus is the collection of biographical sketches of a number of high profile sommeliers -- Larry Stone, Rajat Parr, Daniel Johnnes, Kevin Zraly and others. It's always interesting to read how other people found their true calling.

But the most valuable part of the book is the common sense advice about buying wine, where to find it, and how to cellar and serve it; along with insights into the day to day joys, trials and tribulations of the folks who serve the stuff up in tony restaurants across the land. There are brief profiles of the great wine grapes and the best examples of each -- pinot noir, cabernet, merlot, cabernet franc, and so on. A discussion of the pros and cons of buying wine at auction, and how to find the best deals by avoiding the 'blue chip' names and vintages and using your wine knowledge to get value for money. A discussion of wine and food matching. How to pick your way through a restaurant wine list to find the hidden treasures to be found in just about every good list.

It's a fun ride. Well worth reading.

Approachable book to an intriguing culture, December 22, 2010
A great book
Some of the other reviewers completely missed the point of this book. Yes, there's a strong focus on Burgundy and on fine wine in general, but that's what sommeliers do. It's not meant to be a book to teach how you to buy Shiraz at the grocery store, but rather how to blind taste, pair and shop for classic wines. There's no snobbery here, just a love of the truest, purest wines, something I want to know about, and the authors here deliver the goods. In addition, there's stuff here that never gets address, such how to properly serve wine to make your dinner parties better, how to pair with different kinds of fish, and how to recognize different varieties in a blind tasting. I learned so much from this book.

bona fide buy, December 23, 2010
Approachable for the amateur and engaging for the expert- the foundation of a remarkable read. Secrets of the Sommeliers is succinctly informative, rationally candid and reveals true stories that are downright juicy (yet under 14% abv).

Not your typical wine book, December 21, 2010
Many of the wine books out there are either straight buying guides, which can be useful but make for dull reading; or they are doorstop-style reference books that are valuable for experts but generally TMI for everyone else. Parr's book gives consumers loads of great info on buying and appreciating wines, layered with an in-depth behind the scenes look into the world of fine wine services, from the perspective of someone who has total access. His personal story is fascinating, as are the portraits of some of the top sommeliers from around the country. It's a great read for aspiring professionals and pretty much anyone who has an interest in the wine world.

Secrets of the Sommeliers: How to Think and Drink Like the World's Top Wine Professionals, December 22, 2010
Not a very good title. There are no real secrets. Many books have been written about these "secrets" before.
The book is simply arrogant. If you like Burgundy, it is helpful. It got a star for that. I love Burgundy as well. My advise: either wait a year and get it for $5.00 or buy a more interesting wine book. Not very well written either.

Instead of the book, buy a bottle of wine, December 13, 2010
As I sat in the airport opening this book, a fellow passenger remarked: "Rajat Parr is an *******." Hmmm. After a two hour flight, I really couldn't disagree with him. You see, this is another nose-in-the-air book about wine snobbery for wine snobs. Admittedly, there are a few hints at collecting and conserving, but nothing that isn't covered in the first chapter of Parker's guide. What is disturbingly apparent is that Mr. Parr and his colleagues truly believe they're saving lives with wine selections. They're so arrogant as to decide, in making their own wines, that they can do better than the best. It's an incestuous group who believe that we all long to be like them. We've seen the celebrification of Chefs. I guess this was inevitable.

Only for Burgundy Lovers, December 21, 2010
I am a long time wine lover and was very excited to read this book. I was very disappointed when the book focused almost exclusively on Burgundy wines. The author is clearly a lover of the region, but it was annoying that so little time was spent on Napa or Bordeaux. Waste of money unless you are a lover Burgundy. ... Read more

Editorial Review

From the legendary editor of some of the world’s greatest cooks—including Julia Child and James Beard—a passionate and practical book about the joys of cooking for one.

Here, in convincing fashion, Judith Jones demonstrates that cooking for yourself presents unparalleled possibilities for both pleasure and experimentation: you can utilize whatever ingredients appeal, using farmers’ markets and specialty shops to enrich your palate and improve your health; you can feel free to fail, since a meal for one doesn’t have to be perfect; and you can use leftovers to innovate—in the course of a week, the remains of beef bourguignon might be reimagined as a ragù, pork tenderloin may become a stir-fry, a cup or two of wild rice produces both a refreshing pilaf and a rich pancake, and red snapper can be reinvented as a summery salad. It’s a fulfilling and immensely economical process, one perfectly suited for our times—although, as Jones points out, cooking for one also means we can occasionally indulge ourselves in a favorite treat.

Throughout, Jones is both our instructor and our mentor, suggesting basic recipes—such as tomato sauce, preserved lemons, pesto, and homemade stock—that all cooks should have on hand; teaching us how to improvise using an ingenious strategy of building meals through the week; and supplying us with a lifetime’s worth of tips and shortcuts. From Child’s advice for buying fresh meat to Beard’s challenge to beginning crêpe-makers and Lidia Bastianich’s tips for cooking perfectly sauced pasta, Jones’s book presents a wealth of acquired knowledge from our finest cooks.

The Pleasures of Cooking for One is a vibrant, wise celebration of food and enjoying our own company from one of our most treasured cooking experts. ... Read more

Reviews

Best Cooking for 1 cookbook, October 4, 2009
I have several other "cooking for 1" cookbooks and have found many good recipes there. But this is the cookbook I've been waiting for. Ms. Jones has shown me how to take ingredients that cannot be purchased in small quantities and re-use these imaginatively to create entirely different meals.

For example, a pork tenderloin becomes a small roast, scallopine, a gratinate, hash, and stir fry. Her examples have encouraged me to improvise myself. I can envisage a BBQ pork sandwich, a pasty with leftover pork tenderloin, skirt steak and potatoes.

She encourages playing with the recipes to create a meal exactly to your own tastes. Several of her recipes also include vegetable substitution recommendations allowing for seasonal meals. Or, if you're like me and can't stand a particular vegetable then you can swap it for something more palatable.

This cookbook creates a solid foundation for enabling a cook's creativity. Highly recommended.

Rest assured, this is not just for singles., October 1, 2009
Judith Jones is truly "having a moment," which is a wonderful thing. This new book is sort of an offshoot of her earlier memoir, which had a short but terrific recipe section. It is a sublime book--thoughtfully designed, detailed but not pedantic, practical, accessible, utterly personal, and completely charming. I'm not sure there is another book out there like this one, which takes us shopping and then into the kitchen to make the most of both common items and ingredients or dishes it might never have occurred to us to try. I can't wait to try most all of them. Of course, a little simple math will ratchet up a recipe for 1-2 to a recipe for 3-4 and so on--so this is absolutely a book for all cooks. The author does, however, sympathize with the plight of the single shopper and eater--supermarkets usually work to package more than we can possibly eat at one sitting. Short of a perpetual dinner party, what is the solution? Stretch the goodies over two or three completely different meals (trust me, this is NOT the same thing as just having leftovers). The title says it all--cooking for one should be every bit as pleasurable as cooking for others--maybe better, as the gaffes become your little secrets (and they are no less tasty). I would add that although the book is beautifully printed on high-quality stock and will make a truly fine gift (I do not work for the publisher--honest), it's no coffee table book. The size is perfect--it'll fit on the counter easily, although you might want one of those stand-up plastic stands to keep it open (and protect it, if that's important to you). All in all, one of the most thoughtful and user-friendly cookbooks I've ever encountered. I read it cover-to-cover, like a novel. Next I'm going shopping.

Inspiring, October 23, 2009
This book is absolutely perfect for anyone who finds themselves cooking for one or two people. Not only are the recipes absolutely wonderful, the recipes for using left-overs are also great. Jones shows you how to shop, stock your pantry and freezer, and make wonderful meals for yourself that don't take forever yet taste like they did. I have over 50 cookbooks, and this is the one I find myself turning to again and again for my daily meals. This is real food - no processed shortcuts, no sacrifices. If you like to cook but think its too much trouble for just one person, get this book and you will have fun in the kitchen again.

Delightful read but recipes are common and old fashion., October 1, 2009
I purchased this book last night at Barnes and Noble after reading about it in O Magazine. Judith Jones writing style is a delight and I enjoyed reading her narrative and folksy hints throught the book.

Unfortunately, I found the recipes in the book to be either common or old fashioned. Many of her main meals dishes call for beef or pork. A few called for liver or sweet meats. I'm not a big fan of red-meat so many of these recipes did not appeal to me. Seafood recipes called for mussels, lobster and fish varieties that are not easily available to me. Her recipes for Indian or Asian style dishes didn't have the same intense flavors as recipes found in Indian/Asian cook books.

I found that the best recipes and hints in the book were featured in the O Magazine article. I'm torn as to whether I'm going to keep this cookbook as I enjoyed the read but was not impressed with the recipes.

like a long conversation with a friendly, experienced home cook, December 6, 2009
I love this book. It is practical and concrete, and addresses my main problem in the kitchen: how to cook for one without either boring myself to tears eating the same leftovers for a week, or wasting food by letting it rot in the 'fridge while I get take-out because I crave variety.

The book reads like a relaxed conversation with an experienced home cook who is generously sharing her expertise. It's not just about cooking, it's about meal planning - how to use the leftovers from one meal to make something completely different and delicious the next night. Intermixed in there are some great traditional recipes that teach classic cooking techniques. Some of these I knew, but some I didn't.

I love that it's not just a bunch of fussy recipes where everything has to be measured exactly. She doesn't have you jamming fresh herbs in a tablespoon. She suggests a splash of this, a pinch of that. She encourages creativity and ingredient substitutions. She's not just giving you recipes to follow, she's teaching you how to think like she does - how to solve the problem of meal planning and cooking for one.

There's another subtle message in this book that's very important: the self-respect implicit in this fundamental form of self-care. This jumped out at me because I help people with emotional eating, and so much of emotional eating comes from lack of self-care, from feeling you don't deserve your own time and energy. She talks about this in the introduction, where she lists the reasons that people don't make nice meals for themselves: "Yes, I like to cook, they say, but I like to cook for OTHERS, to give my friends pleasure. Why would I want to go to all that trouble just for me? My answer is: If you like good food, why not honor yourself enough to make a pleasing meal and relish every mouthful?" I agree!

I highly recommend this book. Even those cooking for more than one will find it useful. What home cook doesn't need ideas for creative ways to use leftovers? This book teaches how to look at home cooking as a process, rather than a series of discrete meals. And it shows you how home cooking can be relaxing and creative rather than a chore.

Sheryl Canter
Author, Normal Eating for Normal Weight

Enticing and Useful, February 22, 2010
I found this cookbook to be delightful. I am a great cook, but being alone and working 11+ hrs a day I seldom cook on weekdays. It is usually a bowl of cereal or some cheese and crackers. This is a pathetic existence. Last week, I made a souffle and had a green salad, it was heaven. I never would have thought of doing it just for me and it only took 30 minutes. I read some of the more critical reviews and quite frankly don't understand them. Since when is classic cooking old fashioned. I don't eat tongue (yuck) and don't eat veal unless I can find it free range which is difficult. But I use a cook book as inspiration. I can always redo a recipe to my preferences. How incredibly boring to have to follow a recipe exactly, Ms. Jones encourages you to deviate as do I. As for leftovers, I love them and like new ideas. I have no problem giving this book 5 stars.

The Frugal Widow's Guide to Eating Well, December 27, 2009
Before finding this book (initially at my local library), I wanted to write a cookbook for other widows about cooking for one in a healthy and frugal way. Judith Jones has written a far better book than I envisioned--not surprising in that she was Julia Child's editor at Knopf. I cooked from the book within eight hours of acquiring it, and purchased it from Amazon before the week was out. I've now made more than ten meals from the recipes in this book and they are all absolutely wonderful. Her genius lies in knowing exactly how much trouble a cook will go to when cooking for one.

Love this Cookbook, December 24, 2009
I have already tried a few recipies from her book and I am very pleased. It is training me to cut down on what I buy and how I cook. I'm not throwing out as much food. I would highly recommend this book to anyone living alone.

superb!, October 18, 2009
My, oh my, this cookbook is like having a friend in the kitchen. It is a testament to all those out there whose passion is good, simple cooking. Judith Jones exemplifies what it means to honor your food. She show great respect for her ingredients and the rhythm of preparing a meal. The food is made to nourish both body and soul, and that fact comes across on every page. No diet police are evident, but that doesn't mean a misjudgement on the side of bad nutrition. So, buy this little gem of a cookbook and sit in your favorite chair. It won't be long until you set your own table with plate and silverware, and perhaps a flower in a bud vase - and walk into your kitchen to cook. Food is, after all, the "stuff of life".

Simply Wonderful, February 20, 2010
I am almost never moved to write a review. It always seems like a lot of trouble. However, my mother heard about The Pleasures of Cooking for One on NPR and immediately thought of me. She bought this book for me as a present. I told her later that in my kitchen, you can always tell which cookbooks are loved, since the pages stick together, and The Pleasures of Cooking for One was sticking after about 3 weeks of use.

As a single woman, living alone, who cooks dinner for herself every night, I am always on the lookout for cooking-for-one-or-two type cookbooks. I am not into eating chili for 5 days straight; I like variety. Judith Jones does a wonderful job of showing you how to take larger cuts of meats and reinvent them throughout the week to have completely new meals. Another reviewer mentioned "leftovers" and I don't think this is really accurate. You use the leftovers to create something new and different. I don't think I have had a single recipe that has turned out poorly. I will grant you (after reading other reviews) that there are some recipes I will probably never make (veal kidneys come to mind). This is because A) I wouldn't know where to find a veal kidney B) I am kind of afraid of kidneys and C) I am not so happy politically with eating veal. That said, most of the recipes in this book are NOT veal kidneys. They are fish and chicken and pork and eggs and steak and veggies. Don't let a couple kidney recipes put you off.

I think the thing I like about this book is how much I have been encouraged to experiment and how many basic techniques I have become comfortable with. I am much more at ease just splashing a little wine into a pan to make a pan sauce instead of carefully measuring out 2 tablespoons of it. I am not a great cook. I am a practical, get-it-on-the-table type cook. During the week, if I can't have it on the table in 30 minutes, it probably won't get made. This book has fed me now, nearly every night, for two months. Always something different, generally easy to put together, and at the end of the week, I don't have mounds of leftovers rotting in the fridge because I didn't feel like eating them. This is a wonderful cookbook. ... Read more

Editorial Review

"A serious reference for serious cooks."
-Thomas Keller, Chef and owner, The French Laundry

Named one of the five favorite culinary books of this decade by Food Arts magazine, The Professional Chef® is the classic resource that many of America's top chefs have relied on to help learn their cooking skills. Now this comprehensive "bible for all chefs" (Paul Bocuse) has been thoroughly revised and expanded to reflect the way people cook and eat today.

The book includes essential information on nutrition, food and kitchen safety, and tools and ingredients, as well as more than 640 classic and contemporary recipes plus variations. One hundred and thirty-one basic recipe formulas illustrate fundamental techniques and guide cooks clearly through every step, from mise en place to finished dishes.

This edition features nearly 650 all-new four-color photographs of fresh food products, step-by-step techniques, and plated dishes taken by award-winning photographer Ben Fink. It explores culinary traditions of the Americas, Asia, and Europe, and includes four-color photographs of commonly used ingredients and maps of all regions. Written "with extreme vigor and precision" (Eric Ripert, Chef and co-owner, Le Bernardin), The Professional Chef® is an unrivaled reference and source of inspiration for the serious cook.

The Culinary Institute of America (Hyde Park, NY, and St. Helena, CA) was founded in 1946. Known as the Harvard of cooking schools and credited with having "changed the way Americans eat" by The James Beard Foundation, the CIA has trained nearly 50,000 foodservice professionals. ... Read more

Reviews

Excellent Reference for All, But don't replace older edition, February 13, 2007
`The Professional Chef, 8th Edition' by the faculty and staff of The Culinary Institute of America (CIA), generally thought to be the best culinary school in the country, is truly a great textbook for, exactly as the title states, anyone who wishes to be a PROFESSIONAL chef, sous chef, line chef, garde-manger chef, catering chefs or even charity soup kitchen cook. It is NOT that good for people who may wish to simply be personal chefs, pastry chefs, bread bakers, or simply better home cooks. This is because every aspect of the book, starting with the recipes and including everything else, is oriented towards preparation for large groups of people. Virtually all recipes, even the bread baking recipes, are written to serve a minimum of 8, and generally between 12 and 20 people.

The other side of the coin is that this book contains hundreds of pages of information which you will not find in practically any other book. Much of this, such as the cost of serving calculations and other business considerations are not likely to be very interesting to the majority of amateur cooks (unless you happen to be managing a charity food service). But there are also lots that should be interesting to the average cook. Topping this list is the chapter on food safety. Most of us who read a cookbook now and then and watch our share of Food Network cooking shows (especially Alton Brown's Good Eats) will have a passing knowledge of food safety, but the material here will give one the confidence to know they are following the `professional' approach to food safety.

Even though virtually all recipes are written for larger than `home' serving counts, every serious amateur cook, even if they are cooking for only one or two, will be amply rewarded by reading large sections of this book and using it as a reference for many, many techniques.

To look at one of my favorite subjects, eggs, for example, I find several things I either never knew or have forgotten. For example, this is one of the few places where I've seen instructions on how to vary cooking time for hard boiling eggs based on the egg size. This variation, from 12 minutes for small eggs to 15 minutes for extra large eggs explains why I have seen cooking times everywhere from 8 to 20 minutes. The great thing is that in the amateur volunteer kitchen, one has it on GOOD AUTHORITY that we only really need 12 minutes cooking time, as long as we follow the other recommendations such as leaving two inches of water above the top of the cooking eggs. Staying with the egg section, one may be surprised at how few different major recipes there are. There are only 16 main recipes; however each main recipe, like the `rolled omelet', may have up to 14 variations. But there are still things missing. While we get a recipe for French toast, there is no recipe for any classic Italian or Spanish egg dishes such as the frittata or the tortilla Espagnole. There is not even a mention of `frittata' in either of the two indices.

The egg section reveals one annoyance I find with the book. It begins each major section, as in the Chapter 29 on eggs, with six `master recipe' multi-page presentations on important techniques. In this case, it has sections on `Cooking Eggs in the Shell', `Poaching Eggs', `Frying Eggs', `Scrambling Eggs', `Making Omelets', and `Savory Souffles'. Then, the chapter goes on to give specific recipes, repeating the same subjects, with overlapping and with additional information. And yet, there seem to still be little details left out. On the sections on scrambled eggs, there is nothing about cooking eggs in a bain marie (water bath), which is certainly tedious, but which by some of the very best authorities (James Beard, for example) is the very best way to achieve the pillowy moistness which distinguishes the best scrambled eggs. This two part approach to technique presentation (most of the best pics are used in the introductory section) makes the book a bit more interesting to read for ideas outside the kitchen, but it makes it less useful as a reference where the objective is to find everything you need in one place.

Those of you who happen to own earlier editions of this tome may be interested in whether the $70 you need to acquire this latest edition is really necessary. In a word, I believe the answer is `NO'. This edition has 1215 pages, compared to 869 pages in my 5th edition, but many of those extra 346 pages do not yield genuinely useful culinary training. For example, there are 106 pages in a new `World Cuisines' chapter that has much good to say about France, Italy, China, Japan, and other culinary hot spots, but it has not a single word, for example, on the United Kingdom or Ireland. On the other hand, 8th edition has 7 pages on health and safety while 5th edition has 20 pages, with much better graphics on things like the pH scale and on food cooling techniques. The 5th edition also does not have the noisome bifurcation of master technique and detailed recipe cited above. Therefore, you get much more information per page in the earlier edition. The 5th edition also includes the frittata and more detailed information on more different omelet techniques. I also think the pictures of techniques are better in the older edition. Last but not least, I think the presentations of English versus metric measurements are much better done in the older edition.

I think the bottom line is that if you do not already own an earlier edition, this $70 book is easily worth three or four other cookbooks as a reference and as an AUTHORITY, if you are a professional. But, if you own an earlier edition, don't bother buying the new one.

Consider Labensky and Hause's On Cooking, December 31, 2007
The Professional Chef is a well-organized, fairly complete cooking text and a very beautiful book. It deserves its great reviews. However, On Cooking by Labensky and Hause is somewhat longer (and thus more complete) and contains much more detailed exposition and recipes than The Professional Chef. It is not as flashy as The Professional Chef: If you were in a book store trying to choose between the two in a short amount of time, The Professional Chef would probably command your purchase; however, I own both and every single time I look for information or recipes, On Cooking has much more complete information.

Some examples: In On Cooking, there is a whole chapter on knife skills, as compared to sections in The Professional Chef. On Cooking's recipes include nutrition information and generally consume one or more pages. In The Professional Chef, each recipe consists of a quarter-page worth of information, though many of them are (beautifully) typeset to fill an entire page, so many of the book's pages consist mostly of blank space. The Professional Chef's section on anatomy of eggs and identification of quality and freshness is a very brief affair while On Cooking has tables of information, charts, and illustrative drawings. Furthermore, in On Cooking, the information about eggs in general is located in the same chapter as everything else on eggs, whereas The Professional Chef is organized like a culinary curriculum: one learns about how to select eggs long before learning how to cook them, so the section on eggs themselves occurs toward the beginning of the book, while the chapter on how to cook them occurs at toward the end of the book.

On Cooking is the more expensive and less flashy (but by no means less well-illustrated) of the two but it really is a superior informational resource.

Good foundation for a home cook, February 10, 2007
I am a home cook, but wish I had chosen a career in culinary arts. I am not interested in starting in such a grueling field at this point in my life, but I am interested in developing my culinary skills. That's why I chose this book. From this book, I have been learning about foods of different regions and basic cooking techniques. Some of what they offer is not that applicable for the home cook, such as how to inspect a giant hunk of meat when it's delievered to your place of business, and the recipes are designed for food service; for example, most soup and stock recipes prepare 5 gallons. I have had success with scaling some of the recipes down, but other recipes don't scale down as well, especially if you're making just one or two portions. But I didn't get this book for the recipes as much as for the techniques. With that in mind, I am very pleased with this book and imagine it will become an important part of my home designed culinary education.

Essential., January 9, 2007
I'm a big foodie and have been for many years. This is my cooking bible along with "On Food and Cooking" by Harold McGee.

If you want a foundation in cooking that will allow your skills to spread like wildfire than this is the book you want. Part cookbook, part text - it teaches you the essentials then let's you spread your wings a bit with a variety of recipes from all over the world. Not the definitive source for every recipe, but the definitive source for techniques and application of those techniques to produce amazing food. Endorsed by the likes of Thomas Keller, Anthony Bourdain, and The Two Hot Tamales.

Does take some time and dedication on your part though. I spent a year reading and working through it (with previous editions). The newest offering is cleaned up, a few errors were fixed, more recipes, and includes a greatly expanded introductory section.

I first got on board with a tag-sale copy of the 6th edition. Wish I would have found it when I first became interested in cooking! I would easily pay $500 for it.

A bit disappointed, January 23, 2008
I have been looking for a book to help me make the leap from a so-so cook to a so-so chef, to be able to create my own dishes and free myself from recipes sometimes. My wife got me this book for Christmas, and while it has some good information on cooking techniques and other basics, it does not really live up to its reputation.

