Customer Reviews

The Clay Pot Cookbook

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I have used this book for 20 years and am ordering a copy for friends. It is one of the two best clay cook books out of seven I have tried-- my other favorite is out of print. I have lots of our family all time favorites marked in this book. Many recipies are relatively low fat or can be modified and use a minimum of canned or packaged ingrediants. That's in contrast with "Cooking in Clay" by Joanna White-- which also has lots of breads and desserts, not the best use of the clay pot in my opinion.

My poor old copy of THE CLAY POT COOKBOOK is so tattered, spotted and torn, I am ordering a new copy before it goes out of print. I am also ordering copy for a friend of mine who just purchased his first clay pot.

When I bought my first clay pot, my husband was in college, I was working full time and we had a young child. We were on an extremely limited budget, but were expected to frequently entertain members of my husband's deparment (all of whom, it seemed, were gastronomic experts).

The recipes lend themselves heroically to inexpensive cuts of meat, with the results always excellent. Best of all, the clay pot method is extremely forgiving and easily adaptable to almost any recipe once you understand the basics of using the pot.

After over 20 years, I still haven't tried ALL the recipes, but have several favorites:

Sausalito Red Snapper (a family favorite), Romertopf's Begger's Chicken, Boston Clam Chowder, Beef Bourguignonne.

Try all of these...you will NOT be disappointed.

Georgia and Grover provide a fun read. There is not an intimidating, high brow paragraph in this book. The recipes include clear, easily followed directions. Reading the opening and any three random recipes will provide adequate information to make one an expert clay-pot chef. Don't let the organ meat recipes frighten you off. They make up a small portion of the book. The authors claim that clay-pot cooking is very healthy - low fat, low sodium, yet richly flavored. The definition of low fat, low sodium must have been much different in 1974. Many of the recipes in this book add unnecessary fat and salt. Some even call for bouillon cubes - Jean Bell's Beef Stroganoff calls for two cubes and is garanteed to make guests thirsty all evening! Most of the recipes are easily tweaked to meet low fat, low sodium guidelines. Nothing wrong with enjoying them in their original sinful forms! Just beware if you buy this book seeking health reform.

I purchased a Romertopf clay pot 5 years ago and bought this book soon after. Grover's Roast Chicken recipe was my first attempt and it was scrumptious! I steered clear of the recipes containing organs but I found that soups, stews and even breads turn out beautifully in the clay pot. I now have 3 sizes and would advise the user to line the pot with parchment paper just to reduce the cleanup time. This book helps to demystify a basically simple cooking utensil and you will love the results. Food is packed with flavor and moisture and you just have to sit by and wait to serve. It is a lifesaver for those of us who love a home-cooked meal but don't have the time after a long day at work.

I received a clay pot as a gift, and bought this book to figure out how to use it. Today, the book is tattered and carries the stains and smudges from the many recipes I have pulled from it. I have tried most of the recipes and always been delighted with the results. I learned to cook with a clay pot thanks to the approach by the authors. They offer recipes, but they also teach how to use the pot in general. A clay pot and this book makes for a great gift, and a great meal!!

I recently ordered this book and have tried three recipes in one week. I do not exaggerate when I say this is some of the best food I have ever tasted. The book warns to use only a non-glazed cooker, but I have a Schlemmertopf, which is glazed, and the recipes cook perfectly. Five Stars.

I have my grandmother's copy and I love it. A lot of Asian cookbooks suggest clay pot dishes. This cookbook is clear and simple to use with many original recipes I've seen nowhere else. This book was printed decades ago and covers dishes from around the world. The recipes hold up to the test of time in flavor, health and variety. This is not fatty, add a can of soup to everything, midwestern cooking from the 1970's. These recipes came out of a new movement forming in California that promoted the use of fresh, clean-tasting ingredients- principles being rediscovered today. The back cover sums up for who: Gourmet cooks, organic cooks, low-fat cooks, experimental cooks, amateur cooks!

My favorites are the Monterrey Jack Rabbit, Beggar's Chicken, Garden Fresh Chicken Breast and the Herb Oatmeal Bread. The bread I found worked better in a clay bread pan (like from Pampered Chef) than a round clay pot. The Rabbit dish includes fresh herbs, brandy, dark beer, shallots, mushrooms and a touch of jack cheese. The bread recipe is the favorite among my very picky, all organic, vegetarian friends. The author's description was dead on: "This unusual loaf is worth every second at the 3 1/2 hours it takes from start to finish. Be sure you make enough of it as it will take on a cookie-like disappearing act. Be careful about the ingredients, especially the oatmeal; get a good one like John McCann's from Ireland, and spurn the instant." This was the first bread recipe I ever made from scratch! 6 herbs, pine nuts, sour cream & honey. Yum!

Fish recipes are simple and tasty. I thought I was sick of plain old white fish until this book. The list of ingredients for most recipes are short. Often the entire meal is prepped and cooked in 30 to 45 minutes using two or three fresh herbs, a base of white wine, and a final ingredient to mix with the base leftover in the pot after cooking- such as sauteed mushrooms or sour cream and capers.

This book is often listed as one of the best on clay cooking even though an old book.
Gets credit for delicious recipes.

I'd try clay pot cooking before, to great frustration -- then I found this book! Every detail in their instruction is clear, the authors' voices are pleasant and the recipes are outstanding -- for either basic meals or company dazzlers. Clay pot cooking is so fun and so simple, with absolutely every benefit: lower fat, one-pot meals, simple clean up. Buy this one!

Kind of my bible for clay pot cooking. Have worn out one copy and am currently on 2nd. Excellent recipes but dont expect pictures - you dont need them. Just try the recipes. If you havent tried clay pot cooking yet you are really missing out on an incredible experience. The flavors you get from this cooking method are like no other. You can use the excellent recipes in this book as they are written, or use the book to adapt just about any of your old favorite recipes to clay pot cooking - just find a recipe in the book that is similar and following the basic cooking instructions for your own recipes. Invaluable if you are cooking in clay.