The Chilean Kitchen [Paperback]

Ruth Van Waerebeek-Gonzalez (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1, 1999

From the windswept shores to the snowcapped Andes, this culinary tour of Chile includes recipes, wines, folklore, and more... from the author of Everybody Eats Well in Belgium.

Whether feasting on boccadillos (tapas) with friends, preparing a seaside clambake, or attending a festive Plains rodeo, Ruth Van Waerebeek-Gonzales offers a grand tour of Chile's most popular dishes and traditional favorites. Unique in all the world, given the country's long coastline and varying climates, the cuisine of Chile as captured in the more than 130 recipes make use of all of Chile's bounty--the fruits of the earth, sea, and vine. Easily adaptable for any North American kitchen the recipes run the gamet from succulent seafood to rice and beans, side dishes, and desserts. Includes coverage of regional Chilean wines.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Born in Belgium, Van Waerebeek-Gonzalez may at first seem an unlikely author for a book on Chilean cooking, yet the many asides that accompany her recipes leave no doubt that she fully understands, and enjoys, the country's culinary customs. Though the author and her husband own a restaurant in southern Chile, the dishes in her book focus on the simple foods that Chileans prepare at home. Tortilla de Zanahorias, for example, combines garlic and fresh carrots in a thick omelet that is then sliced and served as an appetizer. Salsa fans will appreciate the zesty Chancho en Piedra, made with garlic, cilantro, oregano and tomatoes, and Pevre Verde, which forgoes tomatoes, relying instead on large quantities of fresh cilantro and chopped onions. These salsas make a fine accompaniment to the book's many seafood recipes: for example, Seafood Pie layers spicy sausage, mussels and clams in an earthenware dish that is then baked with a topping of crushed corn and basil. Van Waerebeek-Gonzalez explains each dish's provenance, and in her many sidebars, she introduces readers to typical Chilean customs, such as serving bread with a spread made of mashed avocado seasoned with salt and pepper instead of butter. Though the dishes may seem a bit bland to those used to spicier South American fare, gourmets who appreciate hearty combinations of simple flavors will be well rewarded.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Trendy Latin American restaurants are beginning to proliferate in New York City and elsewhere, and The Chilean Kitchen is the latest addition, following Copeland Marks's The Exotic Kitchens of Peru (LJ 4/15/99), to what was until recently a neglected culinary genre. Van Waerebeek-Gonzalez is Belgian by birth (and the author of Everybody Eats Well in Belgium), but her husband is Chilean, and she has lived in Chile for much of each year since the early 1990s. Her book is a good introduction to the food of her adopted country, with a separate chapter devoted to Chilean wines, which are increasingly popular here. Recommended for most collections.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Paperback: 324 pages
• Publisher: HP Trade (August 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1557883076
• ISBN-13: 978-1557883476
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.5 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,011,233 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is THE book to get on Chilean cuisine, July 16, 1999

By 

[e-mail] (California) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Chilean Kitchen (Paperback)

I preordered this a few months ago, while looking for books on Chilean cooking. It was a very pleasant surprise when the book arrived this week.

I cannot over emphasize how good this book is! While my wife brought several cookbooks from her native Chile, we've frequently been challenged to find many ingredients here in the US. With this book I can now prepare all of my Chilean favorites. THANK YOU to Ruth Van Waerebeek for this stellar work!

To be clear: this is far more than just a book full of recipes. Wonderfully organized and illustrated, each recipe includes engaging stories about the culture and culinary traditions of Chile. Special sections provide great detail on the unique ingredients and cooking techniques of Chile, and let us norteamericanos know where to find these foods (or close substitutions) in our local markets.

This book is a pleasure to read; the recipes are well detailed and easy to follow (with ingredient names in English and US measures); full of compelling stories. This is the only cookbook that I've ever read cover to cover.

Ruth Van Waerebeek-Gonzalez beautifully combines her affection and passion for Chile with her talents as a top-rate chef and foods author to deliver the definitive English text on Chilean cuisine. I plan to buy several more copies to share with my friends and family, to further introduce them to delicious Chilean cooking.

I have also read _Three Generations of Chilean Cuisine_ by Mirtha Umana-Murray. While this is a good book, _The Chilean Kitchen_ is by far the better work.

VIVA CHILE!

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Comida Casera a la chilena, May 28, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: The Chilean Kitchen (Paperback)

Chileans love 'home cooking' and this book does good job of representing typical foods. As in any so-called national cuisine, there are nearly as many recipes as there are cooks, so while her version may not match my mother-in-law's, they're both in the same ball park. I like the author's conversational style of providing cultural commentary in relation to the foods she is presenting. My primary criticism however has more to do with careless translations than with her ingredient lists. The traditional Christmas drink, "Cola de Mono," was translated as "Monkey's Tale" rather than "Monkey's Tail." While perhaps annoying to the bilingual reader, the recipes themselves are worth-while for an insight into Chilean home cooking.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars My Chilean husband likes these recipes!, March 30, 2000

By 

Jimmie H. Aranda "Jaranda" (the United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Chilean Kitchen (Paperback)

I have dined in homes and restaurants from the north of Chile to the south, and the recipes in this book accurately reflect much of the cuisine. Chile has an outstanding culinary tradition and Ruth Van Waerebeek-Gonzalez understands it. The dishes listed are not only authentically Chilean, but are also dishes that most people in the United States will enjoy.