As other reviewers have noted, it is geared towards beginner chefs. This means: 1) people who have almost no knowledge about how cooked food arrives on their plate, 2) those interested in pursuing a career in restaurants. I thought the large scale recipes (gallons of stock; ten servings) wouldn't be a big problem, but it is much harder to scale down to family size than I thought. The "how-to" info is way too basic; if you watch Alton Brown's Good Eats on the Food Network regularly, you probably already know most of what is in the book, and Alton gives much more in depth knowledge, I think.

The book is more useful as an encyclopedia of food: sections on world cuisines and their central ingredients; breakdowns of meat cuts, fish varieties, grains, pastas, etc. and their properties and best uses. Stock and sauce making are particularly good sections also. For $44 I would say it is okay, but I don't think it is worth the full cover price. For that, get Good Eats on DVD.

Excellent reference, good assortment of recipes., July 4, 2007
As a self-taught amateur "chef", I have been very pleased with this useful reference volume from CIA. While professionals may find this a bit rudimentary in its coverage, there is much of value for "the rest of us" who would love to go to culinary school but can't.

The first portion of the book is strictly for food-service professionals, with information on how to operate a restaurant kitchen. There is also a brief segment on the basic science of food preparation. The next portion discusses major cultural influences and cuisines from all areas of the world, including charts that summarize the key ingredients to be found in each culinary "dialect." The third portion, which I found extremely helpful as one without formal training, was an extensive photographic reference of nearly every type of ingredient you might run across in the kitchen, grouped by category.

The remaining two-thirds or so of the book is the recipe section, but it's more than just that. First, there is a detailed teaching segment on how to make stocks and sauces, "les fondes de cuisine," complete with step-by-step photos. This is of great importance since a very large number of the recipes to follow will use the stocks and sauces you make at this stage. From there, the recipes are categorized by the type of food or cooking method, such as meats & seafood, vegetables, braising and stewing, immersion cooking, etc. Each section opens with some helpful illustrated instruction relevant to that type of food or method.

In a nutshell, this book is both an excellent teaching tool for the uninitiated, and a handy reference for the professional. I would add only one caveat: all the recipe sizes assume restaurant use, with 10 servings being typical, so you'll need to adjust accordingly for smaller settings.

Another real Heavy -Physically HEAVY Book, October 16, 2006
As a gradaute of the CIA we had to carry the CIA Pro 7 to some of our classes and it was awesome thinking it could not get any bigger or have more information - BUT Pro 8 is the heaviest book ever published. This book is big and it includes a lot of updates from 7, easier methods and it looks like many of the recipes we did in the kitchens - A great resource to everyone and an even better one for CIA grads who can find pics of some of the old pros in them - Martinni, Matel and Andrienni were three I had and there they were playing in front of the camera - you guys really do have a good side no that the book is published - GET BACK TO WORK! - Great book CIA - congrats!

A New Standard, August 29, 2008
Cookbooks are a dime a dozen. There are plenty of books out there that are filled with their fair share of mouth-watering recipes. What is rare is a book that tackles cooking from a conceptual and technical angle. Books like The Joy of Cooking or How to Cook Everything try to go beyond the typical cookbook and try to be kitchen manuals. But what those books are is cookbooks first, and books about how to cook second. The Professional Chef is culinary textbook akin to what you'd expect from an academic text for teaching a vocation.

As you might guess, the book approaches cooking as a profession. Culinary students will benefit from ample discussion not only of technique and cooking procedures, but also of the various other roles and skills demanded of chefs. For example, the book discusses the various systems and conventions of dividing labor in the kitchen, and describes the differences between an executive chef and a saucier chef. For those in culinary school or thinking about pursuing a culinary career or education, this book is perfect.

But for home cooks and cooking enthusiasts, don't assume that this book is not for you. If you're serious about cooking, even just as a hobby, there's something to be said about the comprehensive approach of learning techniques, terms, ingredients, and procedures in a structured way that proceeds from the simple to the complex--which is exactly what this book presents. It discusses and introduces the reader to nearly ever major ingredient and nearly every major cuisine. It's encyclopedic in the depth and breadth of the information within--much more so than the Joy of Cooking or similar books--and it gives the kind of technical training that one really needs in order to read, follow, alter, and otherwise truly understand recipes in the first place.

The recipes that are included--and there are many--include just about every major dish from every major cuisine. Goulash? Check. B�arnaise sauce? Check. Are dolmades your thing? It's in there. What about an authentic pad thai or summer roll? You'll find those too. What's great is that the text relates dishes so that similar dishes can be seen as progressions or alterations to basic techniques that are being covered. You learn how to braise, then you get various applications of that procedure from around the world. The text presents cooking from a truly global perspective, so students and readers won't find it difficult to tell how a single concept transcends dishes such as pilaf, risotto, cous cous, paella, pilua, or jambalaya and how the minor variations in technique and the focus on particular ingredients, flavors, and textures, makes these individual dishes what they are.

In short, you'll learn things in this book that you might not learn well or at all in any other book. The seriousness with which the text approaches cooking will benefit the home cook and help him or her to excel beyond the Rachel Rays and Paula Dean's of the world, while those aspiring to a future in the culinary arts will gain a solid introduction to the foundations of their chosen craft, discussing both the artform and the science and underlying mechanics of that artform. Everything from choosing equipment to the proper application of heat and a basic understanding of the physics behind it, will be found within these pages. The difference between this book and those aimed at home cooks is the difference between a college-level text on Spanish and a pocket guide of Spanish phrases. You might be able to quickly say "hello, my name is Pablo" or ask where the bathroom is, but you'll never really know the beauty of the language, nor ever really be able to understand it nor be able to say anything that hasn't already been laid out for you in that pocket guide if you lack a comprehensive introduction to the fundamentals. Similarly, cooking is about more than recipes and incomplete knowledge... it's about methods, procedures, applications, techniques, ingredients, and the creative and artistic freedom to navigate within that framework in accordance with one's own style and flare.

A 'must bible' for any serious culinary collection., December 11, 2006
THE PROFESSIONAL CHEF has been named one of the five favorite professional culinary books of the last ten years by Food Arts, the professional magazine - and it's easy to see why. This revised, expanded edition for modern kitchens offers a blend of step-by-step cooking instructions and tips on techniques intrinsic to the aspiring chef's working routine. From nutrition to kitchen safety and specialty tools, techniques cover all dishes and restaurant situations and add charts and color photos throughout. Yes, there are plenty of recipes for everything from a basic broth to decorative food cutting - but it's the professional preparation details, also including easy sidebars of information as well as color photos of fish, herbs, and more which make THE PROFESSIONAL CHEF an outstanding college-level acquisition. Though many a home chef might take a look and learn, it's the neo-pro who will benefit here, making it a 'must bible' for any serious culinary collection.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

The Professional Chef, 8th edition, February 20, 2007
The book is easy reading and gives a good overview of the principles of cooking. For a more detail book you may would to consider Professional Cooking. I bought both and enjoyed both. Professional Cooking tends to be more "Dick and Jane" while The Professional Chef assumes you bring some cooking intelligences with you. ... Read more

Editorial Review

A revolution in cooking

Sous vide is the culinary innovation that has everyone in the food world talking. In this revolutionary new cookbook, Thomas Keller, America's most respected chef, explains why this foolproof technique, which involves cooking at precise temperatures below simmering, yields results that other culinary methods cannot. For the first time, one can achieve short ribs that are meltingly tender even when cooked medium rare. Fish, which has a small window of doneness, is easier to finesse, and shellfish stays succulent no matter how long it's been on the stove. Fruit and vegetables benefit, too, retaining color and flavor while undergoing remarkable transformations in texture.

The secret to sous vide is in discovering the precise amount of heat required to achieve the most sublime results. Through years of trial and error, Keller and his chefs de cuisine have blazed the trail to perfection—and they show the way in this collection of never-before-published recipes from his landmark restaurants—The French Laundry in Napa Valley and per se in New York. With an introduction by the eminent food-science writer Harold McGee, and artful photography by Deborah Jones, who photographed Keller's best-selling The French Laundry Cookbook, this book will be a must for every culinary professional and anyone who wants to up the ante and experience food at the highest level. ... Read more

Reviews

An instant classic, but not for everyone, November 12, 2008
This cookbook is a mirror into the reader's own attitude toward cooking.

If you are a professional with all the expensive equipment, a demanding clientele and a pioneering spirit, this book will quickly become an essential reference. If you are a casual home cook curious about sous vide wizardry and perhaps interested in toying with the techniques, you will find this book intimidating and useless. For foodies who have been intrigued by "molecular gastronomy" restaurant offerings, this book may answer a few "How did they do that?" questions. Given the level of creative energy between this book's covers, it is an outstanding value for the listed Amazon price. Understand, however, that as Keller states on p. 38, this book is

"written for the professional kitchen, from one chef to another. No modifications have been made
to accommodate cooks preparing [these recipes] at home, even though some of them certainly can
be done at home with the right equipment"

Recipe mise-en-place is organized by component in a division-of-labor professional kitchen style (not chronologically). All recipes use metric weights, so a digital scale is essential. These stylistic choices are sensible for Keller's audience, but may be offputting to a home cook more familiar with traditional American home cookbook presentations.

Sous vide is, in important ways, both easier and safer than other cooking methods. Some of the advantages include ultra-precise control (and corresponding prevention of cooking errors and waste), extended hold times, intensified flavor, more efficient usage of labor, space and ingredients, and the ability to accomplish certain end results that are impossible with any other approach. Romantics who complain that sous vide reduces the artistry of cooking are ignoring the subjective, analog, soulful decisions that the chef must make concerning ingredients and method before and after bag cooking. In an introductory essay, Keller considers the sense of loss at the diminution of artisanal craft as technology supplants it. This was great writing, truly an artist at his best.

One minor complaint I have with the book is its layout. Too many pictures of serious chefs at work are uncaptioned. Who am I looking at? What am I supposed to learn from this picture? Photos of finished recipes are often a page or two away from the recipe or even from their own caption. There are also artsy "backstage" pictures mixed in, producing a momentary confusion as to what one is contemplating. This is perhaps illustrative of the tone of the book. It's assumed that the reader is going to have the culinary chops to recognize these people (or ones like them) and fit right in next to them cooking obscure ingredients comfortably in a professional setting. Perhaps the effect sought is a coffee table book for professional chefs. I was also a bit disappointed with the layout's trendy approach of having more empty space (big white margins) bordering smaller, lighter type. Bring your reading glasses and good light when you sit down with this text.

Following introductions on philosophy, science and history by Bruno Goussault, Harold McGee, Keller, Jonathan Benno, Corey Lee and Sebastien Rouxel, there in an extended section on Fundamentals, including what sous vide can achieve, basic principles and techniques, safety, use in the professional kitchen, and use in the home kitchen. I found the section on food safety to be particularly valuable and accessible to the home cook.

Over sixty recipes are roughly equally divided into five major categories: Vegetables and Fruits, Fish and Shellfish, Poultry and Meat, Variety Meats, and Cheese and Desserts. Perplexingly, the table of contents lists only these categories and does not itemize the individual recipes. Each recipe generally takes two to three pages, plus a full-page photograph, and involves two or three dozen ingredients, divided into dish components (remember these are complex, composed dishes offered in Keller's restaurants, The French Laundry and per se). An example? "Grilled Octopus Tentacles, Chorizo, Fingerling Potatoes, Green Almonds and Salsa Verde," has 30 ingredients, two pages of instructions including a procedure for peeling green almonds, recipe p. 78-79, photo p. 76, two citations for sources, and one procedural reference to the Basics section. Similarly, "D�gustation de Porcelet, Rutabage Mostarda, Wilted Mustard Greens, and Potato 'Mille-Feuille'" is a tasting of five cuts from a baby pig; this recipe stretches four pages and lists 45 ingredients. The "Basics" section follows the recipes and includes everything from how to make clarified butter to recipes for eight different kinds of stock. Few home cooks are likely to make the composed dishes in their entirety, but experienced or adventuresome readers will certainly come away with ideas for home entertaining or approaches that might prepare only one simplified element from a Keller composed plate. Perhaps you would offer home guests five cuts from a baby pig; weeknight visitors to my home would more likely get pork chops sous-vided � la Keller, with one sauce.

Other than the chapter on safety, perhaps the most useful parts for home sous vide users will be the two closing reference sections. First, there is a marvelous table that lists ingredients alphabetically, specifies how to sous vide the ingredient, and cites a recipe within the text that features the ingredient. Next comes an extended list of sources for equipment and ingredients. This is followed by a more traditional index, then acknowledgements and restaurant staff group photos, for a text of almost 300 pages.

The only comparable text to address the topic of sous vide is Joan Roca's "Sous Vide Cuisine." Roca's text is stylistically quite different and more than a third shorter than Keller's book. The English translation of Roca's book also runs about two hundred dollars, which is quadruple the price of Keller's book. If you can choose only one, Keller's is stronger and a better value.

It's not all things to all people, but "Under Pressure: Cooking Sous Vide" is invaluable in what it offers and an instant classic in its field.

this might be a long review..., October 30, 2008
the french laundry cookbook is one of my favorite books, but i thought id never be able to do most of the recipes in it when i first looked at it. after time, as my experience grew, and constantly referring back to the book, i find myself now able to do most of those dishes in it (though i havent tackled head-to-toe yet) and looked at the book more as a place to get ideas from. "under pressure" seems like the same type of book.
when i opened this book i felt the same experience i felt opening the french laundry. the books pretty much even look the same. neither are designed with the home cook in mind.
that said, most of the recipes can be replicated at home, given the right equipment. i seriously doubt anyone is going to buy a chamber vacuum sealer (costing up to or exceeding 5 grand) or an immersion circulator (costing over a grand) but there is hope for people on a budget, like myself.
i, myself, have been doing some sous-vide cooking at home and at work for about a year now. i tested the way the technique can change the texture and taste of food. the results i got ranged from disasterious to sublime. i never had a real guide to sous vide cooking (not being able to spend over 200 bucks for the only book printed on the subject). but now i do. but i dont have the expensive hardware that this book calls for, but im pretty sure i can get the same results they get on MOST of these dishes.
its true, food savers and chamber sealers are alot different. you cant get the results of a "compressed" watermelon (as in the steak tartare)using something you got at target, but you can get the same type of pork belly. with the old foodsavers, you werent able to seal food with a liquid (unless you froze it and then placed it with the food in the bag). the new ones, allow you to seal with liquids and marinades, so most of the recipes are do-able.
and it is true, a sous vide magic wont give the same results as a immersion circulator will give you as far as the poached egg is concerned. but it will allow you to get pretty much the same reults you would get from the braised veal cheeks.
i use a foodsaver V2860 and a Ranco temperature controller, with a plug-in electric burner at home (at work we got the Rational combi) and found it relatively easy to do the "glazed breast of pork with swiss chard, white wine poached granny smith apples and green mustard vinaigrette" at home.
and as far as the "molecular chemicals" used in this book, you can easily get them online from the places they refer to on the sources page in reasonable quantities. you wont need to buy a 50 lb bucket of transglutaminase in order to do them.
this book isnt for someone wanting to make a 30-minute meal. nor should it be. its for someone who takes food and cooking SERIOUSLY. as with the french laundry, this book is strictly dedicated with a serious hobbyist and the professional chef in mind.

Fine for what it is, October 23, 2008
If what you're looking for is a compendium of recipes from French Laundry and per se that make use of sous vide techniques, this is the book for you. The recipes are all there, along with beautiful photographs. For that market, the book deserves five stars.

Be warned, however, the recipes are quite complicated, often require exotic ingredients and molecular gastronomy chemicals, and generally necessitate use of a chamber vacuum sealing machine (usually $2000 and up) instead of the more common consumer-level vacuum sealers. (An immersion heater is also required for sous vide, or a gadget that accomplishes the same result, but you already knew that.)

For the home cook who's interested in sous vide, has invested in an immersion heater and FoodSaver, and wants some good recipes that can be accomplished with supermarket ingredients, this is not the book. For those readers, it deserves only one or two stars. Sadly, no cookbook on the market today addresses sous vide in a true home cooking context, and that's a pity, because it's a technique that can be used to great advantage without necessarily having to replicate the offerings in a world-class restaurant.

Incredible, October 23, 2008
I don't normally review stuff on Amazon, but I felt compelled to for Thomas Keller's latest - "Under Pressure" is an amazing book.

I hesitate to consider this a cook book - in order to prepare most of the recipes described, a home cook will have to purchase close to $3000 of special sous vide equipment. What it is though is a fantastic reference, and introduction to the world of sous vide cooking.

In order to fully appreciate the content Thomas Keller provides, it helps to have a solid foundation of culinary knowledge, but the information is presented so clearly and organized so well, that anyone could pick this up and enjoy it.

Very highly recommended.

Not for everyone but you can do this, July 7, 2009
First of all I'm going to address the topic of whether or not you need this cookbook. If you are looking to cook meals in 30 minutes, buy Rachel Ray's cookbook and be done with it.

If, on the other hand, you are an experienced chef and are looking for a completely new cooking technique then you are looking in the right place. There is an investment required to get the bare minimum equipment needed but you can buy everything you need for under $250.

In order to cook Sous Vide, you need the following:
1) A PID temperature controler like the SousVideMagic 3rd Gen 1500C which costs $139 plus shipping
2) A rice cooker like the Black & Decker 20-Cup Rice Cooker - Stainless Steel (RC866) for $40
3) A vacuum food sealer like the Reynolds Consumer Produ Handi Vac Starter Kit 00590 for $14
4) A propane torch like the Bernzomatic - Turner Brass Propane Torch Kit (TU100K) for $19
5) A fish tank air bubbler for under $20

That's everything you need except for the food ingedients. Yes, there are some ingedients that you'll need to get by mail order but that's no problem. I'm sure if you're reading this you've ordered stuff from the web before.

There is one thing I'm trying to rationalize and haven't fully come to terms with yet: Is cooking with plastic safe? With the exception of Sous Vide, I NEVER cook my food in contact with plastic. I always think of that high school girl who put some plastic wrap in olive oil, microwaved it and sent it to a lab for testing resulting in some really nasty results.

So why would I cook Sous Vide knowing this... The answer is two-fold: first, I'm not subjecting the plastic to high enough temperatures to cause it to leach too many chemicals into my food and second there's simply no other way to do this.

The other concern is bacterial growth during the cooking process. They get around this by saying to use foods you could eat raw. Hmm... Where do I get beef, chicken or pork that I would consider safe to be eaten raw? Botulism thrives between 90 and 100 degrees Farenheight so stay away from that but other food-born bacterias can survive temperatures up to 155 degrees. Generally, most bacteria can't survive temperatures over 130 degree so I feel safe enough.

Under Pressure was not written for a beginner cook; rather, it's just the opposite. The only cookbook I have that is more complicated is Alinea.

I've made many of the recipes in this book and I've adjusted some of the cooking times to my liking. I like the technique but be prepared to wait a long time (up to 2 days) for your food to cook.

If you were wondering about my equipment list, the PID temperature controller regulates the rice cookier to within 1 degree. The air bubbler helps to circulate the water. The blow torch is used to brown up meat to make it look more like conventionally prepared meals.

Update 1/4/10: I replaced the Handi Vac with a FoodSaver V2840 Advanced Design Vacuum Food Sealer because the bags melted sometimes with the Handi Vac at temperatures over 135 degrees. If you're using liquids than you have to freeze them a little before pulling a vacuum and sealing. FoodSaver does not endorse using their product for Sous Vide.

Inspiring, April 3, 2009
Under Pressure offers something that comes along in cooking perhaps once in a lifetime. That is, a comprehensive book on an emerging major technique from a major chef.

The characterization of Thomas Keller as a major chef is no exaggeration and should surprise no-one, as he is the owner of several highly-celebrated restaurants, notably the French Laundry. Describing sous vide as a major emerging technique requires some perspective, however. The technique itself has roots in experimentation decades ago, and can also be superficially compared to other in-bag cooking and re-heating techniques. What distinguishes sous vide from these is precision - precise control of both vacuum and temperature to produce both predictable results and, in some cases, results obtainable with no other technique. The latter alone elevates the status of sous vide to that of a major technique. Combined with its commercial applicability and ability to predictably produce top-quality results and the status is assured.

Under Pressure provides a very full picture of where sous vide sits in the technique spectrum. This is accomplished in the first section of the book in several ways, including descriptive and instructional material, and in comments throughout the volume. Similarly, the techniques are described in several ways: descriptively in the opening chapters, in application detail in recipes, and by way of reference information in the back. Anyone reading this book will come away with a good feel for sous vide's best applications (i.e., types of recipes), the ingredients for which it is best suited, the effects which it produces, its limitations, safety considerations, and process implications.

The last item segues into the target audience for this book. It is not only clearly aimed at the professional - stated in both the book and in interviews with Keller - it is organized for the restaurant chef. As a practical matter, that means the recipes are typically large, the recipe instructions are not sequentially ordered but are by component along restaurant kitchen station lines, component recipes themselves aren't necessarily tailored in size to the recipe, and the recipes presume a knowledge of, and use a variety of sophisticated techniques in addition to sous vide (part of which, of course, provides the technique perspective mentioned above). Assembly and plating instructions are not provided, as the assumption is that these will materially differ restaurant-to-restaurant, and chef-to-chef.

Sous vide can be broached at home, but full control of the technique across its various applications absolutely requires a chamber-type vacuum sealer with controllable vacuum level settings. Cooking temperature control for sous vide at home can be accurately accomplished in a variety of ways without an immersion circulator. You can also use a Food Saver sealer to do sous vide for a number of things. What you cannot do with a non chamber-type sealer like the Food Saver is high compression, gas extraction from liquids, and other, more sophisticated techniques associated with sous vide. That said, Under Pressure will give you sufficient knowledge to know where you can and can't apply the equipment you have. Let me be clear on that - it will not give you instructions concerning home equipment, but it will give you a very full picture of how different sous vide techniques are applied. It's up to you to then take your knowledge of your equipment's limitations and apply sous vide as you are able.

Chamber sealers are expensive. The sources given in the book, such as PolyScience and Koch, have sealers starting at approximately $2,000. A quick search, however, reveals that there are somewhat less expensive units on the market. Cabela's for example, sells one for about $1,500. Most people at home, however, are more likely to use a Food Saver or similar within its limitations for sous vide. And that will still get you quite a lot.

If you are wondering about the difference between chamber vacuum sealers and non chamber-types like the Food Saver, consider this: A Food Saver merely has to evacuate ambient air from a bag. The size of the pump required is small, it's slow, and it can be quite tricky to evacuate all the air. Actually, it's impossible, even with a chamber sealer, but with the Food Saver type, it's even difficult to eliminate visible bubbles. Bags with liquids are difficult to handle with a Food Saver type. You can do it (I do), but be aware that there's a certain risk to the machine if you don't do it properly, and also that the seal is easily compromised by the liquid starting to flow across the seal bar as you start the sealing process. The chamber sealer, by contrast, is physically larger to contain the bag, has a very large, powerful pump to evacuate the entire chamber and to a very high vacuum (more accurately, to user-controlled vacuum levels), is capable of holding the vacuum long enough to extract gasses from the contents of the bag (not just ambient air, i.e., bubbles aren't even an issue), and can seal bags with liquid without issue. Pumps range upwards from a full horsepower, the chamber seals are high-quality, a variety of seal arrangements are available, including double seals and both upper and lower heating elements, and so on. Chamber sealers, which are invariably commercial units, are also more adapable to a variety of bag types and thicknesses. No-one should confuse simple air-evacuation bagging with high-vacuum sealing. The good news is that quite a few sous vide techniques only require simple bag evacuation.

Under Pressure emphasizes sanitation and safety again and again. It is critical to understand why and critical to apply in home use as well. In short, most sous vide cooking involves cooking food in temperature ranges and under anaerobic conditions that, if not sensibly done with precautions, are ideal for growth of particularly dangerous bacteria. You MUST work in a sanitary fashion, MUST chill foods properly and at the right temps, monitor storage and hot holding times, and so on. Properly done, sous vide is completely safe and accepted by health authorities for restaurant use (where procedures have to be documented). Improper application can result in - using a term from the book itself - a "bacterial bomb." Process details related to safety are embedded in recipe instructions as well as address in the safety chapter.

I found the book inspiring, encouraging experimentation in particular at home with meats and seafood, where home equipment is readily adaptable to sous vide. Moreover, some of sous vide's best effects are with these - perfect edge-to-edge doneness for meats, control over tenderizing, texture control for fish, and so on.

While I cannot recommend this book for the casual cookbook buyer interested in follow-the-numbers recipe application, I heartily recommend Under Pressure for any serious home chef interested in extending his or her repetoire. I expect Under Pressure to become a classic.

Recommended with Some Reservations, December 26, 2008
Thomas Keller is one of the great American chefs. His restaurants French Laundry and per se are two of the finest restaurants in the United States. So when Thomas Keller comes out with a new cook book, chefs and foodies take note. Addressing the new hot topic of Sous Vide preparation makes it an even more compelling.

"Under Pressure" is two books in one. First and foremost it is a compilaton of Keller's Sous Vide recipes. Second, it is a "How To Manual" for all those interested in learning more about the Sous Vide technique for preparing food. This book's real strength is as a recipe book. Keller is an extraordinarily creative chef and his recipes are fascinating to dissect. However, to execute these recipes one needs to have access to a vacuum sealer and a hot water recirculating machine. The expense of this equipment places these recipes beyond the means of most people. Only a privleged few will ever be able to recreate the recipes laid out in this book.

My reservations are with the "How To" aspect of this book. Thomas Keller is a great chef but his knowledge of the basic food science of Sous Vide cooking is seriously lacking. Botulism is a real issue when preparing food in an anaerobic environment. Understanding the time and temperature continuum is essential to producing safe food. The single greatest weakness of this book is that he does not adequately address this issue. For anyone who really wants to understand the basic food science of Sous Vide cooking, check out Sue Ghazala's text book on Sous Vide production.

Finally, the following are quibbles but nevertheless are illustrative of the books' weakenesses. Sous Vide means cooking under vacuum and not under pressure. Canning is an example of cooking under pressure. Bruno Goussault may have invented the term Sous Vide but the American meat industry has been producing vacuum packed meat cooked in hot water baths for many decades. Most of the cooked deli meat you can purchase at a supermarket is prepared in what is essentially a Sous Vide production. What is new is that bench top hot water reciruclation machines have recently become available to chefs. It is important to remember the term Sous Vide is a term coined by Bruno Goussault and popularized by Cuisine Solutions the company he works for. It is a new name for a very old process. Finally, this is not the first book written in English about Sous Vide. Sue Ghazala and Joan Roca's book proceed this book by a number of years. Putting these quibbles aside, "Under Pressure" is the best book available in English on this topic.

No Apologies, this is not for home cooks., November 26, 2008
I see some disgruntled reviews here which I think are misleading, mainly by people who feel misled.
To begin with, this book is not intended to be "dumbed down" for the everyday home cook. It is for professionals, and very ambitious home cooks. The recipes are directly from 2 of the top restaurants in the country/world, and as such, they are not simple. That being said, they are detailed and descriptive, and explain everything you will need to do in order to prepare these dishes.
As for tech requirements. Yes, a water circulator would be nice, as would a chamber vac machine. But, not all of us are so lucky. As we do in professional kitchens, make do with what you have. Wal-mart carries a basic home vac machine, which will work for most of the recipes, but if you do not have one try a Ziploc. Fill it, submerge in water and seal. (Heston Blumenthal uses a bag and a vacuum cleaner as well I believe). Water circulator. They do a great job at keep a constant temp in a water bath, but so does a large pot. A digital thermo can be had for 20 bucks (probably right here on amazon), and you are one your way to Michelin stars.
As for molecular gastronomy chemicals...yes some are a little odd, but think how strange gelatin would be where we not familiar with it. Think, a hydrocolloid derived from animal hooves be denaturing it. Many of these new thickeners and binders are readily available, just as gelatin sheets and salt are, and for those that are harder to find, there is a list of suppliers in the book for all of the items which may be less common.
Best of luck to those ready to give it a try. But, be warned, this is not a Mark Bittman book. Have fun. Oh, and yeah, the book is great, with detailed recipes, precise details, and great photos.

So Vague, January 31, 2009
I'm baffled by this book. Who is it for? Keller states that it is written for chefs, thus explaing why there is nothing of use for home cooks. Many reviewers have echoed this conceit, citing as evidence the fact that recipe quantities are often given by weight (in metric units!) rather than volume.

Grams aside, I believe professionals will find little of interest here. There is almost no general technical information like, for instance, details on how to adjust cooking time to compensate for differences in the thickness of the food being prepared. Without this sort of information, the table of cooking times and temperatures at the end, which is often noted as a fabulous resource, is no more useful than a good index, because you must refer back to the recipes to find out exactly how the food was sliced and packaged if you expect to get an acceptable result.

There is little practical information on equipment for the professional kitchen, and none at all on equipment for the home cook. Reading the scant information that is provided, you might get the impression that sous vide cooking can't be done without thousands of dollars worth of professional gear. This is not the case. Many of the quicker-cooking sous vide recipes can be prepared with nothing more than a plastic bag, a pot of water, a digital thermometer, and a watchful eye. For a few hundred dollars, you can cobble up a home sous vide cooker that works quite well for even the extreme recipes, but this book will not tell you how.

No, the truth is, this is just food porn--a coffee table book in the worst sense. It's chock full of lavish graphics illustrating fabulous dishes that you can't make, at least not with the information provided.

I expected better. I'm a reasonably accomplished amateur cook and a collector of cookbooks. Most of the super-chef books are clearly not intended as a guide to the preparation of food. From the playground Bulli tomes, (nyah, nyah, nyah, bet you can't do this) to Ducasse's Big Book, which itimidates subtly through shear volume and a seemingly endless supply of truffles, they let you know that you are out of your league.

Keller's "The French Laundrey Cookbook" is an exception. Although it functions well as a coffee table book, it also contains useful information that can make you a better cook. I've done a blow-by-blow copy of a few of the dishes and prepared a number of others that were colored by the things I learned from it, all to good effect.

If you want to learn to cook sous vide, Google is your friend. "Under Pressure" will not teach you what you need to know to get started--professional or amateur.

If you already know the basics and have assembled the right equipment, you may be able to glean a few useful techniques and recipe ideas from it. And it is pretty. I think that's the point.

Great ideas, not able to execute in the home kitchen (yet), October 31, 2008
Thomas Keller is the author of 3 of my favorite cookbooks. This, the last one, is the least accessable to the home chef. Home sous vide is unavailable today, but I am sure there will be a unit available for home use soon. Right now the book is more of a beautiful coffee table book. It's like a book on fine furniture: I'm not going to build any, but I can appreciate the design and construction.

The idea of cooking sous vide is a terrific one. Some of Keller's recipes are still good using more basic equipment (such as a Ziplock vacuum sealer and a crock pot set to warm). ... Read more

Editorial Review

"In Culinary Artistry...Dornenburg and Page provide food and flavor pairings as a kind of steppingstone for the recipe-dependent cook...Their hope is that once you know the scales, you will be able to compose a symphony."—Molly O'Neil in The New York Times Magazine.

For anyone who believes in the potential for artistry in the realm of food, Culinary Artistry is a must-read. This is the first book to examine the creative process of culinary composition as it explores the intersection of food, imagination, and taste. Through interviews with more than 30 of America's leading chefs—including Rick Bayless, Daniel Boulud, Gray Kunz, Jean-Louis Palladin, Jeremiah Tower, and Alice Waters—the authors reveal what defines "culinary artists," how and where they find their inspiration, and how they translate that vision to the plate. Through recipes and reminiscences, chefs discuss how they select and pair ingredients, and how flavors are combined into dishes, dishes into menus, and menus into bodies of work that eventually comprise their cuisines. ... Read more

Reviews

Wonderful Reference Material, October 24, 2001
I am a self-taught home cook who enjoys the activities of the kitchen. I entered the cooking arena one of the standard ways, using cookbooks. Collections of recipes familarized me with the techniques and ethnic cooking styles. Gradually, my cookbook collection included reference books that provided some of the theory behind tastes and preparation styles. Gold's 1-2-3 series, Peterson's Sauces, and others introduced to me the philosophies that allow a cook to go beyond mimicking a recipe to improvising and even creating a dish. Culinary Artistry is perhaps the best available reference for learning about the traditions of combining flavors and food groups.

It contains vital information that I suspect is taught only in some of the culinary schools. It provides valuable charts of information about cooking and menu planning. The book contains sections on Menus, including a seasonality chart and a chart explaining successful seasoning combinations. There is a section for Composing Flavors, the highlight of which is a chart showing successful food contrasts. Another section involves Composing A Dish. Here there is a chart showing great food matches and one showing seasoning matches. The Composing A Menu section offers a chart showing frequent accompaniments to meats and paragraphs presenting theories about Hors Douevres, Cheeses, and Desserts. This was a sparse and incomplete passage in an otherwise comprehensive book. Finally, there was a fun section addressing the Evolution of Chef's Styles. Here the authors provide sample menus comparing chef's offerings from earlier decades to their present day productions.

The volume offers multiple anecdotes, quotes, and side bars concerning the views of popular chefs. Various recipes are interspersed to illustrate the principles. My one criticism was that the book was laid out like a college textbook. Photos, captions, quotes, highlighted lines, sidebars, and other areas compete on the same page, magazine style. The book serves as reference, frequently glanced at rather than read straight through as a narrative.

Inspiration and insight abound if nothing else., October 26, 1999
Culinary Artistry is a book some may passover or leaf through in the bookstore for the likes of the Joy of Cooking or a Martha Stewart volume 20 cookbook. But look closer, the charts and the what-goes-well-with-what sections of this book alone are worth the price if only to give the food lover an inspired moment to create a dish with ingredients he or she may love. If you find yourself saying, "gee, I'd really love to have salmon tonight but I don't know what to put with it", pick up this book, find Salmon and refer to the extensive list of items that the interviewed chefs prefer with it and an idea is born. After that, all it takes is a little know-how in the kitchen and you've created your very own gourmet meal. If you choose to read from front to back you'll also discover page after page of insightful information from some of the nation's top chef's. Take your time, it's not a novel but it can be read like one and used as reference even after you've reached the last page. For the money, this is a book that will stay on your shelf for years to come and still manage to provide a new idea each time. So put down the Martha Stewart Haloween cookie issue and give Culinary Artistry a try, "It's a good thing". Sorry about that last one, she's infectious.

"Inspiring"..."A godsend.", November 25, 2003
"FLAVOR MATCHMAKING: Some cooks look to books not for precise ingredients and specific instructions, but for inspiration. I've got a book for those cooks.

It's the loftily named CULINARY ARTISTRY by Andrew Dornenburg and Karen Page (1996), also the authors of the better known BECOMING A CHEF. It's not a cookbook per se. Nor is it a treatise on the techniques every cook ought to know. And it's certainly not a collection of culinary prose. It's more a style manual for those who need to find out if a certain something will go with another certain something.

The most relevant information is found in the aptly named section 'Matches Made In Heaven.' Arranged alphabetically, the list comprises about 328 ingredients and seasonings and, for each ingredient listed, the authors provide several complementary flavors. It may not come as any surprise that the entries under beef ribs read ginger, horseradish, mustard, potatoes, tomatoes.

But it is incredibly liberating, when in a chicken rut, to alight on the appropriate page and find 57 compatible ingredients for a plain old hen. When the vegetable bin is overflowing with leafy greens or I'm flummoxed over a side dish for a dinner party, I consider it a godsend to flip through the pages and decide on mustard with the greens and walnuts with the watercress.

And it's inspiring to be reminded in the midst of Thanksgiving chaos that perhaps that pear dish needs a sprinkling of black pepper rather than a drizzle of honey. As with any reference work, it's not the entire book I value so much as a particular page or two in a desperate moment.

The balance of the book's 426 pages are chapters on composing a dish and a menu, complete with advice from restaurant chefs. I confess I haven't read the book cover to cover. And I doubt I ever will. But it's nevertheless the one book that regularly makes the commute from office desk to kitchen counter." ...

WOW, I know what all my foodie friends are getting for xmas, May 12, 2006
This book is one of the best books in my collection. It is not a recipe book, nor is it a book on presentation with pretty pictures. It is a book to help you take the next step in developing your own recipes or to use as a reference when improvising. I have found several uses for this book so far and I keep it close at hand any time I am in the kitchen.
1. This is a great reference for what foods go together.
2. Helps in figuring out how to balance flavours.
3. A source of inspiration for new recipes.
4. The few recipes in this book are actually very good.
I would not reccommend this as a beginer book. It will be most useful once you have a handle on some techniques and a variety of recipes. I really cannot say enough good things about this book.

A lot to wade through, but it's all good, January 10, 2005
If you're the type of person that loves to cook, already has a lot of recipe books, likes to experiment, and wants to take their cooking to the next level, then this book is for you.

Most of the reviews very clearly say what this book is and what it isn't. So I will just reiterate that this book is perfect for advanced cooks looking to really expand their presentation, flavor pairings and artistry.

By my side, May 17, 2000
I initially bought this book, because it was the sequel to Becoming a Chef. Since I have graduated from culinary school, this book has not left my side. The charts of seasonality and flavor combinations are essential for any chef or apprentice chef. There are recipes which can be chenged and manipulated any way the cook sees fit. Culinary Artistry is unbiased view of what some chefs deem important need to know information about certain types of food. This book makes me want to write a cook book. Any home gourmande will also love this book, it holds ingredients in the best light possible. Telling how and why to buy seasonally, to shop at local markets within your area, to support local businesses and people. If you are passionate about food and cooking food, you WILL love this book.

The Book that Keeps Giving, August 30, 2006
As a chef and graduate from a prestigious culinary school I feel that my praise is very meaningful. In a business that is ever changing and constant competing Culinary Artistry has always been there for me. The book covers a wide range of topics that were not always covered in school. I'll even go as far as calling it a companion to the real life culinary experience. From the insightful testimonies to the multitude of helpful information contained in its charts and lists it continues to give to the reader. I am not saying that you need to be a graduate from culinary school or even have to be working in the industry to benefit from Culinary Artistry. Anyone from the every day home cook to the passionate gourmet will fall under the spell held within the bindings of this wonderful guide. Yes a guide. Where other books are just cook books, Culinary Artistry opens our minds to the creative side of the restaurant industry. All this, and recipes from some of the best chefs in the industry, not only a good read but one thing I would definitely place on my deserted island list.

This reference is the "Color Wheel" of food., January 23, 1998
Painters have the color wheel to identify what colors match others. Now chefs, and lovers of food everywhere, have one too.

"Culinary Artistry" is not a "cookbook." Rather, it is a culinary chemistry textbook. Hundreds of pages are dedicated to the "Food matches made in heaven." That is to say, what food goes with what food/herb/spice.

Anyone who loves cooking will love it even more with the wealth of knowledge that this book imparts to the reader. It will take every aspiring chef, or home cook to a higher level.

No matter how many "cookbooks" you have, "Culinary Artistry" is an invaluable reference in your cooking library!

An excellent book for a serious cook, September 26, 2005
Culinary Artistry is an excellent reference book that every culinary arts student and chef should have. This is one of the books that I have used the most and recommend to every single person that takes a class at my school - it has a section that lists the most important food products and the ingredients they match with - useful for creating recipes and menus that have sense. I would recommend it also for anyone that loves to cook at home but with advanced knowledge of culinary techniques. ... Read more

Editorial Review

Hectic lifestyles and over-full schedules make traditional cooking methods nearly obsolete in many families. The results are poor nutrition and budgets strained by the high cost of fast food or commercially prepared meals. Don't Panic-Dinner's in the Freezer offers a simple and economical alternative, featuring dozens of recipes designed to be prepared and frozen for future use.With over 23,000 copies sold in its original self-published edition, this book gives practical tips for planning, organizing, and shopping for meals, as well as unique ways to freeze and reheat prepared foods. Every recipe includes measurements for cooking alone or as a joint venture with one or two friends. Families, singles, retirees-everyone who needs to eat-will find fast and easy answers to the question, "What's for dinner?" ... Read more

Reviews

JUST LIKE DREAM DINNERS!, January 25, 2006
What I like about this cookbook is the recipes have you freeze the dish before cooking it. For me, what I don't like about some of the other OAMC (once a month cooking) cookbooks is they have you cook it first, then freeze and when you unthaw it it's mush. This cookbook has you assemble all the ingredients first, freeze it and then day of serving you thaw and cook. Very much the same as dream dinners.com. (without the hefty price tag). Have loved the cranberry chicken, chicken cacciatore and the buttermilk herb chicken breasts. We eat mostly chicken but there are beef, pork and even desserts recipes. Serving suggestions are offered though not as many as I'd like. Very good cookbook, worthy investment and I don't give my praise lightly.

Absolutely FANTASTIC!, March 23, 2006
Exactly what I was looking for - freezer meals that don't require a 'monthly plan' to best utilize!

SO many recipes, all of which appeal to most of the family (preschooler included - that's a challenge!), and none of which require Julia Child level skills to prepare. I also like that it lays out ingredient lists based on different multiples of the recipe (1, 3, 6, etc). Makes it simple to make in bulk if I choose to (but doesn't require higher math to split a recipe if I don't want to make that much, like many OAMC recipes do).

I think it's even better than Dream Dinners (or those type of places - many of which I swear seem like they use *these* recipes!), as I'm not limited to their menu choices.

The best freezer cookbook I have seen, March 30, 2006
This cookbook is the best freezer cookbook out there. The receipes are easy and kid friendly (a plus in my house)plus they are easy to adapt to your own tastes. I easily made 15 meat based dinners in less than 3 hours. A plus to this book over others is that many of the recipes are simply assembled and then cooked on serving day which I prefer to cooking and then thawing/reheating which can degrade the texture of many foods. I would recommend this cookbook to anyone looking to start freezer cooking or those looking for new and good recipes

Questionable recipes...., January 29, 2006
The book is well laid out, the format easy to read and explained in great detail. However, the first recipe I tried called for sour cream to be added to the ingredients prior to freezing, didn't specify to thaw the recipe, and was designed for the crock-pot. Well, everything my mother taught me about, "Don't freeze sour cream because it will separate," and "Don't put sour cream in the crock-pot until the last 30 minutes or it will curdle," it turns out Mom was right! It began with the recipe not going into the crock-pot properly, because it wasn't thawed. Once it was finished thawing, it was separated and watery, and by the end of the cooking time in the crock-pot, what wasn't soupy was curdled. Smelled great, but I couldn't get the sauce to come back together. I'm not giving up on the book yet, but be warned - listen to your instincts! If something sounds wrong, try to see if there is a way for you to adapt it to work around the problem! Also, I would recommend what I am doing - I am making all of the recipes that sound good or interesting for the smallest amount first, so if we don't like it, I'm not stuck with several containers of it in the freezer! Good luck to everyone who buys the book!

Time saver for a busy medical student!, September 26, 2006
I'm a pre-clinical medical student, and often don't have time to mess around with dinner when I get home, especially during exam times. Using this book, I've been able to eat really well on the one night's worth of cooking I did at the beginning of the semester! I tried the spinach lasagna and beef stroganoff recipes this time around, and have been really happy with both of them. I find that I want to alter the recipes a little bit, but I think that has more to do with my needs and tastes than any problem with the recipes themselves.

The other nice thing is that this is one of the few cookbooks I have been able to adapt as far as portion size without any trouble at all. I am single and end up cooking for myself. With this cookbook, that's no problem. I froze the lasagnas into smaller pans (and then took them out, thank you for that technique!!) for a dinner and lunch leftovers helping, and portioned out the stroganoff into single-serving sizes as well. No wasted food and no headaches. Fantastic!

I also made this whole batch of food (which included a fair amount besides these two recipes) from one shopping excursion of about $100. I haven't had to go grocery shopping to any substantial degree in a month, other than for salad greens, cat food, noodles, or that last minute ice cream craving. This is VERY nice for both my financial budget and my time budget!

All in all, I credit this book for saving me some serious time, money, and stress. I'm going to end up taking what I learn in making these recipes up to freeze and applying them to my other favorite recipes, too, which just makes it doubly valuable as far as I'm concerned.

Finally, a cook-ahead method that's practical and yummy!, April 29, 2007
Say goodbye to boring recipes. This book as an amazing variety of entres, and many have a gourmet taste and appearance without bizarre, hard-to-find ingredients.

The best things about this book:

1) A very practical freezer method using bags instead of baking dishes or plastic containers. By using the freezer bags and "flash freezing" the food into various, stackable shapes, you can maximize your freezer space and make cooking or reheating the food easier later.

2)The majority of the dishes aren't cooked at all until after you defrost them. This makes them taste incredibly fresh on the day you serve them. You simply assemble them before hand, then freeze them in order to cook them later.

3) This method of cooking definitely saves time. By preparing multiple meals at once, you dramatically reduce your overall preparation time. Furthermore, you've got the convenience of getting a meal out of your freezer the night before, letting it defrost in your fridge, and then simply letting the oven do the cooking or reheating while you tend to your children, chores, or work.

4) Buying "loss leaders" on sale at the grocery store and cooking them in bulk really does save money!

5) The variety of recipes.

6) The flexibility. The author encourages you to change up the recipes according to your family's tastes and package them according to your family's size.

The worst things about this book:

1) It should be spiral bound so it can lie flat.

2) I'm a lover of free-range, grass-fed, antibiotic-free, hormone-free meats. Finding my type of meat on sale is rare, and buying it already cut (i.e. chicken breasts) is usually never cheap. Most of the chicken recipes call for breasts. A few can be adapted to use shredded chicken (what I've got if I buy the chicken whole from farmers), but most cannot. Perhaps I should just learn how to properly butcher a chicken.

A bit disappointing, November 20, 2006
Not quite what I had expected. A lot of these recipes are simply different marinades for meat, which I've done in the past simply by buying pre-made marinades at the store. Don't be fooled by the title, these aren't simply remove from the freezer and bake meals. They are prep meals for the freezer, with additional ingredients and time added to the serving day requirements. No pictures at all, which was a disappointment. I was also a little confused by the amount of fresh pasta recipes (not frozen). Why they were included in a freezer cookbook is beyond me. I was looking for something to prepare meals for others, just to pop in the oven or heat up, and this wasn't it. I'll keep looking...

A Great Time Saver!!, March 4, 2007
This weekend I spent a few hours making 15 dinners from four recipes (I will try a few more recipes next weekend. The Very Best Meatloaf recipe is GREAT, and I will try the rest this week.

What I love about this book are the meat entrees. Like others have mentioned, a lot of the recipes are simply meats and chicken in different sauces and marinades, but this works for this book because these meals are meant to be frozen - being frozen in a sauce means no freezer-burned meat!

A big plus to this book is the first section before the recipes. The informational chapters are very helpful. In particular, "The Don't Panic Method of Cooking", "Cooking Day Suggestions", "Packaging and Freezing the Goods", and "How Long Will it Keep?"

I LOVE the recipe size conversions that are given for all of the freezer recipes. The original recipes make either 4, 6, or 8 servings (depending on the recipe), and most of the conversions are for 3x, 6x, or 9x the recipe.

Some recipes that I thought looked great include: Rocky Mountain Brisket & BBQ Sauce, Rio Rancho Taco Meat, Pork Chops a la Orange, Pinwheel Flank Steak, Dijon Pork Loin Roast, Oriental Sesame CHicken Strips, Lemon Glazed Chicken Breasts, Italian Stuffed Chicken Breasts, Chicken Breasts Stuffed with Pesto Butter, Buttermilk Herb Chicken, Lemon Bread, Orange Sour Cream Loaf (bread), crumb cake, and much more! (hey! no canned soups in any of these recipes!!)

I held back a star only because I would have liked to have seen more freezable side recipes (most of the sides can only be prepared on the day of the meal, but honestly, I usually just cook an easy Lipton/Knorr pasta package and heat some frozen veggies to accompany dinner.

I really think that you can't go wrong with this cook book, unless you have a special dietary need. If you are looking for low-fat recipes, be prepared to make recipe substitutions.

4 and a half stars overall; 5 stars for flavor!, January 30, 2007
I cook in bulk and freeze on a regular basis, keep an inventory list on top of my freezer, decide what we are eating the next day and defrost in the fridge the night before. This particular book gives a nice organization to how to purchase in bulk for cooking. The dinners are very tasty and quite simple to prepare. Most freezer cookbooks have a lot of cream of mushroom soup type ingredients and the entrees are largely casseroles. Not this book! This book has a great variety of recipes with higher quality ingredients. The recipes from this book taste fresher than many have made from other freezer cookbooks. I prefer to do prep work (chopping veggies, shredding cheese, etc the night before) and then it's easy to follow these recipes and make several recipes in one day. I spent 4 hours on Sat. and froze 23 meals for my family of 4. Though the format is generally for a family of 4, I have smaller Pyrex casserole dishes with plastic lids and freeze each recipe in half - for 2, and then I can take out more when needed. It's easy to figure out how to make healthier choices in ingredients (fat free salad dressing or less cheese). Complaints? The binding broke on first use. A spiral bound book would be so much better. Also, it would be nice if nutritional information was included. Lastly, there could more side dishes to freeze (most are "make on the day you serve") since it is a freezer cookbook and most of the meals are entrees which would almost require a side dish or two.

Yumo!!!!!, August 31, 2006
I have done Dream Dinners numerous times & have also frozen my own meals from time to time. I've tried numerous other cookbooks but none compared to the recipes this one had to offer. They were similar to the Dream Dinners meals in my opinion. I attempted to put some in the freezer this weekend & am happy to say I spent about 3 hours & was able to sock away 10 meals. So far we are very happy with the results. I will definitely be grabbing this cookbook again. ... Read more

Editorial Review

Reviews

The only knife book you will ever need, July 31, 2008
"Mastering Knife Skills" by chef Norman Weinstein is a marvel of a book - visually attractive, overflowing with facts both historical and culinary, the ultimate guide to the choosing of knives, their care and upkeep, and their optimal use.

This book fills a real gap in the field of cook-bookery. I, a serious amateur cook, have been cooking for over forty years now, and yet, in forty years of watching television cooking shows and reading cookbooks (of which I own some thirty), I have never before seen any teacher or TV chef relate - really relate in any serious and systematic, way - to this most important of all our cooking tools, at least not until the present illuminating book.

One could be forgiven for expecting such a book to offer mere dry factual knowledge on the subject, but in fact it is excitingly written and lavishly illustrated, and Weinstein's style has a flow and a sweep that pull the reader along from page to page, like a good detective novel, from slicing through dicing, to mincing to filleting to fabricating - yes, fabricating - a chicken. The accompanying DVD, furthermore, is graphic and extremely well presented.

I have seen Norman Weinstein in the classroom. He is an inspiring teacher, who wears his prodigious erudition lightly, and enlivens his classes with a quick and warm sense of humor. That same encyclopedic knowledge, sympathy and warmth come across in his book as well.

And one last note: following Weinstein's instructions I sat down for an hour with a sharpening stone and sharpened all my knives to an edge the like of which I have not ever gotten from the "professionals".

While this may not be the only cookbook you will ever want, it certainly is the only knife book you will ever need.

Harvey B.

Extremely well illustrated, comfortable pace and layout, great for beginners, September 7, 2008
This is written from the perspective of someone who has only really started to cook beyond the means of frying eggs and microwaving whatever I could get my hands on over the past year, and realizing how important knife skills are in really becoming an effective cook.

For someone who is relatively new to the kitchen, and beginning to work more with an increasing variety of produce, this book is an excellent start.

For starters, the photographs are top notch. Not only are they in beautiful colour and spaciously laid out, but the appropriate (and necessary) steps are photographed, which is not always the case.

Even when describing multiple cutting techniques for one single product (e.g. onions, tomatoes), every technique is comfortably laid out over a series of pages, rather than rushed into a more cramped, difficult to read format over fewer pages.

The video is well produced, and although I wish I could have seen EVERY technique demonstrated, I understand why it would have been impossible to do so. Techniques I have found myself using frequently are the ones he demonstrates. The two I also found most useful are the video on fabricating chicken (no matter how many pictures I look at from a large number of different books, there is no substitute for seeing someone actually doing it), and carving a chicken (which is not described in his book).

As you can tell, if all of these techniques sound like "Mickey Mouse" endeavours to you, then this book is certainly NOT for you. But if the simple task of carving up a chicken and properly dicing an onion has always eluded you, then this book will not only teach you that in magnificent fashion, but so many other skills you didn't know you needed but definitely will.

I compared this book to two others, but picked this one for the following reasons:
- Knife Skills Illustrated: A User's Manual (Hertzmann) - I just enjoyed the photographs and simpler, more concise and comfortable layout better in Weinstein's book.

- Knife Skills: In the Kitchen (Trotter) - lots of big names attached to this book, the pictures are stellar, and the smaller size of the book actually was more appealing to me, as the Weinstein book is a bit on the large side, especially once you open it up and want to lay it down on the kitchen counter as you work. However, Weinstein is a professional instructor, and I found that his ability to teach (which is what you want out of this book, not the ability to concoct earth shattering recipes - which this leads to, hopefully!) really shines.

Plus, the Trotter book did not break down each product into its own section in as much detail, and the smaller format, although appearing easier to handle, did not allow for the more spacious, comfortable, and easier to read layout (especially when you have it on the table while you are working!) that the Weinstein book afforded.

Content wise, both are comparable. Both have a few techniques which the other does not cover, but Weinstein does a better job teaching the ESSENTIAL techniques which you know you will absolutely be using on a regular basis.

The right choice, January 17, 2009
I spent a fair amount of time deciding which knife book to get, but I'm very happy with my choice. The book is incredibly detailed and has many useful photos. I was a little off-put at first because the author completely poopoos using santuko knives for chopping most things. But after I tried his techniques using a chef's knife (longer than santukos) I agreed with his point. But regardless of what knife you choose the techniques are very useful and easy to follow. I especially liked how each vegetable is given it's own section and instructions. The section on knife selection was also very detailed and helpful. .

Useful, but uneven and a bit dated, October 1, 2008
This may be the best knife skills book on the market right now, but it's nowhere near as complete or as good as it might be.

What it gets right is basic, European knife cuts. Mr. Weinstein is a good teacher, and his descriptions and pictures are clear and well presented.

The section on buying knives, however, is outdated. A book written twenty years ago would have practically the same information, even though the world of knives available to Western cooks has expanded and evolved enormously since then. Mr. Weinstein mentions Japanese knives in passing, but doesn't give any sense that he's actually used them. This is unfortunate, since so many Western cooks have started using Japanese knives for much or all of their work. Much of the old information that Weinstein gives doesn't apply to these knives, and what little little he does say about them is questionable.

His section on sharpening isn't bad. He knows more about sharpening than most cooks, but unfortunately this isn't saying much. And sharpening is an area where a little bit of knowledge can be a dangerous thing. I belive that any serious cook should know how to sharpen their knives, but they need to be given a solid background in the subject in order to avoid wrecking them. I'm not sure Weinstein's book gives quite enough.

The book does a good job teaching the most basic cutting techniques, but even here it seems a little dated. Since Weinstein's experience is with fairly old fashioned (not very sharp) knives, the techniqes he shows are built on the assumption that you'll be using similar knives as well. So even though he talks up the idea of using a relaxed grip, he demonstrates cutting with a much firmer grip than what you'd use with a sharp knife. And he demonstrates making certain cuts in multiple sawing strokes, where a sharp knife would cut in a single pass. This is all fairly primitive compared with what the best cooks are doing when they have a good knife in their hands. In the end, he's teaching you to be less efficient and to produce lower quality results than what's possible. Which is a shame.

Mr. Weinstein is an excellent how-to book author. I'd like to see a new edition of this book written after he gets some eductation in updated techniques. And I'd like to see him sharing the load with some other experts. For example, he could write on the basic Euro techniques, and have guests write on Japanese cutting and butchering techniques, on knife selection, and on sharpening. This would result in a truly great book.

The enclosed DVD is pretty good, especially on the more complex tasks like fabricating and carving poultry. These skills are pretty hard to learn just from pictures. Unfortunately, Weinstein's cutting skills seem surprisingly sloppy, especially considering he's been teaching for so long. I'm not as big a stickler as some people for perfectly consistent cuts, but I'd think a knife skills teacher would be!

Great for a serious home cook, February 9, 2010
I have been a serious home cook for 30 years, and have developed some pretty reasonable self-taught knife skills, just from the years of cooking. I don't know that this book would have much to offer a professional cook, but it is pure gold for the self taught. I bought it a week ago, and embarked on a series of lessons from the book, and my understanding of good knife skills has increased ten fold. My knives feel much more natural in my hands now, and I have learned to work with my knives, instead of forcing them to do what I want. The results are great -- not really different than what I achieved before, but more ordered and elegant, and while not faster yet, I can tell that they will be as soon as I get my groove. This book is easy to follow, well illustrated, and nicely ordered for a home mini-course on better knife skills.

Very well illustrated and easy to follow, December 22, 2008
Great for beginners. The illustrations are first rate, and the DVD (comes with the book) is wonderful as well. The book is easy to follow and explains what kinds of knives are useful for what purposes, has advice on what to buy, and how to maintain your knives. And, of course, how to perform various food prep tasks (cut, chop, fillet, etc) with your knives! I quickly learned easier and more efficient ways to get things done in the kitchen from this book and DVD -- stuff they teach professional chefs in culinary schools. The only minor caveat is that the author is a bit overly opinionated on things like his preference for wooden cutting boards and knife blocks vs magnetic bars (small details). Highly recommended overall.

Outstanding for home chef's, April 25, 2010
I highly recommend this book. I also purchased "Japanese Kitchen Knives: Essential Techniques and Recipes" in the hopes I would learn more on technique. Although "Japanese Kitchen Knives" was interesting it was short on technique and long on recipes and, being a vegetarian, it was not anywhere near as helpful as "Mastering Knife Skills".
Chef Weinstein selects several vegetables to illustrate "knife skills" and these are just what I was interested in. I bought several handmade Japanese knives due to their really sharp edges. My first knife was a gift, a Kyocera Santoku ceramica which I fell in love with until it became dull and the only option was to send it off to be sharpened. My next two knives were Shun's, a Kershaw Shun Usuba, which I still love and use a lot and even with the admonition that it was "extremely sharp and use due care" I cut myself three times before I developed any skill (it's really, really, really sickeningly sharp and the handmade knives are even sharper). My third knife was a Chroma Damascus Santoku which I paid too much for, there being many Santoku's on the market in the same price range that are much better.
That said, I wish I would have had Chef Weinsteins book in hand before I purchased ANYTHING. I shied away from a 10" Chef's knife as I thought it was too big and too heavy. I have to admit that after purchasing the Shun Usuba($120), a Seikon Dojo Usuba(handmade, $244), an Asai PM Damascus 7 1/8" Gyuto ($356) and a 6" Petit Kazuyki Tanaka handmade ($320, god I love this knife, beautiful and cuts anything like butter), for just over a thousand dollars (ok, I really like them all, I mean really) I still wish I would have bought this book before I bought my first knife. Well, after I purchased this book I bought a Messermiester Meridian Elite 9" Chef's knife (a mere $120) and was astounded by how often I use this knife and how easy it is to use. Just a point here, I'm very careful now with my knives after my experiences with the Japanese knives and while showing this knife to my wife, you guessed it (see honey...ooops), I sliced an extremely thin piece of flesh off my right thumb, so thin it did not draw blood nor was it painful either when I cut it or later. I bought the 9" because I was still under the misconception that 10" was too big and after finding how easy the 9" was to handle I'm thinking the 10" would be even better. Oh, by the way, I'm 5'7" with what you might call fairly small hands and I'm in love with the Messermeister's. Chef Weinstein likes the J.A. Henckel knives but since he stated that he wished all manufacturers polished the spine like the Messermeister's that's what I bought.
Chef Weinstein, admittedly biased against Japanese knives, has made this home Chef a believer in German and French Chef's knives, not that I don't love my Japanese cooking razorblades, I do, but I'm now convinced I could have purchased the ultimate Knife wardrobe for the kind of money I spent on just three good Japanese knives. Oh, I also forked over mucho dinero on the right stones for sharpening the Japanese knives, something I do not regret at all, consequently all of my knives can be used to shave with and I have to agree with Chef Weinstein that slicing correctly adds to the flavor of vegetables. I think this is a must for your first knife book and I haven't even watched the video yet!
Great book, you'll just love it. For vegetarians it's a must first book...

MOST BASIC - no real "mastery", June 5, 2009
I was misled by the title of the book "MASTERING Knife Skills". I was hoping to find a text and DVD that illustrates, well, MASTERY of the craft, such as how to de-bone a whole chicken, how to fabricate a crown roast, or other MASTER knife skills. I was not prepared for a history of knives in the bronze and iron age (p. 13), pictures of knives from 1886 (p. 17) or pictures of 11 kinds of honing steels (p. 43). Elementary, my dear Norman! BASIC knife techniques only start on page 78, and go on for the next 100 pages with slicing vegetables and fruit (a very few are creative, but it's not MASTERY). Fabricating poultry, meat and fish are covered in only 39 pages. The DVD is a long-winded show of how to slice celery and carrots, and ends with a show of ripping apart a chicken with bare hands. Slushy and messy. (kitchen shears would have done nicely). The DVD does not cover any other meats or fish). Considering the cost of the book, and shipment costs half around the world, it was a non-performing investment. Change the title to MOST BASIC, and it would be worth a few extra stars.

Great Book!, August 21, 2010
I'm a novice knife-wielder and this book and it's accompanying cd have been a go to source for me. I did a darn good job when I followed it to debone a chicken!

Excellent book- how much we didnt know, July 17, 2010
If you enjoy cooking as much as I do then I think you will be happy with the skills and techniques that you can learn in this book. But after I tried his techniques using a chef's knife I agreed with his point. But regardless of what knife you choose the techniques are very useful and easy to follow. I especially liked how each vegetable is given it's own section and instructions. The section on choosing the best suited knife was also very detailed and helpful. . I spent a fair amount of time deciding which knife book to get, but I'm very happy with my choice. The book is incredibly detailed and has many useful photos. I highly recommend this book ... Read more

Editorial Review

Louis Eguaras, a renowned chef at the Le Cordon Bleu Program at the California School of Culinary Arts,provides readers with a terrific overview of what is truly involved in the preparation, cooking, and presentation of meals. He also provides invaluable insights into just what is involved in making this one's chosen profession.

The book will feature a wide range of illustrated lessons, from how to properly hold a knife... to the history of food... from food preparation and presentation... to restaurant hospitality and management, and much more.

The book will be presented in the distinctive and highly-attractive packaged style of 101 THINGS I LEARNED IN ARCHITECTURE SCHOOL, and will be the perfect gift for anyone who is thinking about entering culinary school, is already enrolled, or even just the casual chef. ... Read more

Reviews

nice booklet, May 8, 2010
If this was published as a 15-page pamphlet I would give it 5 stars. However its not worth the $10.20 Amazon is selling it for. While nominally 200 pages, 1/2 the facing pages just have a simple illustration on them. On the pages that DO have printing, its usually just a paragraph or list of items centered on a page. And the pages are about the size of a large postcard. So while this book *does* have useful info and tips in it, I think of it more as a pamphlet in book form rather than a real book. Picked up for $2-5 it might be worth it, but I think its overpriced at $10.

great for beginners!, June 15, 2010
I bought one for myself & one for my stepson (age 16) who desires to go to culinary school. I am not a chef, but I am very fluent and creative in the kitchen. This book is great for picking up tips and tricks, & PERFECT for beginners!

Great starting points., July 12, 2010
This book is not a textbook. It is a platform.

It coalesces information by subject into condensed packets. Some pages are brief, yet effective. Other pages can inspire you into hours of research. This book has opened my eyes to a whole new realm of culinary possibility.

Best of all. Its an easy and quick read.

Decent little book, though a little pricey for the content, May 24, 2010
First off, the key to approaching this book is that it's a book more or less for outsiders -- a culinary professional will know most of this stuff already, and you'll definitely need a lot more than just this if you're trying to work your way into the business without going to school.

Under most circumstances, any home cook's ambition to open a restaurant will at most remain an impossible dream, but the popularity of books like Kitchen Confidential and Momofuku will attest to a distinct interest among lay people in life in the back of the house; however, the testosterone-heavy, slash-and-burn writing style of Bourdain and Chang can be off-putting to some people. "101 Things" has most of this material, albeit from a more scholarly standpoint, mixing tips and quotes on food to give a lay reader an extremely concise but thorough taste of life in the restaurant world, as well as giving a home cook some material to think about regarding organization and technique.

Certainly I've written in the past of my admiration for little cookbooks; although there's little in the way of recipes here, it certainly fits well enough into the pattern. I wish it didn't cost *quite* so much; for what you get, ten bucks or less would be a bit more reasonable. But it's still an interesting little book for anyone curious about what they teach in culinary school. ... Read more

Reviews

THIS IS NOT THE REVISED EDITION!!! BEWARE, September 15, 2009
The book arrives with a beautiful clear cover and a sticker saying "Now includes seasons 1 through 5" This is advertized as the revised edition with a copyright date of June 2009. However, when you open the book not only is the copyright date 2008, but it DOES NOT include the newer seasons. I called customer service, explained the problem, sent the book back and the replacement I received is EXACTLY THE SAME. It's as if amazon put the old books in the new sleeve. I already have the old one so I want the new one I ordered. VERY BUMMED!!!! BUYER BEWARE!!!!

not what it seems, November 14, 2009
I had the same problem as the previous reviewer. There are two recipes from the other seasons, but the book is not fully updated. There are NO interviews with the contestants from seasons 4 or 5. If you love the show, then wait for a properly updated edition.

Look closely and you'll see that they do have a couple of new recipes, September 17, 2009
This edition is VERY similar to the earlier one but it does have a couple of recipes from the last couple of seasons that have been added (one of Stephanie's recipes and one of Hosea's recipes). I don't have the original version so I am quite pleased with this cookbook! If you are a Top Chef junkie, you'll enjoy reading it.

Gift, January 24, 2010
This was a gift which was requested by the recipient who is very pleased with it. ... Read more

Editorial Review

Morimoto's cooking has distinctive Japanese roots, yet it's actually, as the chef calls it, "global cooking for the 21st century." Morimoto's unique cuisine is characterized by beautiful Japanese color combinations and aromas, while the preparation infuses multicultural influences such as traditional Chinese spices and simple Italian ingredients, presented in a refined French style. Bringing all these elements home, with helpful step-by-step instructions and gorgeous photography, this accessible book explains Chef Morimoto's cooking techniques and plating philosophies and brings Japanese cooking to your own home.AUTHOR BIO: Chef Morimoto has been the Japanese iron chef on the Food Network's weekly show, "Iron Chef," and its spinoff "Iron Chef America," since 1999. The show airs in the United States, Canada, Australia, Israel, and Hong Kong. Formerly the Executive Chef of the Sony Club and Nobu, Chef Morimoto now has his own restaurants in New York, Philadelphia, Tokyo, and Mumbai, and also created his own brand of sake and beer. ... Read more

Reviews

The mind of Morimoto, October 12, 2007
IMO, one of the most innovative chefs of our time. I absolutely love his combination of knowledge of tradition, combined with his blatent disregard of the constraints of tradition. The photography is superb, showing his mastery of plating skills and hinting at his highly advanced knife skills. He clearly goes beyond traditional Japanese cuisine, bringing in influences from multiple other cuisines. While this is certainly a great coffee table book to look through just for inspiration and to stir conversation, it is also a great book for the innovative chef to cook from.

My only minor, very minor, criticism is that a few of the pages have the text written over a background pattern, making it a bit difficult to read those few pages. It's worth the effort to read them anyhow.

This book has been carefully edited and is a most readable English, having lost none of the skill of the chef from it's editing. Actually, the editing enhances your understanding of what Morimoto is thinking. He is an obviously sophisticated thinker in terms of how he designs 'his cuisine.' The recipies are really quite straighforward, simple in the Japanese sense of having worked hard to remove complexity. Some of the ingredients are not common, but to worry about that is to miss the point of the book - innovative fusion cuisine at it's finest. You are given sources for ingredients, so you should be able to duplicate the recipies nonetheless. This book challenges your preconceptions with stimulating recipies, beckoning you to stretch your own culinary skills.

When the likes of Mario Batali, Anthony Bourdain, and Ferran Adrin, all masterfully innovative chefs, praise this work, I know I'm in good company.

Interesting Read., November 5, 2007
I simply love Morimoto!

The best part of this book is not so much the recipes, but the insight into japanese cooking, tools, spices and flavoring. If it were not for Morimoto, I would never have know that I have been eating sushi the wrong way all of these years!

The recipes that you will most likely use and find invaluable can be found in the back of the book and include broths and sauces. Many of the dishes seem rather simple to make and do not require any high end items or foreign ingredients - the Japanese Egg Castella being my personal favorite.

This book receives four stars only because I wish it contained more recipes!

Very Elegant Cookbook, With Recipes That Are Both Difficult and Delicious..., January 16, 2008
Aesthetically, this cookbook is quite grand, offering tons of full-page, color pictures, and even entire spreads dedicated to demonstrating the process of properly slicing fish, sashimi-style. The pictures pop on nearly every page, and it gets you ready to cook, ready to sharpen your knifes. The only issue? Almost every recipe contains very difficult-to-find ingredients, and a quick read through of what is actually needed can be a bit of a reality check. You realize that only by going to a specialty market will you be able to recreate the dish, and therefore cooking these recipes requires a bit more dedication than you may be used to with your other cookbooks--this one can require planning ahead.

But don't get me wrong--if you are serious about cooking and about experiencing some of Morimoto's brilliant, layered flavors, then this cookbook is a great item. From what I have made, I can say that all the dishes have been fantastic--worth the effort, and really tasty (I've cooked the steak with Asian seasonings, the prosciutto-wrapped diver scallops in roasted sweet onions, and the tuna pizza). The only thing I wish the book went into a bit more is the process of making sushi. Morimoto does include his recipe for the perfect sushi rice, but never really gets into the specifics of making sushi at home (and it doesn't help that there are tons of colorful pictures showing vast arrays of sushi, none of which are joined by a recipe).

In the end, you have a section of the cookbook titled "For Contemplation," and some desserts. Both include many somewhat bizarre-sounding dishes created around seafood--squid, for example, and whether or not I would ever actually consider cooking any of these dishes I'm not sure. This cookbook, to be sure, is for those that enjoy the time spent in the kitchen, and want to take on some challenges. Morimoto don't play around, and he certainly doesn't play by convention....

About the chef or the food?, January 27, 2008
For celebrity cookbooks, sometimes it's tough to determine how much the book is about the chef, and how much is about the food. In this case, the book falls somewhere in the middle of the spectrum.

The lessons on knives, rice, and sushi, for instance are very tough to apply. Hard to relearn his 4 years of being a rice apprentice in just a few pages, and other than "Get great fish and sharp knives" it's hard to pick up the sashimi cutting techniques. Most of these sections are, "I'll have to try it at his restaurant"

On the other side, there are several "I think I can do that" recipes. The recipe for Pork Kakuni (a fantastic dish at restaurant) leaves the reader thinking, "I can do that" as does the braised Cod. Many of the other recipes are somewhere in between. The caveat on practicality is the book definitely assumes access to a good Japanese food and grocery store. Fair enough given the author.

Try it out!

Reference book, December 26, 2007
Christmas Day '07 - I decided to make a dinner solely out of recipes from Chef Morimoto's cookbook. My first course consisted of the miso braised short ribs tempura. The short ribs that are available to most grocery customers are definitely not a good or as meaty as the ones restaurants receive. This is common knowledge. The ribs lacked the flavor I expected and I thought that the ribs were better without the tempura than with. My second course was the crispy duck. I followed the directions and bought all the necessary ingredients, but was disappointed with the results. For all of the rubbing and dipping I expected the duck to have killer flavor, but it fell short of my desires. All the food I made tasted good it was just not as good as I had hoped. You just can't beat the real deal.
The introductory pages and informational inserts were excellent. There is a ton of worthwhile educational reading in the book. Sadly, there are some pages with a horizontal background that are difficult to read. I have watched Chef Morimoto on television and have frequented his restaurant and will leave our relationship that way.

Gorgeous Book, May 7, 2008
Morimoto's book is just simply gorgeous. You may want to transfer the recipes to a card and leave the book out of the kitchen if you tend to try and cook and read the recipe at the same time (a bit messy and you definitly do not want a stain in this book).

Others have mentioned that some of the ingredients are difficult to find. I think they have not gotten to the end of the book where there is a listing of suppliers. Most of the items can be found easily in a good Asian grocery store if you are lucky enough to have one where you live.

This book also gives you great insight into the mind of an amazing chef and the care taken from the choice of ingredients to the preparation, execution and presentation of a dish.

I felt like the foodie version of Being John Malkovich, July 1, 2008
Cooking. For me this is an orgasmic book of unmeasured proportions.

I have loved Iron Chef. I have loved Japanese cooking and finally the two have merged and come full circle. On viewing the book it's self - wow. A nice presentation. A heavy slightly over sized cookbook. The editing of this book is very well done. Nice graceful modern designs. Page after page of glossy step by step images and techniques, and notations on traditional Asian ingredients and how that translates to using and accessing them (or a finding suitable substitutions) in the US . If I ever wanted to publish a cookbook, it would be in this style.

This book showcases why Chef Morimoto is at the axis of a foodie empire, in this creative and intuitive take on Japanese cuisine. When I read this cookbook, I felt like the foodie version of Being John Malkovich , as this book allows you to peer inside the thoughts and actions of this culinary genius.

In relation to skill level, I would recommend this book to people who have at least an intermediate knowledge of culinary techniques. The beginning home cook might not know how to utilize or apply the techniques Chef Morimoto has outlined in this book.

It would be wise to do some further research on Japanese Culinary techniques also, as this book can only highlight certain facets of the cuisine itself and not act as a reference manual or course book on Japanese Cuisine as a whole.

If you have ever had an inkling of adoration for Asian style cuisine, or are awestruck at the complexities of the full spectrum of Professional Japanese Culinary , as I am, you would enjoy this book.

Highlights of this book include:

* An in depth look at how the Japanese chef works his knife magic to create beautiful Sashimi w and Sushi w works of art out of various ingredients - parts of fish, Octopus , and Various Vegetables .
* Recipes that are full of depth and charisma.
* Master recipes of various sauces and marinades.
* Text about the origins and importance of ingredients utilized in Japanese cuisine.
* Beautiful photography displaying the frame by frame procedures for each culinary technique, and the eloquent plate presentation for each recipe.
* A glossary of Japanese terms , as well as a source guide for obtaining specialty ingredients.


Overall this book is a wonderful culinary journey that enables the reader to cultivate a better understanding of chef Morimoto, Japanese cuisine and the culinary revelations that Morimoto has contributed to todays culinary field. I loved this book!

A top pick for any library strong in international cookbooks., November 5, 2007
Masaharu Morimoto's cooking has Japanese roots but also draws on other cultural influences, from China to Italy, to explore Japanese cooking in a refined French style. Over a hundred recipes accompanied by color photos explain his unique cooking and presentation techniques, presenting chapters that include sushi, rice, noodles, vegetables and even breads. The color photos are sensational and the dishes will intrigue many a home cook interested in fusion cuisine, making MORIMOTO a top pick for any library strong in international cookbooks.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

Fabulous book, November 21, 2007
Just got this book, and it's really great, I'd say it's a must have for foodies and fans of japanese cooking. There are lot's of recipes and how to instructions, great photos. I wasn't a fan of the Iron Chef, but then on a whim we tried his restaurant in Philadelphia and all I could say was "WOW, this man is a genius". I have been waiting for a cook book from him ever since. It really was the best food I've ever eaten. I don't take seriously the celebrity chef TV stuff, glitzy restaurant, it's only intriguing to me. But his genius with food has made a believer out of me. For me, Morimoto the chef means quality and perfection, this book is exactly that. I plan to buy several copies this Xmas for gifts.

An Iron Chef's Cookbook, October 1, 2008
I don't know about other readers, but I enjoy watching "The Iron Chef." Whether it's Bobby Flay or Cat Cora or Mario Batali or Morimoto or. . . . It's just fun to watch the challenger and the Iron Chef take some specified food and try to build a meal around it. And this represents Morimoto's art and craft.

On the inside dust jacket, a key phrase reads: "Masaharu Morimoto's cooking has distinctive Japanese roots, yet it's actually, as the Chef calls it, 'global cooking for the 21st century.'" I suppose one could, then, refer to this as a kind of fusion cooking. Whatever one calls it, the recipes included here are intriguing. I look forward to trying a number of these.

One interesting passage, at the outset of the volume (Page 7): "After dinner at one of Morimoto's restaurants, diners often say to him, 'We love what we've eaten, but it was not Japanese food.' His response, 'Why isn't it Japanese, and why must it be?'"

Perhaps sensibly, the recipes begin under the heading "Sashimi and Sushi." Then, a section on "Rice, Noodles, Breads, and Soups." One recipe that struck my fancy was "Morimoto Chicken Noodle Soup." It includes some standard elements, but also some things one might not ordinarily experience in chicken noodle soup, such as sake, Sichuan peppercorns, Shanton broth, white soy sauce, ginger, and so on. It looks like it takes a fair amount of preparation, but, boy, does it look tasty!

Under "Fish and Shellfish," there is an interesting Braised Black Cod recipe. Cod fillets, cooked with sake, ginger, soy sauce, mirin, tamari, and sugar. One also creates a vegetable ragout, with carrots, bamboo shoots, burdock root (!!), shiitake mushrooms and so on. The photo accompanying this gets my taste buds going!

No need to go on and on, but one more example. . . . Asparagus salad looks most tasty! Green and white asparagus spears, prepared along with tomatoes, shiso leaves, olive oil, black pepper and juice of one sudachi or key lime.

So, this looks like a lot of fun. It also looks like it's going to take a fair amount of preparation for many dishes (on lazy days, that would deter me; on more creative days, that would spur me on!). So, if you are interested in Japanese cooking that is not necessarily Japanese cooking, this could be a nice find.
... Read more

Editorial Review

Since its first publication in 1938, Larousse Gastronomique has been an unparalleled resource. In one volume, it presents the history of foods, eating, and restaurants; cooking terms; techniques from elementary to advanced; a review of basic ingredients with advice on recognizing, buying, storing, and using them; biographies of important culinary figures; and recommendations for cooking nearly everything.

The new edition, the first since 1988, expands the book’s scope from classic continental cuisine to include the contemporary global table, appealing to a whole new audience of internationally conscious cooks. Larousse Gastronomique is still the last word on béchamel and béarnaise, Brillat-Savarin and Bordeaux, but now it is also the go-to source on biryani and bok choy, bruschetta and Bhutan rice.

Larousse Gastronomique is rich with classic and classic-to-be recipes, new ingredients, new terms and techniques, as well as explanations of current food legislation, labeling, and technology. User-friendly design elements create a whole new Larousse for a new generation of food lovers. ... Read more

Reviews

Tout le Monde, July 5, 2003
Certainly the grande dame of cookbooks can't be everything to everyone but what it does do, better than anything else, is teach you the proper way to master the myriad of cooking techniques. If the book is heavy, it's because it's the foundation of every other cookbook you could own. Certianly "Joy of Cooking" is also remarkable in this respect, but if you want to rise about just being good, Larousse will teach you. Yes it is Franco-centric but deservedly, the French have a culinary legacy second to none in the world and the techniques you learn in Larousse will serve you well no matter if cooking Chinese, Italian, or even New American.

The four foundations the book synthesizes are: Technique, Tools, Ingredients, and Creativity. Ever wanted to know the essence of celery? Just how an egg does all the things that it does? Larousse will tell you. Similary, with tools, Larousse is an illumination. If Williams Sonoma ever seemed superfluous, Larousse will shock you into realizing there are advantages to owning copper pots, balanced wisks, and a bombe mould or two. Correct tools are essential to exemplary results.

Larousse is not a dead book of "ancient regime" heavy sauces (though they are included), but rather a living book, inspirational in its depth. If it can be accused of being stodgy, and it has, it's because it wants to emphasize the basics of cooking and, once that is mastered, leaves you free to go out on your own. Once the four foundations have been mastered it's up to you to excel. That's not to say there aren't complex and difficult recipes, there are; but they tend to be more traditional though make no mistake, the top chefs of France have contributed recipes to Larousse.

There are shortfalls. As noted before it does not cover the other grande cuisines of the world (namely Chinese and Italian) with anything remotely resembling a catholic perspective, but then it doesn't purport to be an all-encompassing cookbook. As a book it is dry and its emphasis on exact, rigid technique seems rather imperious. While the haughty tone may seem to be a fault, it's actually worded so as to express the exact requirement of a task in the clearest terms. When you get to the highest levels of cooking techniques there is no room for error. You're dealing with physical and chemical properties that require exact processes to succeed. Pull them off and you'll amaze yourself.

If you learn to cook using Larousse Gastronomique and follow it faithfully, there won't be a cuisine in the world you can't tackle or a cooking task you won't perform without confidence. I can't say that about any other cookbook.

Considerably shallower than the 1969 original translation :(, December 26, 2004
I just bought the 1969 first edition for $45 at a used shop. I hadn't noticed that the modern version reviewed here was actually on remainder for 5 bucks less -- the cashier pointed this out to me, and I went back to compare. There was a note in the old edition saying "This (better) ed OP". I trust my local bookshop, so I put them side by side, and was shocked to find that a *large* number of recipes have been excised from the original edition. In some cases it's merely the omission of a few variations under a heading [see "achar" -- from 3 recipes to 1 in the new], but in many cases it's a wholesale excision [see "ketchup" -- no recipe in current version AFAICT].

I believe very much in cookbooks that do one thing and do it right -- ethnic cookbooks dedicated solely to their particular cuisines. A grand unified cookbook is a noble undertaking, but in this edition it appears that depth has been sacrificed to include a broader range of items in less-than-ideal detail.

I have been saddened in recent years to see the great cookbooks watered down or losing focus -- the new Joy of Cooking feels much the same to me when compared to my mother's version.

Bottom line: Larousse had a great vision -- an encyclopaedia of *French* Cuisine. The addition of other cuisines by the editors should not have been undertaken without the same attention to detail. The end result is still a massive and relevant book, but lacks the focus and truly stunning depth of the original.

If they decide to compile a 10,000-page multivolume compendium, then we'll be talking. Until then, I'm sticking with the older editions.

Essential, Exhaustive Reference to French and World Food, May 26, 2004
This weighty, 1200 page volume is a reliable gold standard among culinary works. It should not surprise that it is originally a work published in French (Larousse is a major French publisher that specializes in encyclopedic volumes on many subjects). The inevitability of the volume is based on the premier place of French cuisine on the world stage and on the very European tradition of publishing great omnibus works on just about every subject imaginable. It was Diderot in 17th century France who invented the encyclopedia and great references in most subjects are available in French or German or even Italian long before they are available in English.

The blurb on the front of my edition states that the Larousse Gastronomique is the `World's Greatest Culinary Encyclopedia'. I cannot judge this statement for volumes available in French, German, Italian, Spanish, Japanese, Chinese, Thai, Hindi, or Arabic. But, in English, this is undoubtedly true. This statement is true not only for the size of the volume, but for the great range of subjects the editors have chosen to include. The entries cover all the obvious things such as vegetables, meats, fish, shellfish, herbs, spices, fruits, and spice mixtures.

On these subjects, the writers do not limit themselves to a simple description of appearance, taste, seasonality, geographic distribution, and a statement of culinary uses. It includes representative recipes for almost all basic foodstuffs, the number depending on the relative importance of the food. The entry for aubergines (eggplant) includes a general recipe for the preparation of the vegetable plus eight recipes within the article itself plus references to eight other recipes under other articles. The drawings or photographs accompanying articles on major foodstuffs like aubergines are truly first rate. I am pleased, but not surprised at this, as I have come to expect European editors to do as good or better job of illustrating books than American publishers, especially where these illustrations are an important aspect of the work. Regarding the illustrations in general, the genius of the editors is in the great variety of media used in the pictures. Where technical detail is important, color drawings are used to focus on the important and hide the incidental in pictures of raw ingredients, for example. Where a prepared dish is pictured, photographs are typically used. Where the subject is a geographical or historical subject, the first choice is usually an historical engraving, painting, or cartoon.

If the book covered no more than these foods, it would be a valuable work indeed, but it also covers such diverse subjects as geographical regions of culinary interest such as Provence, both common and rare kitchen tools such as the autoclave and the bain marie, culinary songs such as chants used by street vendors in Paris, types of eating establishments such as caf�, bistro, and restaurant. One of my favorite things is to be looking for a particular entry and run across some other totally appropriate, yet totally unexpected entry. My most recent find is an article on the traditional fraternal orders and associations of culinary professionals in place in France, some since the Middle Ages. This relatively long article is accompanied by full color pictures of the robes worn by members of these orders.

The range of subjects covered by the book is quite international, but there is a clear emphasis on French techniques, history, produce, and dishes. The coverage of wine and cheese around the world is extensive, as these products are so important to French gastronomy. Some subjects that are very important to Asian cuisines get relatively little attention. Soy gets a half page article, and miso gets no more than a paragraph. Lemons get a page and a half, yet lemongrass has no article at all. On the other hand, techniques for butchering a chicken get two full pages.

I do not often refer to the Larousse Gastronomique for recipes, but it is always my reference of last resort when all other sources fail. The only culinary question on which it is mute is on substitutions. A replacement for buttermilk can be found in any number of lesser references, yet the Gastronomique simply does not cover this.

The Larousse Gastronomique is simply the essential reference to French technique, ingredients, culinary history, and geography. Get this before you get your Julia Child and your Jaques Pepin and your Patricia Wells. I seriously doubt if the latest editions have any significant improvements over used editions of thirty or even fifty years ago. Just be sure to get one in good condition. You will refer to it often.

Essential.

Broader but not deeper, October 21, 2001
I kept 3 editions of this important title. No doubt on its authoritativeness. This new 2001 edition caught my immediate attention when I first saw it. I browsed thru it nearly from cover to cover. There are some newer entries not listed before (the 1984 ed), e.g., tiramisu. However, information on other cuisines is brief, e.g., only 2 pages on Spanish cuisine. For a serious cook like me who own 100+ cookbooks, this title is not essential. But, if you haven't yet owned previous editions, this is not a bad idea.

More bulk, less beauty than the 1988 edition, December 26, 2001
I've owned the 1988 edition of this masterpiece for several years. As a combination go-to resource, inspiration, and backgrounder on all things culinary, it is unsurpassed. The typeface, layout, and abundance of perfectly placed color photographs and illustrations make it a warm volume, despite its weight.

However, I recently purchased this new edition as a gift. The recipient is happy, but I'm a bit disapointed. Though the new scheme makes distinguishing recipies a snap (red titles), the typeface is steril and the number and interest of photographs has declined substantially, largely consisting of full-page stock photo stuff.

Nevertheless, a great book, but one that has lost some of its beauty. I'm happy to own the 1988 edition!

A Must Have, January 19, 2002
Larousse Gastronomique is a must have for any serious cook or for anyone who would just like to know more about the food that they eat. Whether the reader is looking for information about something exotic or commonplace, it's all there. Larousse Gastronomique will provide the reader with a better understanding of the ingredients, techniques, "hows" and "whys" involved in every recipe. I highly recommend reading it from cover to cover. It will serve as an invaluable reference for any cook for many years to come.

Nice, but not what I'd hoped., November 30, 2006
This book is not what I thought it would be after reading the reviews here, and, had I looked at in a store, I probably wouldn't have bought it. Unfortunately, my local bookstore didn't have it, so I bought it blind.

This book is not, despite what the first review on this site claims, a book for those who are learning how to cook. This is a book for those who are interested in expanding their culinary knowledge. It is, no doubt, a stellar reference in that regard. If you like just learning about different kinds of food and regions, this book will provide you endless amounts of reading time. It is, without a doubt, an "interesting" book on my shelf, and I turn to it if I'm looking for ideas for a particular ingredient I'm not familiar with. Then, once I have an idea of what I can do with it, I turn to my other cookbooks and the internet for detailed recipes.

All that said, if you are trying to develop some basic cooking skills, this is not the book to shell out $$$ for. There are far better books and online resources to help with that.

I would give it more stars if I could, August 6, 2004
This book is an absolute "must" for anyone who is interested in culinary arts, food and wine related topics.

I love cooking and have an extensive collection of cookery books, but this is a reference book "par excellence" and is fascinating. I read a little at a time and allow time for each subject to sink in and often have to cross reference. I still have many topics to go, it will probably take me all year to complete this book.

Often I have used this book as a dictionary to find out about a type of food and it has been the topic of many a conversation with friends.

This book is not a recipe book nor for the faint hearted and a sound knowledge of the French language is a definate advantage since so many culinary terms are in French and not translated (and often not even translatable), this book assumes that you already have the basic cullinary language before you start.

This is not a book that I would take a chance on buying as a gift for anyone unless they had specified an interest.

A wonderful book!

Not as good as the 1988 edition, November 15, 2006
After comparing this newest edition to my 1988 edition I sent it back. I think attention to detailed information and instruction has been compromised in order to encompass too much in general and to make it look more like a coffee table book.

Encyclopedic work of Gastronomy, April 14, 2006
This book covers literally everything from A-Z in the
known Gastronomic universe, and it's strength is in its
coverage of European cuisine (esp Frech-centric foods and
food custome). I prefer the out-of-print classic editions
that stuck more to the original scope: French-centric cuisine.

The only problem with the current edition is that it
tries to be all encompassing. This is a mistake, because
it can never have the same near-flawless coverage of, for
example, Aussie cuisine that it had for French cuisine.

Even with its very minor shortcomings, the LG is well worth the price. ... Read more

Editorial Review

Amazon.com ReviewIn its many publications and on TV, Cook's Illustrated/America’s Test Kitchen offers exhaustively tested "best" recipes, tips, and product evaluations. Among its cookbooks, The Best Make-Ahead Recipe offers over 300 formulas that can be prepared in advance, held, and finished later. Therecipes range widely from pre-prepared oven-ready dishes like Baked Fish Provençal; "double-duty" recipes, such as Mexican-Style Pork and Chorizo Stew, thatuse leftovers imaginatively; slow-cooker items like Tuscan white bean soup; and desserts, such as a chocolate soufflé that can go from freezer to oven successfully. In addition, the fully illustrated book offers helpful charts like How to Reheat, which provides advice according to portion size and heating method; special-occasion menus that can be started up to a month ahead; and discerning product and equipment advice.

As with other Cook's Illustrated projects, Make-Ahead includes recipes that have appeared previously in its other works, though a majority of these have been amended with make-ahead or scaling-up data. Almost all the recipes are prefaced with their trademark testing "diaries," exhaustively detailed accounts of the recipe-making process ("With the onion shells figured out, we focused next on the filling...," gives the flavor), which some readers will find enlightening, but others will think excessive. Of course, certain recipes, or recipe classes, like that for desserts, are necessarily made wholly or partially in advance--but the book's point is to provide formulas designed to yield superior results even when the uncompleted dishes are held, as most can be, in the refrigerator or freezer. Mission accomplished. Readers will find the book a consistently reliable resource for superior make-ahead dishes for everyday and special-occasion cooking. --Arthur Boehm ... Read more

Reviews

Do You Own "Cover & Bake?", August 25, 2007
If you don't own "Cover & Bake," this a five-star book; skip down to "Here's What I Like ..."

I think this may be the lowest rating I've ever given to a CI book (I own seven in the Best series and a handful of others.) If you own "Cover & Bake," you have many of the recipes in this book, hence the low rating.

Some of the shared recipes include:
Slow Cooker Favorites (5 of the 17 are shared with C&B)
-Pot Roast
-Beef Stew
-Brisket
-Chili
-Beef & Barley Soup

Sides (There are two shared recipes)

Casseroles (There are more variations of the recipes in this book) both books share:
-Baked Ziti
-Lasagna
-Manicotti
-Mac & Cheese
-Chicken Enchiladas
-Chicken Pot Pie
-Beef Pot Pie
-Tamale Pie
-Shepherd's Pie
Lamb & Eggplant Moussaka
-Chicken & Rice Casserole

Breakfast & Breads (only the bread recipes are unique to this book. What irks me is that the same photo is used for the start of the breakfast chapters in each book.) Shared recipes are:
-24-Hour Omelet
-French Toast Casserole
-Breakfast Strata

Here is what I like about the book
-TOC in each chapter
-The Double-Duty Cooking Chapter is great -- cook a little extra now for tomorrow's dish that won't taste like leftovers
-All of the stews and the majority of the casseroles can be made ahead and frozen. Outside of those categories, you'll find maybe 10 additional recipes that can be frozen.
-Desserts
-Make-Ahead Holiday Menus

If you don't have "Cover & Bake" get this book. When reviewed in isolation, it is a five-star book. If you're deciding which to choose, this book has a range of recipes across appetizers, sides, main courses and desserts. If you're looking for a complete make-ahead meal, this book is the way to go.

Wonderful cookbook!!!, July 22, 2007
I have purchased other make-ahead cookbooks, such as Once a Meal Cooking and Frozen Assets. This cookbook is the best I've found. This cookbook teaches you how to prepare dishes so that they test fresh when reheated.

I have tried several recipes in this cookbook and they have been great. I was skeptical that it was possible to freeze pasta dishes and reheat them without the pasta tasting mushy. But to my pleasant surprise, the pasta dishes were very good.

Some of the recipes in this book are not recommended for freezing. They are considered "make ahead" since they can be stored in your refrigerator for a few days before cooking or baking.

Disappointed - not many freeze ahead recipes, May 14, 2007
Once a month I get together with a friend and we make 10-12 meals to freeze for future use. I purchased this book with the understanding that there would be lots of recipes that I could make ahead and freeze. This book was not helpful for this purpose. There just weren't enough recipes that fall into the true make ahead and freeze category.

This book is well-organized, has good details/descriptions and some good recipes (some may be repeats from other publications). If you are a person who likes pictures, this book is not for you. I am a big fan of the publisher's other books. Sad that this one was such a disappointment!

Not a freezer book, June 16, 2007
Though I have used the book a few times and had good to medium results, only 1 recipe I have connected with the freezer. I find it easier to cook once a week and freeze the meals, but most of the meals in this book don't lend easily to freezer cooking. Since freezer cooking was in the description when the book was available for pre order I expected a little more in that category.

An Entertaining Lifesaver!, April 2, 2007
I have only had this book a few weeks and have made several recipes with amazing results. The Shepherd's Pie is the best I have ever had, and the freeze and cook directions are perfect. Cook's Illustrated does it again!

An exceptional purchase any public library or busy cook must have., July 26, 2007
Busy cooks who want to prepare meals ahead have plenty of cookbooks to choose from, but the advantage to The Best Make-Ahead Recipe is that all these dishes are fail-safe and have been tested by the professionals. Another advantage: chapters are divided by cooking method, from 'Open-Ready Entrees' to 'Slow-Cooker Favorites' and 'Baked Goods That Go From Freezer to Oven'. Some 300 recipes suitable for entertaining or daily meals are presented with accompanying color photos: all have been streamlined with the busy cook in mind. An exceptional purchase any public library or busy cook must have.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

Excellent make ahead recipes, November 29, 2008
Many of the recipes in this book were not only the best make-ahead recipes I've used, but some of the best recipes I've used. Pureed butternut squash, baked ziti, chicken and rice casserole, macaroni and cheese, and baked fish provencal are very good recipes whether you make them ahead or eat same day.

A unique feature of this book is the straight from freezer to oven approach for some of the baked goods. I have not previously seen a muffin recipe that goes straight from the freezer to the oven. This halves the time of making muffins, eliminates clean-up and results in warm fresh muffins for breakfast.

I used the make ahead mashed potatoes recipe for Thanksgiving. The recipe is too complicated to do if you have enough time to mash same day, but for a day when you're making 5 side dishes at once, it was great to pull these from the refrigerator, microwave and serve.

Like many Cook's Illustrated recipes, the recipes can be a little fussy and time consuming, but in most cases the results are worth it.

Make your life a little bit easier., February 8, 2008
It was so interesting the trial and error of each recipe. They make suggestions why you use one product over another when you refrigerate or freeze your food. Great information regarding kitchen gadgets as well. I have several recipes marked to whip up and have made several things already. Some I didn't care for and others where very time consuming. The manicotti recipe is great fresh or from the freezer. It was hard to tell the difference between the two. I can't wait to make the chocolate molten cakes and the apple turnovers. You can freeze both of these and have them ready for company.
The roasted chicken filled my kitchen with heavenly smells yesterday and it tasted yummy. So tender and juicy!

The Best Make-Ahead Recipe (The Best Recipe), May 13, 2007
This cookbook was very informative! I love the fact that it teaches how to make simple meals that everyone can cook! And, it gives you directions on how to freeze it! This is great for me because I can make a meal and freeze the left overs for another night! I recommend this cookbook to anyone who can't be in the kitchen for hours but wants a home-cooked meal!

Not for the hoi polloi, May 12, 2010
"The Best Make-Ahead Recipe" is amazing. Hands down, this tome is a fascinating read and loaded with mouthwatering do-ahead recipes plus a highly entertaining and informative narrative on culinary techniques and processes.

If you were looking for one of those cookbooks where you repurpose elements of a meal for next-day use, sort of a premeditated leftover chicanery, this is NOT the book for you.

A good way to encapsulate the philosophy would be the mid-week, casually elegant dinner party with delicious, well-made food pulled together with a minimum of fuss. The recipes are for diverse things like empanadas, chocolate souffl�s, casseroles, meat entrees, etc., that you do indeed make ahead, store, and then can enjoy easily later.

Cookbooks in this Internet era are evolving and I am hesitant to commit the money or counter space to a new cookbook without a lot of consideration. I went to the library to review "The Best Make-Ahead Recipe" and instantly knew that I needed my own copy.
... Read more

Editorial Review

150 tempting designs with no-fail instructions.

The Cake Decorator's Motif Bible presents 150 foolproof motifs to create that special cake for any occasion, from simple and fun to elegant and elaborate. Using easy-to-follow instructions and illustrated templates, the book takes the home baker through all the steps: from making the right amount of fondant or marzipan, to choosing and sizing a design and transferring it to the cake.

The book includes icing and fondant recipes, seasonal designs, patterns and borders, 3-D models, marzipan fruits and figures, and sugar flowers. Features include:

• 188-page design directory
• Large full-color photograph of the finished motif
• Black-line template size guides
• Dough gauge showing how much fondant to make
• At-a-glance color listing in recipes
• Flat, low-relief, three-dimensional and piped motifs
• Tips on application
• Mixing and matching motifs
• Designs graded for difficulty.

The Cake Decorator's Motif Bible is wiro-bound for easy lay-flat use. It provides innovative inspiration with complete and truly fail-safe instructions for unforgettable results every time.

Reviews

Awesome book!!!, January 10, 2008
I really love this book! I took a chance when I bought this book and it has never let me down. It has the easiest designs to follow especially if I am in need of any quick fondant motif ideas. I would highly recommend this book. I am a home baker and I think the instructions in this book are easy to understand. I hope the author comes up with another book like this.

Great for 2-D motifs, needs a lot more 3-D, November 24, 2008
I like this book but wish that there were more 3-D motifs included. Most of the designs are flat or slightly rounded, which is fine for the side of a cake or laying down on the top, but there's not much that you can do that can stand on its own.

Most informative and easy to use, January 29, 2009
For a project I decided to do after one to may episodes of Ace of Cakes, this book, of the 4 I purchased was the best. It gave easy recipes for cake and frosting. Plus very easy descriptions, plus pictures, in color! of how to make the recipes. It was also very good with directions on how to use fondant and of course 150 motifs. This is really the only book you need if your a beginner and want to try cake decorating as a hobby. Other highlights are the ring binder, stays open on counter, pages cleaned nicely too when I got confection sugar all over it! Its a nice size book to work with and read. Best Ive seen. Thanks amazon.

Parfait!, December 21, 2008
This is absolutely what it claims to be and more. I bought it as a gift for a friend who decorates cakes, and she cannot believe how comprehensive it is in terms of not only covering fondant designs, but also providing cake recipes and icing advice. It's wonderful for anyone who delights in cake!

Best book ever!, February 25, 2009
If you're interested in fondant this is the book for you! I have many cake decorating books & none compare to this one! A friend bought it for me & when I opened it I could hardly put it down! Patterns for each item they display are included & trust me when I say it's filled with designs! You won't go wrong with this wonderful book! It includes everything you need to know about fondant & more!!

New to fondant work, February 13, 2009
While I've been cake decorating for almost 2 decades I've
been reluctant to try new techniques. This book is great
for doing "piece work" figures with fondant and brings me
a step closer to my real desire to do modeling.

The book truly does provide step by step instructions which
are so clear I really Was up to this level years ago and never
knew it.

I highly recommend this book to others.

Cake Decorator's Motif Bible, September 14, 2008
Wonderful fondant designs and easy to follow. I'm a experienced decorator and would highly recommend it even to the beginner.
LG from Florida

Great Guide for Great Cakes, July 4, 2009
I have overlooked this book every year when I purchase my continuing ed books for my bakery, until this year. I am soooo glad I purchased it! It is easy to do, great instructions, and beautiful ideas. The best part is that once you know the technique, you can do it for almost anything. This is for any decorator sick of doing image transfers and then starring the images with sixteen different colors of icing. I just purchased the Satin Ice 2 lb buckets of pre colored fondant, and I'm set for the year! Best of all, the customers will love it because it looks like you took a ton of time putting together fondant pictures just for them. It could even be fun to do this with clay too. I have a 2 year old, and we may try some of the easier designs for art projects!

Great Book for beginners!, April 28, 2010
I am new to fondant and I have thoroughly enjoyed every bit of it; be it reading, making or decorating. This book is definitely for beginners. People who have never worked with fondant before and this is their first time. It will give a simple way of working with fondant without all the cutters and all complicated tools. You will need to get some basic tools, but I substituted lot of tools with forks, tooth picks and other stuff I could find at home. All you need is a little creativity and I am sure you can too. Also the book is easy to understand in terms of language or instructions. Its not possible to not understand the instructions, combined with the pictures. Once you start making the motifs, you will understand the instructions even better.

That being said its a good book of ideas. The motifs in here are mostly simple and doable, and very much versatile. You can adapt the ideas and use it to form a theme or create your own theme using the ideas from the book as a base. Most of the motifs are 2D, as someone here mentioned, only a few are 3D; But even the 2D have a kind of bulge to them, that is they are not completely flat. While that may not be a drawback, some people might not find it good enough. Again this is a book of fondant motifs, so there aren't any recipes for cakes and stuff only a few basic ones to start with. But I didn't expect it to have any recipes, neither should you.

To sum it up

Pros:
* Excellent pick for beginners and starters
* Easy to understand and implement
* Even a total newbie can do it
* Lots and lots of ideas
* Ideas and the book itself is very versatile
* Very much inspiring

Cons:(Well kind of)
* Most motifs are 2d and very few 3d (but then the 2d motifs are not flat, they have certain bulge to them which makes then almost like 3d)
* Too simple for advanced or good sugar and gum paste artists

Finally its a book of fondant motifs and it does what it says. It deserves the 5 stars.

Absolutely wonderful !, January 28, 2010
My 13 year old girl loves it so much. She can even make the designs herself just by simply following the easy-to-follow instructions. I got crazy and purchased 2 copies of this book. Very precise and detailed. ... Read more

Editorial Review

There has been a need for a comprehensive one-volume reference on the manufacture of meats and sausages at home.There are many cookbooks loaded with recipes which do not build any foundation for the serious hobbyist to follow. This leaves him with little understanding of the sausage making process and afraid to introduce his own ideas. There are professional books that are written for meat plant managers or graduate students, unfortunately, these works are written in such difficult technical terms, that most of them are beyond the comprehension of an average person. Home Production of Quality Meats and Sausages bridges the gap that exists between highly technical textbooks and the requirements of the typical hobbyist. In order to simplify this gap to the absolute minimum, technical terms were substituted with their equivalent but simpler terms and many photographs, drawings and tables were included.The book covers topics such as curing and making brines, smoking meats and sausages, U.S. Standards, making fresh, smoked, emulsified, fermented and air dried products, making special sausages such as head cheeses, blood and liver sausages, low salt, low fat and Kosher products, hams, bacon, butts and loins, poultry, fish and game, creating your own recipes and much more... To get the reader started 172 recipes are provided which were chosen for their originality and historical value. They carry an enormous value as a study material and as a valuable resource on making meat products and sausages. Although recipes play an important role in these products, it is the process that ultimately decides the sausage quality. It is perfectly clear that the authors don't want the reader to copy the recipes only: "We want him to understand the sausage making process and we want him to create his own recipes. We want him to be the sausage maker." ... Read more

Reviews

Best ever book written about sausages and cured meat, June 18, 2010
This is the best.
If you want to buy one book about sausages,this is the one ,believe me you do not need any other.
It made me understand clearly the magic of sausage making,
I can from now on formulate my own sausages because now i know quite well the science behind.
Until now i made the following sausages :-
1-Kosher beef sausage
2-Liver pate sausage
3-Mortadella di bologna
4-Mortadella lyoner
Taste ,texture and aroma are out of this world especially if you allow them to mature for 2 or 3 days in the fridge before you consume them.
Honestly they are better than the ones that i use to buy from the deli.
For me no more buying from the shops.
Page 153 and 154 alone worth the price of this book because they simply provide you with the secret of making better than the shops sausages
Large variety of sausages as an example fresh sausages ,cooked sausages,emulsified sausages,boiled sausages,liver sausages ,head cheeses and meat jelies,fermented sausages and for the first time ever in any book that i read and owned a full chapter on kosher sausages (special sausages)
They show you exceedingly simple,easy methods and techniques to achieve a first class products
Full chapter on how to cure meat , the different methods used and the ingredients to use
Full chapters on how to make hams,bacons and dried meats
Full chapters on poultry,fish and wild game
Full chapters on barbecuing and canning
They are two types of Pastrami in this book ,the cooked (pastrami)and the dried uncooked (pastirma )they are next in my list to make.
Actally i can not say enough about this book ,it is the complete book about sausages and cured meat ever written
I recommend it highly.

Out of the park! best book on Charcuterie written to date, November 18, 2010
Yes, I've read Ruhlman's "Charcuterie" (poor IMO) and Jane Grigson's "Charcuterie & French Pork Cookery" & Kuta's "great Sausage Recipes and meat curing" However...for Charcuterie, nothing touches this.

This is book is NOT about fresh sausage or Duck Confit(Ruhlman)This book is about:

CHARCUTERIE dried, smoked, cured, brined & jellied!!!

A good section on meat science (I think possibly lifted from Forrest's "Principles of Meat Science"? LOL)it covers all of the areas I mentioned above...for novice or advanced (I make 6 - 12 different types of salamis, loins, butts, hams & bacons every year).

If you are interested specifically in making salamis then their other book "The art of making Fermented Sausages" has more recipes, but the rest of that material is covered in this book as well.

If you want make Charcuterie, this is THE definitive book printed to date. Thanks again guys.

The Harold Mcgee of Sausgae Making, August 24, 2010

I'm a food junkie. I love to eat and I love to cook. Being stricken with O.C.D. a la Alton Brown I have a need to understand technique and ingredients and can't "just follow a recipe".
Sausages have always been on my "to do" list, after all whats more belly and soul satisfying than a hot juicy plump sausage? After purchasing many books on sausages including Charcuterie by Michael Ruhlman I still lacked a firm understanding of the science and interplay of the ingredients allowing for formulas to be toyed and tweaked to serve taste and need.

Enter: Stanley Marianski, a man who I'm guessing eats sausage for breakfast every day (after spending a night dreaming about them). Speaking from a lifetime of sausage making. Stanley generously shares his knowledge and holds nothing back - he is a dream teacher! From the science of meat, seasonings and additives to the reasoning behind what makes the best techniques Stanley covers it all. To quote Einstein "make everything as simple as possible but no simpler" - and that's exactly what you will find in this book , clear, complete ideas and lessons.

Although this book has a vast array of recipes its main focus is to give you the tools to make up your own, and in my opinion that's what any single subject book should do give you, a mastery of the subject.

At the current price of under $18 dollars - are you kidding me, its a steal.

A strong pick for any culinary collection, July 9, 2010
Home Production of Quality Meats and Sausages represents the author's long-time dedication to smoking meats and sausages, and provides a comprehensive one-volume reference on making them at home. Many cookbooks offer only light information on the topic which doesn't lend to an in-depth understanding of meat technology for amateur enthusiasts - others are written in such technical terms that they appeal only to professionals. This represents a powerful 'happy medium' and is a strong pick for any culinary collection.

... Read more

Editorial Review

Take one top New York restaurant, add danger, drama, and dialogue, toss in their best recipes, and you have a cooking classic.

How does a 4-star restaurant stay on top for more than two decades? In On the Line, chef Eric Ripert takes readers behind the scenes at Le Bernardin, one of just three New York City restaurants to earn three Michelin stars. Any fan of gourmet dining who ever stole a peek behind a restaurant kitchen's swinging doors will love this unique insider's account, with its interviews, inventory checklists, and fly-on-the-wall dialogue that bring the business of haute cuisine to life.

From the sudden death of Le Bernardin's founding chef, Gilbert Le Coze, to Ripert's stressful but triumphant takeover of the kitchen at age 29, the story has plenty of drama. But as Chef Ripert and writer Christine Muhlke reveal, every day is an adventure in a perfectionistic restaurant kitchen. Foodies will love reading about the inner workings of a top restaurant, from how a kitchen is organized to the real cost of the food and the fierce discipline and organization it takes to achieve culinary perfection on the plate almost 150,000 times a year.

Meanwhile, Le Bernardin's modern French cuisine, with its emphasis on seafood, comes to life in sophisticated recipes, including Striped Bass with Sweet Corn Puree, Grilled Shishito Peppers, Shaved Smoked Bonito, and Mole Sauce, and Pan-Roasted Cod with Chorizo, Snow Peas, Piquillo Peppers, and Soy-Lime Butter Sauce. ... Read more

Reviews

Confidential Laundry, November 23, 2008

Fascinating look behind the scenes at a 4-star restaurant, November 23, 2008

Not really a "cook book", more of a time capsule with recipes., December 1, 2008

It'll make you hungry!, November 19, 2008

Top-Notch Recipes, Delicious Food, March 19, 2009
I recently acquired a copy of this book and found it a tantalizingly unique approach to the genre of 'restaurant cookbook'. Why ? Because it is about the care and tendering of a restaurant -Le Bernadin - which author ( and Executive Chef and co-owner ) Eric Ripert so clearly loves and fusses over like a lover.

It is not, like so many other celebrity chefs books, about the chef or his ego or his prowess or his food 'enlightenment', but refreshingly, about the impeccably demanding and non-stop daily efforts that owners Maguy LeCose and Eric Ripert demand of themselves and their staff in order to keep this high-maintenance restaurant operating at top level.

It is also a behind the scenes look at the hectic yet controlled and precise daily operations of a restaurant of this caliber located in the most hectic of American cities, New York City. As readers, we become privy to information such as the staff hierarchy in the kitchen and dining room, the slang-uage of the kitchen, and to the job of the porter, the person in charge of food deliveries.

In a restaurant world filled with 'good-enough', un-skilled and un-trained cooks and slacking standards ( i.e. the type of dreadful restaurants that Gordon Ramsey wrangles with on his television program Kitchen Nightmares ) it is refreshing to peer into the inner workings of a Eurocentric, Michelin star-rated establishment that constantly polishes its dedication to excellence and the discipline of cooking. Be reassured that here, everything is as it should be.

Here, the rewards and successes of the restaurant come from the hard work and personal values of LeCose and Ripert, and it is apparent from reading this book that they fully understand ( and thrive on ) the yin and yang relationship these concepts have one to another. Underneath the posh glamour of Le Bernadin is an old-school French restaurant, meaning that emphasis is directed towards sourcing the best-quality fresh products no matter the cost, and placing experienced and skilled chefs and sous chefs in the kitchen to assist the on-site Executive Chef/Owner in his desire to please restaurant patrons with beautiful, well-prepared food. ( Note: the word on-site is important here - many celebrity chefs are rightly criticized for their blatant absence from their restaurant kitchens).

This book is significantly different in tone and style from the previous book written by Maguey Le Coze and Eric Ripert titled: Le Bernadin Cookbook: Four-Star Simplicity, (Doubleday, 1998). Where Four-Star features more lavish plating and big gestures, the recipes in On The Line are spare, pared down to precise embellishments used in restrained quantities, which allows the star of the dish - the fish or shellfish - to hold center court.

For the record, let me say here that I have never dined at this restaurant nor do I know either of the two owners. So, with book in hand I made several dishes from this book and was impressed with the results. Each recipe has many parts - sauces, emulsions, flavored broths, garnishes, etc - that comprise the final dish. While the recipes are not difficult, they are a bit fussy and time-comsuming for home cooks who do not have a mis en place of these necessary foundation elements on hand the way that the Le Bernadin kitchen does.

But this is not as much a complaint as it is an observation. For example, I am sure that pureeing the sugar snap peas, green peas, and mint in three separate steps (as is called for in the Sweet Pea-Wasabi Sauce in the Salmon recipe on page 202 ) is a cinch when a reasonable quantity of sauce is made in the restaurant kitchen each night the dish appears on the menu. But for home cooks, the recipe calls for using such small quantities that I had to put all of these ingredients together in my blender just to have enough material in there for my blender to, well, blend.

Which recipes did I choose ?

Crab, inspired by Peruvian Causa: layered crab, avocado, and potaotes spiced with yellow Aji Amarillo pepper sauce

Scallops: ultra-rare charred sea scallops with smoked sea salt ( I used our fantastic Japanese Iburi-Jio smoked sea salt )

Salmon: barely cooked wild Alaskan salmon with daikon, snow peas, enoki salad and sweet-pea wasabi sauce

Banana: banana creme brulee, citrus-pistachio biscuit and beurre noisette ice cream with peanut caramel

All of these recipes were lovely- each dish had layers of flavor and a well-balanced complexity that one imagines is the signature of a Le Bernadin dish. Nevertheless, my favorite was the crab dish, followed by the scallops. The crab was fun to construct and was very jazzy looking ( I wish there had been a picture of the Le Bernadin version in the book ). Several components of the dish - the onion relish, the potatos, and the pepper sauce are tasty mini-recipes that I will certainly put to use in many other dishes.

To see a photo of my finished dish, please visit my blog: An Educated Palate

I served the dish with a nicely chilled, crisp 2007 Sepp Moser Gruner Veltliner, a good counterpoint to the unctousness of the crab and avocado and the spicy bite of the aji amarillo pepper.

AMAZING!!!, April 8, 2009
With years in fine dining myself, I can honestly say this book has taken the place of "The French Laundry Cookbook" as my most influential book of all time. Ripert, La Coze and the entire staff of "Le Bernardin" are of a caliber that stands alone as the ultimate hosts of grace, etiquette and respect. They are wholly committed, and as a result, this books shines as a beacon that all culinarians should aspire to in their careers.

One of the Best Books Ever About How a Restaurant Really Functions, January 19, 2009
This is without a doubt one of the very best looks inside a restaurant, in this case the Michelin rated Le Bernardin in New York City. Like many a cookbook, it is the tale of the early efforts of the founders (in this case a brother and sister who had a modest bistro in Paris), their successes (positive reviews led to American patrons), their move to a New York stage. And then young chef Eric Ripert enters, to take over, and build upon these successes to create what is generally regarded as the best seafood-centered restaurant in New York.
And like many other celebrity chefs, Ripert provides recipes and insights into what goes upon the plate. For that alone, this would be a worthwhile acquisition for any serious cook.
But what sets this book apart from the long list of "name" chef books in recent years are the many sidebar pieces and profiles of the people who contribute to the daily operation of a successful restaurant. We meet the porter who arrives to inspect the daily deliveries of produce, fish, and meats (including amounts and prices). The dishwashers who labor behind the scenes to wash the pots, pans, fine china, and crystal. The sommelier, the host, the servers, the many kitchen stations, chefs, apprentices, and specialists who all play a role in meal preparation.
We are shown the floor plan for the many cooking stations, refrigerators, ovens, etc., that come into play to prepare your meal.
There is even an minute by minute breakdown of several of the functions, to show how this is a coordinated effort aimed at providing a great meal, to each and every customer.
There are many cookbooks and many alleged insiders guides to the heart of a chef; but On the Line is easily the most thorough portrayal of all that goes into making a great restaurant work like Le Benardin.
Four Stars, Worth a Detour.

Right...on the line!, January 11, 2009
What a great book! .On the Line
Chock full of interesting tidbits, about the Restaurant business, from in the know Restauranteur Eric Ripert. Several recipes are included. A great gift for anyone! It's one of those books you will pull out to read again and again!
Deborah E.S.

I'm not sure what to call this book, January 4, 2009
Is it a cookbook? No, but it has recipes. Is it a biography? Yes, but of a restaurant rather than a person. More than anything it is a day-to-day look at the workings of a wonderful restaurant. Detail is not spared. How much fish...how many napkins...details about the workers and their lives. And it is all put together in a way that is cohesive and entertaining. The lavish photos are unabashed food porn. The book is pretty, entertaining, instructive and well-worth the modest expense.

Easily The Most Engrossing Book That Depicts A Single Restaurant In Operation., December 13, 2008

Editorial Review

In his second in-depth foray into the world of professional cooking, Michael Ruhlman journeys into the heart of the profession. Observing the rigorous Certified Master Chef exam at the Culinary Institute of America, the most influential cooking school in the country, Ruhlman enters the lives and kitchens of rising star Michael Symon and renowned Thomas Keller of the French Laundry. This fascinating book will satisfy any reader's hunger for knowledge about cooking and food, the secrets of successful chefs, at what point cooking becomes an art form, and more. Like Ruhlman's The Making of a Chef, this is an instant classic in food writing-one of the fastest growing and most popular subjects today. ... Read more

Reviews

A must for foodies!, June 29, 2000
this new hardcover, written by michael ruhlman is excellent. the first section in particular is truly gripping(esp. if you are a food nut like i am!) the almost blow by blow account of a group of chefs trying to pass a series of incredibly arduous tests (a ten day herculean nightmare)in order obtain the title of master chef from the Culinary Institute of America makes the Iron chef challenge look like a stroll though the park! one of the main themes of the book is the quest for

perfection in cooking and it's intriguing to say the least. it is like night and day, comparing the book to kitchen confidential by anthony bourdain where it focuses mostly on the dirt and the dysfunction that goes on. needless to say both capture many different truths about the restaurant industry. another exciting section is the fascinating behind the scenes of The French Laundry, a highly acclaimed restaurant and how the chef's personal philosophy affected the running of the restaurant.there is also a well written account of a dinner with john mariani, one of america's preeminent food writers. the author's journalistic objectivity has served the book very well especially in a field that is filled with hype.

Great Read, Good Insight into American Culinary Culture, March 19, 2004
`The Soul of a Chef' is the second of Michael Ruhlman's journalistic explorations into the world of culinary life in America. The book contains three long essays that chronicle parts of the careers of three different chefs at three different levels of achievement. Thus, the journey toward perfection is more the journey of the author than it is a journey by a single chef.

The first essay is a telling of the events in one examination for the title of `Certified Master Chef'. The certification is carried out and bestowed by the Culinary Institute of America, often characterized as the Harvard of American cooking schools. The examination runs for more than a week when, on each day, the candidate must complete a particular task. The candidate knows the object of each task at least a day in advance, so they may at least mentally prepare for their challenge. Almost all tasks are taken from the pages of classic French cuisine, some lifted almost directly from the pages of Escoffier's books on the subject. Out of about a dozen qualifiers competing at each session, held once every six months, usually only two or three candidates pass the test and are awarded the title. The author participates in the competition under the ruse of being an inspector from a fictional qualifying organization that is verifying that the tests are worthy of an imaginary certification. In that way, the author can observe and interview all the candidates without arousing suspicion or apprehension in the candidates. Thus, this book picks up the narrative on American culinary careers at very much the same place the author left off at the end of his first culinary investigation `The Making of a Chef'. Most candidates have been chefs for a few years and are looking to add to their credentials and marketability, especially those who work as consultants to food service organizations. In many ways, this chapter is the most interesting, as it holds your interest to see if the featured candidates in the narrative will achieve their certification.

The second essay had a much weaker hold on my interest, although the quality of the writing was equal to that in the first essay. The essay title, `Lola' is the name of a major Cleveland restaurant whose owner and head chef is Michael Symon, a CIA graduate, who may be familiar to some of you as one of the co-hosts on the Food Network show `Melting Pot' where he and Wayne Harley Brachman explore eastern European cuisines. In addition to this distinction, Symon has been recognized as a `Food and Wine' best new chef, so he really does not need the kind of recognition one achieves by earning the Certified Master Chef award. Symon's position in the middle essay is a sign of his rank above the CIA Master Chef candidates and below the very top of the American culinary scene represented by the chef in the last essay. The most interesting episode in the tale of Symon and `Lola' is in the story of a visit by John Mariani, a major American restaurant critic where it seems as if just about everything goes wrong. The moral of this story to me is its demonstration of how difficult it is to maintain 100% food quality in a very good restaurant. There is a very good reason why the executive chef stands at the expediter's table and checks on outgoing dishes. The connection between the second and third essays is the fact that Symon and his new wife go to Napa Valley to dine at the French Laundry restaurant for their honeymoon.

The third essay takes us to the very top of the American culinary hierarchy of achievement. It deals with the career of Thomas Keller, the owner and executive chef of The French Laundry. He has been recognized as the best chef in California, followed by recognition as best chef in the country by the James Beard awards. His quest for perfection is legendary. It is no coincidence that Ruhlman is the co-author of Heller's `The French Laundry Cookbook' as I am sure this essay was done at the same time as he was working on the cookbook. Keller's reputation is well known among foodies, so I won't dwell on it here. I will only recommend this essay, plus a chapter in Tony Bourdain's `A Cooks Tour' as excellent profiles of this very important American chef.

For knowledgeable foodies, this book is a pure delight. Just knowing how to make pasta Puttanesca enhances one's enjoyment of the story in the second essay. For non-foodies, the book will appeal as well or better than other famous journalistic essays such as Tracy Kidder's `Soul of a New Machine'. The book contains some recipes.

Highly recommended reading.

READ THIS BOOK IMMEDIATELY, IF NOT SOONER., August 27, 2000
Although I love to cook, for some reason I never got around to reading The Making of a Chef when it first came out. However, I realized that one third of Soul of a Chef was devoted to Thomas Keller and The French Laundry, so I ordered it. To my suprise, I could not put it down. The book is wonderful because the subject matter is interesting, and the writing is excellent. Mr. Ruhlman is a writer who became a cook, not a cook who became a writer. While I was reading the book, I laughed out loud, I did high fives in the air, I muttered, and when I was done, I wanted to hang out with the author. I can't say I've had that reaction to a book before. If the subject matter interests you at all, you won't be sorry you got this book while it is still a hardback. Then if you haven't read The Making of a Chef, it will be your next purchase! If you enjoy this book half as much as I did, it will still be five stars. They wouldn't let me give it 10. The Soul of a Chef and The French Laundry Cookbook together would make a fabulous gift.

Beautiful, beautiful book., November 22, 2003
In this book, Michael takes us into the kitchens of the CIA once again. He shows us some of the best chefs in the country, as they labor under the enormous stress of taking the CIA's 'Certified Master Chef' exams.

He then travels to two of America's finest restaurants and explores the character of the Chefs who created them. Along the way, we meet some other colorful characters and some very delightful-sounding food.

That's it in a nutshell. The reason I love this book is because it shows the heart and intensity of what I can only call the 'love of food' and the 'striving for excellence' that both of these Chefs possess. The discussion of their ingenuity in creating new dishes is very interesting as well, but it is the sheer PASSION for cooking that Michael communicates to us that kept my eyeballs glued to the pages.

I have now read both of Michael's books on this subject: The Making of a Chef and The Soul of a Chef. I finished them both in about two weeks and my understanding of the world of cooking, not to mention my faith in the human race (how could you not love a species that is capable of such positive, again, passion??), has simply been...transformed.

Thank you, Michael.

SEARCHING FOR EXCELLENCE, October 20, 2001
In his prior book, "The Making of a Chef", Michael Ruhlman wrote about what its like to attend the Culinary Institute of America and go through a rigorous chef training program. In "The Soul of a Chef", Ruhlman writes about the next step - being a professional chef and reaching for that always elusive standard of excellence. If you enjoyed TMOAC (a good book) and learning about the CIA, you'll enjoy TSOAC even more.

TSOAC is three stories. In the first, Ruhlman sits in and observes seven chefs, and one in particular, as they attempt to pass the ten-day Certified Master Chef examination, a rigorous test with a low passage rate. In the second, Ruhlman tells the story of Lola, a restaurant in his home town of Cleveland, and of Michael Symon, Lola's owner/chef and a rising star in his profession. And in the third, Ruhlman tells the story of Thomas Keller, the head chef of the French Laundry in Napa Valley, which some critics have declared to be the finest restaurant in America.

For the home cook who occasionally fantasizes about being a professional chef, TSOAC will be both stimulating and sobering. Being a chef may be interesting, but its not easy; in fact its damn hard work. The anxiety level created by the Master Chef Exam, the pressure Symon goes through to perform for reviewers and the demand for absolute perfection that Keller imposes on himself are all highly intense experiences - perhaps even to the point of being self-destructive.

Ruhlman is not only an observer, he is also participant in a sort of George Plimpton-like manner. In writing TMOAC, Ruhlman attended CIA classes as a student for a year. Between TMOAC and TSOAC, he worked as a cook for a period of time at a Cleveland restaurant. He knows many of the examiners in the Master Chef exam from his school days at the CIA. He helped out a little in Lola's kitchen. And while he did not cook at the French Laundry, he did spend part of his time there helping Keller write a cookbook. One gets the feeling that Ruhlman may be suffering from an identity crises - "Am I a writer about cooks, or a cook who also writes?", but for the most part his perspective is helpful. There is some enjoyment in hearing Ruhlman describe with some level of experience what its like for a restaurant to hit a rush on a big night, even if he is only a "paper chef".

Towards the end of his story about Lola (Part Two of TSOAC), Ruhlman is having dinner with a group of people that includes a restaurant critic of national repute. Ruhlman asks him whether he ever worries that being a food critic is in the end a shallow and self-indulgent way to spend one's life. The critic responds that he has thought about that and goes on to explain how a cookbook helped unite Italy by creating a common language and suggests that if a single cookbook can have such an impact, then the topic may not be so trite after all. Writing about cooking in America right now involves a subject of potential importance. There is lots of talk about a current culinary revolution, but no one has yet clearly defined exactly what that means. Ruhlman is helping us do that.

In the end, TSOAC is not just a book about a cooking exam and two cooks, its about what cooking and restaurants have become in America. Its a subject that is slowly becoming an important part of America's cultural fabric and, as with any such subject, it needs its commentators. Ruhlman is fulfilling an important role. We can only hope he will not conclude that the topic is too unimportant for further study.

Solid-Specific Writing Conveys Stellar-Special Cuisines, February 20, 2001
The writer satisfyingly answered three "questions" through his professional-level abilities in observing, inquiring, reporting.

(1) What's it like to take the most demanding chef's exam in the country--and what does this show about perfection (even if such is not always either necessary nor attainable)? I saw how the CIA's CMC exam is a week of making good chefs stumble, rush, reconsider, improvise, balance a dozen variables, and try to clear the hurdles of preparing complex menus in limited time--both error-free and excellence-freighted. See for yourself.

(2) What's running a top-ranked restaurant like? Lola's in Cleveland demands near-impossible coordinating by its chef, one of the recent "ten best new" chefs nationwide. To orchestrate new menus--overbookings--airconditioning and other failures--mistakes when a famous food critic visits--staff training and rapport.....it's all depicted here. Read it for yourself and see if maybe the grueling daily routine of the "prep cook" alone makes you glad (as it did me) that each day, I cook only for two or more, not complexly for 250.

(3) What is culinary genius? The chef of California's French Laundry seeks and touches perfection, in combining then curating ingredients. No, Ruhlman doesn't define Chef Keller's rationale--but see for yourself how he shows the magic close-up anyhow.

I am no food-writing expert. And so perhaps other books do as well or better in depicting high-quality chef activity. But I am fascinated by food specifically, and also by "excellence-in-quality" generally. And so I found the book well worth my time. Ruhlman is a sometime cook--but I think, from his work here, is now becoming a truly all-time, professional, nonfiction writer.

Three Fascinating Journies, August 3, 2000
Ruhlman does a fantastic job of exploring the development and nature of three chefs. This book is particularly intriguing if you have read "Kitchen Confidential." It shows the more civilized side of professional chefs. The tension of the Certified Master Chef exam in Section 1 is intense. In Section 2, Ruhlman does a superb job of detailing the visit of a well known food critic to a new restaurant. The third and last section is a well-balanced look at the Tom Keller's French Laundry in Yountville. Througout, Ruhlman uses his CIA training to give vivid descriptions of menus and preparations.

A delectable reading experience, July 21, 2000
I lived with this book from cover to cover - not able to leave it for long. What insight I got in the 'behind the scenes' lives of chefs! I can't wait now to visit The French Laundry - and taste some of the wonders I read about. I found Michael Ruhlman to be a really terrific food writer - and insight into what it takes to be a really fine chef. I've now started his first book. I look forward to more of his writings.

A great follow up to the making of a chef, December 5, 2000
Those of you who were on the mailing list (sorry, it wasn't email back then) in 1998 saw Mr. Ruhlman get an A for his 2nd book, "The Making of a Chef," which was about his taking the first semester at the Culinary Institute of America and learning to cook there.

This book follows up strongly. It's probably a stronger effort than the first, but still only rates an A (sorry, we hold out that Plus for special books like "World's End" and "All the Pretty Horses"). In this effort, Mr. Ruhlman isn't part of the subject so there isn't as much being impressed with himself as there was last time.

This covers three sections: the first follows 7 chefs attempting to become American Certified Master Chefs. So far only 53 of the 180 chefs who have taken the test have passed. Only 1 of these 7 will do so. The story ends up following Brian Polcyn of Milford, MI (his restaurant Five Lakes Grill gets rave reviews regularly in this area). He isn't the one who passes which makes his story even more interesting. The test lasts 10 days, at about 16 hours per day; you get tired reading about it. It's a fair look at whether or not the test is necessary, if it accomplishes anything, why the chefs go through it, etc.

Section II follows the Lola Bistro in Cleveland, OH. The restauranteur there is named Michael and he attended and graduated from the CIA. However, he doesn't truly act like a graduate from there. His restaurant is a fun place to go, mainly stemming from his attitude (he cannot remember a day that the happy didn't outweigh the bad in his entire life). You see how restaurants do not need to follow the CIA formula to the tee to be successful and good.

Section III takes us to Napa Valley and Thomas Keller's The French Laundry. This is taken to be the best restaurant in America and possibly the world. It is interesting to see how Mr. Keller's career developed as he didn't have any formal food training. The place sounds incredible if you like small, gourmet ideas and lots of them. The typical meal includes 5 courses, pre-determined by the Chef.

All in all, another great look at the food/restaurant/chef industry by Michael Ruhlman. If you have any interest in the above, or like to watch Emeril Lagasse from time to time, you will enjoy this one.

A sublime literary and culinary experience!, July 17, 2000
This is an amazing book! It really takes you into the heart, mind and soul of a chef, and you understand what makes someone a Chef - not just a cook. This book is the perfect antitdote to "Kitchen Confidential" - it transports you to a higher plane. If you love food, you must read this book. And if you never get a chance to eat at The French Laundry, Michael Ruhlman's descriptions of those fabulous dishes are the next best thing. ... Read more

Editorial Review

The reference of choice for thousands of pastry chefs and home cooks
A favorite of pastry lovers and serious chefs worldwide, The Professional Pastry Chef presents comprehensive coverage of basic baking and pastry techniques in a fresh and approachable way. Now skillfully revised and redesigned to meet the needs of today's pastry kitchen, this classic reference is better-and easier to use-than ever.
The new edition contains more than 650 recipes, which offer a new emphasis on American applications of European techniques with yields suitable for restaurant service or for entertaining at home. It shares encyclopedic guidance on everything from mise en place preparation and basic doughs to new chapters covering flatbreads, crackers, and homestyle desserts. Throughout, award-winning Executive Pastry Chef Bo Friberg explains not only how to perform procedures, but also the principles behind them, helping readers to build a firm foundation based on understanding rather than memorizing formulas. Illustrated step-by-step instructions demystify even the most complex techniques and presentations, while 100 vivid color photographs bring finished dishes to life with a sublime touch of visual inspiration. Whether used to develop skills or refine techniques, to gain or simply broaden a repertoire, The Professional Pastry Chef is filled with information and ideas for creating mouthwatering baked goods and tantalizing desserts-today and for years to come. ... Read more

Reviews

Wow! What a great book!, March 1, 2002
I am very impressed with this book and highly recommend it. The recipes are varied, from basic cookies to quick breads to impressive plated desserts. It is not for someone who wants to spend no more than 15 minutes, mix a few ingredients and get a dozen cookies (although some recipes are very quick and easy) , but it is perfect for me, an adventurous home baker who frequently needs to double or quadruple batches to obtain the quantities I need. Most recipes yield at least double the quantities of standard cookbooks, but there are frequently instructions on making smaller quantities or using alternate pan sizes. Do-ahead instructions are common, which is also a big plus to me.

There are several things explained, such as air-spraying chocolate, that I may never do, but was very interested in reading how they are done. Less "professional"options are often included, such as sifting cocoa rather than the air-spraying.

All in all, this is my new favorite cookbook, both for actual baking and for curling up and reading. It has given me lots of inspiration and I can hardly wait to get cooking!

My new pastry bible!, March 20, 2002
Chef Bo Friberg really out did himself with this latest edition, I highly recommend it. This new book is the updated version of a one-stop shop approach to baking and pastry. As a non-professional "home" cook, I really appreciate his step by step instruction. He caters to more than just professionals in his writing style and instructional approach. I found that with each recipe there was useful discussion, history and composition, and a good outline on how to begin each culinary project. It is VERY well written and fun to read, and loaded with good hints on baking in general not just specific to pastries. I have not yet found a recipe that I am disappointed with. The photographs are great and inspire me to recreate some pretty terrific and beautiful culinary feats. Of all the cookbooks I own this is by far the most tastefully and artistically done--and my new favorite!

Buy a baking scale, too!, August 27, 2002
I'm very impressed so far with this book. The author knows his stuff, relays the information in an interesting and informative manner, along with making some difficult recipes easy to understand. If you're serious about baking, this is a steal. You'll learn hundreds of facts about flour, baking, preparation along with a ton of cool recipes. They range from easy to bake up, to needing a lot of prep beforehand.

The book uses grams instead of cups/teaspoons, so you'll need to buy a scale as well if you're planning on diving fully into this great work of art.

A great overview of baking fundamentals, August 8, 2005
This is one of those books that every baking enthusiast should have in their collection. It contains just about every basic recipe you can think of, so you will find yourself referring to it again and again.

It is also wholly designed for professionals, which is great for the serious home baker like me who hates being condescended to by reliance on volume measurements and sloppy imprecise instructions. If you are interested in not only getting the job done, but getting it done RIGHT, you will not be disappointed here.

My only caveat is that the recipes in this book tend to be scaled for professional use, which means the quantities are often excessive. According to the book, you can scale the recipes by as much as 1/4, but I have had unfortunate results with several of the recipes, which I highly suspect happened as a result of scaling down. The bottom line is unless you're prepared to make LARGE quantities, some of the recipes in this book may be impractical or even impossible.

The quality of the recipes is also not outstanding, although it is very good overall. There are a few gems in this book, such as the triple indulgence chocolate cookies and the challah, but generally the recipes are utilitarian; don't expect anything inspired or spectacular along the lines of a Pierre Herme creation.

Amazing Educational Resource, August 3, 2009
This is cookbook has my highest recommendation. The author has garnered a legendary reputation as an educator to newbie pastry chefs, and this book is a distillation of his knowledge and skills. Even the dedicated home pastry chef can benefit, but with a few caveats as noted.
Each recipe in this book is equivalent to those mini-demos I got in cooking school. You have a copy of the recipe in front of you, and the chef executes the recipe step by step and explains what he is doing and why, each and every step along the way. This book has hundreds of such recipes, many of them are sine qua non. Especially: your employer has asked you to make something that you have never even heard of before, much less seen or tasted. If you can find that recipe herein, your chance of success the first time through is very high: the chef will gently lead you through the recipe.
The chapter on mise-en-place and sauces are quite useful (ditto for the appendices: ingredients, tools). Here, in one book, is collected all of those annoying little bits and pieces that you are always looking for but can never find, no matter how many books you rifle through.
A rare gem: on page 701, the chef tells the truth. Those impressive, architectural desserts that you will see in food magazines and cookbooks are for the camera only. They are not practical, inasmuch as they will not survive a trip by a waiter from the kitchen to the dining room. Even if it does survive the trip, it will probably cause some sort of dry-cleaning bill to the hapless customer. I personally know of some fellow cooking school students who tried to base their careers on such architectural monstrosities.

Scandinavian Accent
The author was trained in Scandinavia. As such, the selection of recipes is heavily tilted toward typical Scandinavian recipes. This is good, in that you will find many sort of wonderful B&P goods that you probably have never heard of before. There many sort of recipes you might expect to find, but are absent. The choice of recipes has some peculiarities:
x in the brownie recipe, the chef insists that raisins are a good addition
x there is only one red velvet cake recipe, and it is the oddball one that has beets (no, that is not a typographical error)
x the recipe for genoise has cornstarch
x strawberry shortcake biscuit has orange peel and poppy seed
x there are 4 recipes for pound cake, but only one is the traditional one.
x the author beats a dead horse with no less than 8 cheesecake recipes
x relatively speaking, there is a dearth of chocolate recipes

Good Format
The beginning of each recipe has a list of all recipes and the page number. The color plates are concentrated on the recipes from the plated desserts chapter, where a picture really does help.

Odd Things
*The yields from recipe to recipe are all fairly uniform, e.g. 2 cakes. The author says it is quite easy to simply multiply up or down; curiously, a few recipes have a small batch version of the recipe. ��All purpose�� flour does not make an appearance; instead, all recipes use bread and cake flour in various combinations. Of course, this is the correct solution to AP flours that vary in protein % from brand to brand and in different parts of the country.
*The recipe titles are usually, but not always, English translations. So, if you are looking for a recipe by a French name, you may not find it, e.g. genoise is titled ��sponge cake��, and the word genoise does not appear anywhere in the book.
*Note carefully that there is no info about basics and techniques. If you need to know how to whip egg whites, fold batter, knead bread, or different methods of cooling and un-molding cakes, you will not find it here. A list in each recipe of the type of pan or tin used would be helpful. A wonderful substitute for mascarpone cheese (3 parts cream cheese to 1 part sour cream) is buried in the sauce section where you will never find it. The reference on page 856 (it says p. 921) should read ��p. 927��.
*During a few recipes, the author describes that various items are conveniently frozen, so they will always be on hand and also for emergencies. A prep list of these things for a restaurant or hotel kitchen would be helpful.
*There is a mini encyclopedia (one for ingredients, one for equipment) occupying 125 pages of small, dense type. As such, it is one of the more useful of its type. One detects a few vagaries here and there. The only shortcoming is that one wishes for a slightly more detailed and practical explanation of the difference between semi-sweet, bittersweet, and ��sweet dark�� chocolate (ditto for evaporated vs. condensed milk). The listings for commercial mixer are specifically for ��Hobart��; there are other brands, and the information is not really exact from brand to brand.

Home Pastry Chef
This book can be used the dedicated home cook, but with a few caveats. Many chapters you should stay away from, but some of them you can make use of, such as: yeast breads, cookies, pies, quick breads, custards should certainly be in the domain of the talented, home pastry chef. Note also that you will need a battery of standard professional tools and such, and there is no list in the book of these ��essentials��.

My Continuing Reference in the Kitchen, February 2, 2004
If you're looking for clarity and completeness, you've found your book. I've always felt that a "professional" approach can only help to raise our standards even if we don't make a living in the kitchen. Friberg delivers. The book is very well written, the recipes and technique advice well organized and conceived.

Despite the title, most of the 650 recipes Friberg uses to illustrate his technique sections are of household, rather than industrial, proportions. You dog lovers will appreciate the "Special Reward Dog Biscuit" recipe with which Friberg begins the book as a tribute to his Akitas, who will not touch the store bought variety. Friberg's recipe for Sachertorte, among dozens of other delectables, has long resided in my culinary kennel. You'll find all the basics, of course, but if you want to go further, you won't need another book.

Food writer Elliot Essman's other reviews and food articles are available at www.stylegourmet.com

My Favorite Cook Book, April 9, 2003
What a great book! I am a pastry chef and I use this book daily! I have found so many great ideas and learned so much from this book. Even for beginning bakers this book is easy to understand. I have used about 15 recipes from this book and I have about every other recipe marked to use one day.
If you are looking for a book for making some serious dessert then this is a great book. I highly recomend it! It also has information on most of the desserts which I really like. It has where they come from, tips to help you with the dessert, and tells you about each ingrediant that you use and how it works.

Gonna have to split the difference here, November 8, 2010
As a novice, home baker - I got this book in the hopes to become much more proficient in baking and pastry making. I love to cook and am an experienced cook, but baking confounded me, probably because I didn't have the attention span to follow a recipe exactly...which, I have learned the hard way is REALLY important when baking. I read the other reviews and though that this would be a good book to start with - but I have mixed feelings about it. Here is why:

1. First, it is a huge book and really goes into how baking works, what works, what doesn't work, and the proper way to do each task. That was awesome - a little more information than I needed, but awesome nontheless. It really is meant to be a text for a professional culinary student, and it is not light reading. However, be prepared for the recipes to go more in-depth than your average home baker is expecting.

2. Most of the recipes rely on you having done your "mise en place" or in English, proper set up. While this is a good habit to be in, so that you have everything ready and at hand, many of the recipes require you to prepare several other recipes first, before you get to what you are wanting to make. (I know - it is not out of the norm) The issue is, that those recipes may be on the other end of the book from the one you are making, so it definately requires more consideration, especially to prep time, than just making the one recipe. It works off the expectation, that like a professional kitchen, certain items like pastry cream will be made and waiting for you to work on the recipe currently in front of you.

3. You can feed an army on the volumes of these recipes. Seriously. Now, if you are someone who does a lot of bake sales, makes stuff for your kid's classes, or you entertain like a governor, then you are set. Granted, you need to have the equipment to handle making these items. On a lot of them, a serious trip to a restaurant supply store is in order. Sure, you can try and do the math to cut down the size, but as someone who is already an iffy baker, it lends itself to making more mistakes and I have heard that halving or doubling a recipe is not that easy, as it can change the way the ingredients interact and can mess up your results. That said, if I need to do a bake sale, I am pretty much set.

So, overall - it is probably a GREAT book for culinary students or professional bakers, but may not transition well into the home cooking environment.

Inside trader, October 6, 2005
This is an excellent reference book for me being a home cook who is serious about baking and pastry making. There are a lot of tips and 'bakers secrets' which I find useful when making large quantities of products. Methods are explained in detail and easy to understand with diagrams. Would like to see more photos and each photo with a page no. refering to the recipe. This is more a text book and not simply a recipe book. It would not be suitable for someone who is not interested in the 'technical' aspects of cooking.

No other book is needed!, December 31, 2003
This book is the end all of pastry work and baking for almost any project a person wishes to edure. The book has been written in layman's terms so you can start at the very most simple level on a very difficult dish and accomplish it the first time you make it. I have never seen any culinary book put the instructions together with such precision for both the advanced and beginner alike. ... Read more

Editorial Review

Millions of shoppers save money buying groceries in bulk — trays of boneless chicken breasts, pairs of flank steaks, and flats of ripe tomatoes. But savings can quickly become losses if those bulk quantities spoil in the refrigerator or lie forgotten — unlabeled and unrecognizable under layers of ice crystals — in the back of the freezer.

Kati Neville and Lindsay Tkacsik have built businesses teaching home cooks how to take advantage of bulk savings by shopping wisely; converting food purchases into delicious, healthful family dinners; and labeling and storing the meals for easy access on busy days. They share all their best recipes and organizational wisdom in Fix, Freeze, Feast, a cookbook every price-conscious shopper will love, and warehouse club members shouldn't be without. With their help, home cooks will have freezers stocked with easy-to-prepare entrées, ready to be defrosted and cooked for weeknight family dinners. Imagine the comfort of knowing a homecooked meal is always available.

Each recipe includes instructions for dividing, preparing, and storing the raw ingredients, and a second set of simple directions for thawing, cooking, and enjoying the food. Designed for the way people cook today, Fix, Freeze, Feast meals are lighter and fresher than traditional bulk-cooking recipes, with a focus on simple stews and stir-fries, quick grilled or broiled main courses, and popular ethnic meals such as Beef Fajitas and Cashew Chicken Stir-fry.

Add to the entrées ready-to-bake cookie doughs, warming soups and side dishes, fruit smoothies, and portable kids' snacks, and those warehouse club shopping trips begin to look more valuable than ever. This is a system that saves time, saves money, and saves families from the empty calories of takeout food. Make room in the freezer for next week's dinner!

Praise for Fix, Freeze, Feast —

"[Fix Freeze, Feast] delivers some yummy new recipes that are easily stored and don’t look or taste like frozen meals when they’re served days later . . . Fix Freeze, Feast promises to ease the stress of cooking and ensure that you’re well fed, with hearty meals, throughout the week or month."
— lhj.com (Ladies Home Journal)

"Fix Freeze, Feast is a smart book to keep on the shelf . . . There’s nothing like a hot meal after a long, hard day at work, especially if all the work was done weeks ago!"
— Scripps News Service

"If you resolved to cook more at home in 2008, Fix, Freeze and Feast can help . . . In addition to recipes they also have tips for organizing your shopping list, packaging meals and preventing freezer burn." — Spokane Spokesman-Review

"If one of your New Year’s resolutions is to eat home-cooked meals as a family more often, Fix Freeze, Feast could be just the help you need to accomplish that . . . Fix Freeze, Feast won’t guarantee getting a scattered family home for dinner more often, but it will definitely make it much easier to get the meal on the table." — The Register-Guard (Eugene, OR)

"Not so much a cookbook as a bulk-saving survival guide for harried cooks everywhere." — Northern Virginia Magazine

Reviews

One of the Best!, February 18, 2008
I just got this book a few weeks ago, and I LOVE it! I live in a household of two, and am not a Costco-type shopper when it comes to meats, so everything I have made from this book, I have just halved the recipes to fit my smaller-packages-of-meat shopping patterns. No biggie. I still have three plus meals out of each type of meat I buy for the two of us.

My husband absolutely raved about the Sticky Ribs recipe...and being a die-hard foodie, he is VERY difficult to impress. He has insisted I make them again for a potluck this weekend. I won't give the recipe away, but trust me, for just four ingredients, this one can't be beat. It was worth the price of the book for this one recipe alone.

Overall, this book was a great intro for me on the pleasures of make-ahead cooking. I think I am addicted now! And the fact the recipes in this book do not contain any horrible ingredients like Velveeta cheese, canned "cream of" soups, or refrigerated biscuit dough is great, too! You can feed your family easily, healthfully, and with fewer preservatives and if you purchase this book and make some of the recipes as they are written. I highly recommend it!

Saving time and $$money$$, June 3, 2008
We are a very active family and this book has transformed my time as well as my grocery bill. It is specifically geared to shopping "warehouse style". Now I am buying in bulk every other week and prepping 14-20 entrees in two to three hours, that need a minimum amount of attention before cooking and serving. Some of our favorites are the 4B's Flank Steak, Salisbury Meatballs, Honey-Glazed Chicken Thighs and Turkish Pork Chops. My husband estimated that I have cut our food bill in half. I like that we aren't wasting food in purchases I intended to make but find I'm too busy to actually prepare. I have bought a lot of OAMC books but I dont have two whole days of uninterupted time (nor do I want to!) for prepping. Fix, Freeze, Feast makes $en$e for me! :-)

Makes 3 Meals at a time, all the same meal, February 2, 2008
This cookbook is intended to mimic those places you go to and assemble your meals then take home to freeze. This cookbook is a little different in that I think it's geared more for those who want to swap meals with other families. Their intended assembly method is what they call the "tray" method, where you purchase a large tray of meat at a warehouse club and then come home and assemble 3 like meals out of it. You cannot make less than 3 meals, the ingredients are geared to be mixed together and then distributed among 3 freezer bags. I suppose there are a few recipes where you could in your head divide all the spices and mix-ins by 3 and then just make one freezer bag but if you make a mistake there's no correcting it.

I'm not sure my family would want to eat tequila lime chicken 3 times in a month but if you menu planned far enough in advance I guess you could have it once a month over the next 3 months.

What I think is fantastic about this cookbook is that you could find, for example, 2 other families (whether relatives or neighbors) and then you each make a recipe from the cookbook and swap meals with eachother. That way you're getting 3 different meals and only assembling 3 of the same meal. That for me was the best part of the cookbook.

It would also be perfect if you were providing meals for someone else. You could easily assemble and give to elderly parents, shut-ins, sick friends or relatives, new moms, etc and all they'd have to do is cook it. While that would take some work on their part sometimes it's the prep work and assembly that prevents seniors from cooking not the actual cooking itself. I know my senior mother has a hard time reading small print to see if it's 1/4 tsp or 1/8, etc. Also, chopping hurts her hands. But in this instance you've done all that work with the aid of this cookbook. And it still gives her enjoyment to know that she can put a nice meal on the table for dinner. But even if you needed to cook it before delivering it to someone else you could do that too.

All the final preparation and cooking instructions are included in the book to be copied or you can also download from www.storey.com and put on avery sticky labels to attach to the freezer baggie just like at dream dinners.

Most of the meals are geared for serving 4 but throwing 6 chicken breasts in a freezer bag wouldn't change the amount of other ingredients needed significantly or even decreasing it to 3 would be no problem.

In this cookbook, there are no pictures which is why I gave it a 4 rather than 5 stars. For some reason I think pictures are a needed treat in cookbooks. Most of these meals you freeze first then thaw and cook. Their suggestion is to pull the meal from the freezer the evening before and let it thaw overnight in the fridge and then prepare for dinner the next evening.

If you're not willing to make 3 meals of the same thing at once then this cookbook is probably not for you. I just think dividing spices and ingredients to come up with one serving might be too much trouble when there are so many other cookbooks that are already out there. Suggestions would be Super Suppers and Don't Panic: dinner's in the freezer. Both are very good cookbooks themselves.

But this cookbook is highly recommended for a MOPS group who want to start a dinner swap club; if you provide meals for others on a regular basis, or just want to ensure you have 3 meals in the freezer even if it is the same meal. Great cookbook.

A Delicious TimeSaver, March 5, 2008
My mom discovered this book a few weeks ago. We thought it sounded like a great idea, so we jumped on board. We recently had a marathon day where we made 5 recipes all at once. The recipes really are simple and easy to put together so this was not overwhelming at all. We loved that we each (me, my mom, and my sister) left with 5 complete meals ready to be frozen and taken out whenever we need it. I've already found that having a frozen meal ready to take out of the freezer any day I don't feel like cooking is so fabulous!!! And it's a delicious no-work meal to boot!! I did discover that for many of the recipes, it's best to take out of the freezer and put into the fridge the night before. This allows more marinating time, which adds much more flavor. The pdf labels provided online are great and so easy to print on paper and adhere fully with packing tape right to the bag. I've found that actual labels don't stick to the bag for long in the harsh freezer conditions. Save yourself some money and just use regular paper and tape. All in all a great find and well worth the $10.00+ investment for the time-saving it provides.

Great taste in no time!, November 27, 2007
I know you're thinking to much prep time but trust me these books are wonderful! I purchased the first book these ladies published over a year ago. I'm not really a prep and freeze type so I ended up putting it in the book shelf and forgot about it. Well last January I was desperate for new ideas and easy dinners so I pulled it out. Let me just say, I still use their recipes for almost all my week-night dinners!

In about a half hour you get a full flavored home cooked meal that's healthy and tastey enough that even my two kids say YUM to almost everything I have served. Those of you who have pickey children know that this alone is worth the purchase price! I can't say enough good things about the recipes and the amount of thought and detail these ladies put into these books. They've done everything but cook the meal for you. Thanks!!!

Simply, tasty recipes, April 28, 2008
I love this cookbook. As a stay-at-home mom I'm always looking for ways to make life simpler (and spend less money!). Most of the "fix and freeze" books I've seen rely far too much on preservative-laden products like canned soup, but "Fix, Freeze, Feast" is based on simple, healthy ingredients, many of which you could find organic or locally-grown. I would definitely recommend this book for anyone looking to get started with bulk cooking, not only because the recipes are so tasty, but because the style is breezy, friendly, and extremely easy to follow.

Delicious, Fast, Easy...., October 30, 2008
I bought this book to aid in dinner prep during the bewitching hour. I made 5 recipes. They go together fairly quickly and quite easily. Once they are thawed (some can be cooked from a frozen state - recipes give specific instructions for re-heating) they are simple to cook, making meal preparation a snap. My 3 kids liked the recipes, as did my husband (who is a culinary professional) and I. (We especially liked the Basil-Balsamic marinade which we used for chicken.) I have cooked in bulk for several years now, but many of the cookbooks I've used have recipes that are outdated and unhealthy. This one is different! No gloopy casseroles with canned cream soup. Instead, look for Tequila-Lime Chicken, Peanut Satay,Apple Cranberry Pork Loin, Asparagus and Potato Frittata, Vegetable Lasagna, Black Bean and Vegetable Chili, etc. They also include some classics, such as Chicken a la King, Beef Barley Soup, several recipes for ribs and steak, regular Chili, and regular Lasagna. Fish and seafood lovers won't be disappointed, as there are several preparations for this genre as well. There is something for everyone here.
The cooking instructions can be copied or printed off their website to attach right to the package before it goes into the freezer. If you've ever come across a mystery package in your freezer, you'll know this is a real plus. It also makes it easier to use these meals as gifts and "love meals" for those who are ill or going through a crisis. There is also a freezer inventory so you can keep track of what you have left in there.
I will definitely try more of the recipes. It may seem like a large output of cash in the beginnig to buy in bulk, but in the long run having meals already prepared actually saves money, as you aren't tempted to call for a pizza or do the breakfast drive-though (frozen breakfast burritos are in the freezer!). Highly recommend.

The best freezer meal cookbook, July 24, 2008
This is my first book review. I know it probably sounds like the authors paid me to write this because the review is so glowing! After much research of Amazon book reviews, I bought "Fix Freeze Feast" because it eemed like the best freezer meal cookbook out there. "Don't Panic...Dinner's in the Freezer" would probably come in second place, but reviewers have slammed it for using too many processed ingredients. "F.F.F." calls for all whole foods. You even make and freeze in bulk the tomato sauce you use in many of the recipes. For my fellow editing snobs, the book is impeccably edited: organized and user-friendly. You can photocopy the freezer labels (which have the cooking instructions for thawed entrees) from the ones in the back of the book, or you can print them straight off the computer after going to the provided website. By the way, "F.F.F." has their own website with all kinds of extras like a Q & A section. Not only does the book have over 125 recipes, but it also goes over the whole freezer meal concept--from the big picture it breaks it down into the smaller lessons, like showing you how to make the best shopping list.

simple solution for my crazy life, May 12, 2008
Like so many women out there, I have many balls in the air. I am a working mother of two young sons, and I am going to school part time. Both boys play two sports, so many nights we are home just long enough to eat and leave again for a practice or a game. Fix, Freeze and Feast has saved us from countless nights of drive-thru meals as we rush from event to event. While the boys do homework, I am quickly able to complete a healthy meal that I took out of the freezer the day before.

Even though you are making several meals at once, the prep is very easy. Don't be intimidated by the upfront prep. In fact, it was so easy, that I filled my freezer with 12 meals in just over a week. My husband told me I had to back off before we ran out of room in our chest freezer! All of the recipes have been great, but our entire family especially loves the Sweet Asian Chicken.

I rave about my meals so much that my friends think I'm nuts, but this cookbook and this concept really work well for busy families that want real food, not fast food.

Worth every penny, May 3, 2008
Fix Freeze Feast is FANTASTIC. The recipes are easy to follow, don't take much time as most of them require you to freeze raw meat, and the books itself is full of extra information to make it an interesting read. I have been doing freezer cooking for years and have read most of the books available on the topic. The only problem that I've ever had with the other books is that the recipes tend to be bland. We like food with a bit more flavour and this book does not disappoint.

We have tried Pork Ragout, Peanut Satay, Cashew Chicken, Mozzarella Meatballs, Chicken Broccoli Bake and Vegetable Lasagna. All were excellent and I can't wait to try some of the others!

This book is well worth the investment of $10. Buy it because you won't be disappointed. ... Read more

Editorial Review

With this exceptional opus, over 100 years of unparalleled experience and expertise are put at the fingertips of every home cook using the same hands-on approach promoted in practical classes at Le Cordon Bleu's institutes. This indispensable and unique reference work teaches essential preparation and cooking skills and professional tricks-of-the-trade, with over 700 cooking techniques shown in more than 2,000 color images.

Whatever the interest -- providing family-pleasing everyday fare or mastering a top chef's recipe, or even attempting to re-create a dish from a restaurant menu -- Le Cordon Bleu Complete Cooking Techniques will enable people to cook what they want with success. Its hundreds of illustrated techniques are invaluable kitchen aids, as are the many integral recipes.

Cooks interested in ethnic cuisines, readers of chef inspired, ingredient-led, or occasion-oriented cookbooks, as well as devotees of simple home cooking will turn to this book again and again and wonder how they ever cooked without it. Le Cordon Bleu Complete Cooking Techniques is destined to become a classic kitchen reference. ... Read more

Reviews

Amazing--perky as a tv show, yet sophisticated as can be., August 19, 1999
I love this book. Every technique I have struggled to pick up from other cookbooks, every vegetable I have struggled to prepare, every mystery of French cooking that left me intimidated and terrified is demystified in this easy-to-follow guide to fine French cooking. The recipes are beyond excellent, make you feel like you are following directly in the footsteps of the great masters of grande cuisine. Which you are. It's a great feeling.

All the basics are here, as well as variations, as well as some more intimidating stuff which is made less so by lots and lots of bright pictures and snappy hint boxes. I never thought a cookbook by Cordon Bleu would be perky, but this one IS. Seriously, it's like watching a TV show, but in a book.

Definitely buy this book, especially if you want to become educated about the techniques of the masters, and have it become second nature. LOVE IT.

Comprehensive guide, July 19, 2000
There certainly isn't a lack of illustrations in this book. It serves as a practical guide of cooking techniques and covers all aspects and indgredients of cooking, which includes sauces, vegetables, poultry, meat, seafood, herbs and spices, soups, desserts, bakery, dairy, fruits, and literally anything one can think of. However, do not expect to find many recipes, because as the title suggests, the book will be helpful if it used for cooking techniques. If you are eager to learn some basics, this is the book for you.

Perfect for Beginners, July 30, 2000
I love this book. As the others say, it is more for techniques and there are not very many recipes, but for beginners the recipes are perfect: broth, sauces, pancakes (from scratch!), etc. that are so basic that they are the basis for tons of other recipes. The illustrated techniques are great and everytime I do a new recipe I bring out the Cordon Bleu book to figure out what the recipe says!.

A must have for the gourmet home chef, October 6, 2004
This book is NOT about following someone else's recipes, it is about explaining culinary knowledge and techniques which provide the foundation required to excel in the gourmet kitchen. Well-layed out format and photos eliminate the intimidation factor.

An excellent reference, January 20, 2000
If you really want to learn to cook, this is perhaps the best cooking technique book there is. The instructions are clear, the photos are useful and this book covers a lot of topics. Strongly recommended. It also makes great gift.

A must-have edition to your kitchen, February 24, 2000
I found this book to be an excellent reference. It has found it's home in the office at the restaurant where i work so that the chef and i can consult it when we need a little inspiration. I highly recommend it to anyone, regardless or your specific interests in cooking. The guides for selecting and preparing everything from fresh seafood to vegetables are worth the price of the book.

Indispensable? Absolutely, October 25, 2000
I absolutely love this book. Rather than giving a list of recipes, it tells you hundreds of techniques with which to create for yourself. Perfect for the budding chef or gourmand. It also has hundreds of illustrations of everything from food identification to hand motion. A great addition to any collection.

Excellent reference for techniques, April 17, 2006
To put this review into perspective for you, it is written by an amateur cook that has been seriously studying cooking on her own for 25 years with the last 10 years spent mostly on Italian cuisine. My favorite cookbook is "The Professional Chef" by the Culinary Institute of America.

This book covers the basics of cooking from the tools of the trade, to chopping vegetables, and making stocks. If you need a good reference for the basics this is a nice and very thorough book.

The one oddity I did note in this book is the section on preparing a crab. According to Le Cordon Bleu, live crabs should be frozen for one hour and tied up like a roast of beef prior to boiling. That was a first for me. I caulk this up to French overkill.

This book does a wonderful job of photographing the various stages of the process they are describing making it very easy to follow their directions.

They have also included a number of recipes (they count them as 200) to use your new found culinary skills.

All in all (crab directions aside) this is a nice reference book. I purchased it prior to "The Professional Chef" which I referenced above. If I could have only one book on the basics it would be "The Professional Chef". However, this book is very nice, and doesn't take up nearly as much space on the bookshelf.

Falls short of expectations - a "Coffee Table Cookbook", February 11, 2010
This isn't a terrible book, in fact, in some ways it is a nice book. But I was a very disappointed in the level of the material. Based on the title, I expected an Escoffier, Larousse, or perhaps something on the level of James Peterson's "Sauces". What I got was strictly Time-Life or Reader's Digest. Don't misunderstand, it is a lovely book. And perhaps a few years ago I would have been pleased to have it. But it is long on nice pictures and recipes, and very short on the sort of advanced level teaching I expect of a book that claims to be the "complete techniques" of the prestigious Cordon Bleu. If you are a good home cook who is just getting started in broadening your horizons, you will probably like this book. If you have already begun to broaden them, I think you will find this to be a watered down pretense of what it claims to be, only slightly more than an Americanized coffee table book, intended more as a "gift book" to impress the uninitiated, than as a comprehensive treatise to educate serious cooks in the techniques the title purports to offer. It is really too bad, I would very much like to have a book which actually contains what the title of this book promises, but which its' contents fail to deliver. If the title were more honest, perhaps "Illustrated Cordon Bleu recipes for the American Kitchen" or some such, I would rate the book more highly. Instead, they chose to over promise, and under deliver, hence the low rating.

good techniques book, April 11, 2005
As for a cookbook, if you added "The Way to Cook" by Julia Child, you'll have a wealth of excellent instruction and recipes.

There aren't enough books on techniques for cooking. There's the hefty Culinary Institute of America book on techniques we used in culinary school, but that's really too involved (not to mention too heavy!) for most home cooks. ... Read more