The Food Lover's Tiptionary: An A to Z Culinary Guide with More Than 4000 Food and Drink Tips, ...... [Paperback]

Sharon Tyler Herbst (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1994

Sharon Tyler Herbst, culinary tipster extraordinaire, has collected thousands of shortcuts and hints on hundreds of subjects including foods, beverages, cooking techniques, measuring, kitchen equipment, substitutions, and even cleaning up. Essential for both the experienced and beginning cook, this handy kitchen encyclopedia is packed with cooking ideas and fast, accurate answers to culinary questions.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Sharon Herbst's Tiptionary is much more than a "Dear Abby" of cooking. Take bread, for instance. Did you know that one beaten egg has the leavening power of half a teaspoon of baking powder? That breads made without fat, like French bread, have shorter shelf lives because fat holds the moisture in? That if you're going to use a glass pan instead of metal, you ought to reduce the oven by 25 degrees? The tips go on and on, simple enough for any novice to understand and appreciate, extensive enough for the most experienced cook to learn a thing or three.

From abalone (should be alive when purchased, cooked within a day, pounded for tenderness, and not overcooked lest it toughen) to yogurt (is storable for up to ten days after the carton date, can be substituted for sour cream in baked goods, and keeps the intestinal system full of healthy bacteria--though not if it's been frozen), Herbst's culinary guide divulges more than 4,500 facts, shortcuts, and remedies on everything to do with food and drink. If you didn't take notes whenever Mom uttered some crumb of kitchen wisdom, and don't want to call her every time you overbeat the whipped cream, curdle the soup, and can't get a jar to open, it's no longer a calamity. The Tiptionary tells you the approximate volumes of common pan sizes, instructs that pecans have a fat content over 70 percent, and explains how to eradicate a lingering onion odor (from kitchen, hands, and breath). Because it's compact and wastes no space on color plates or fancy illustrations, there's room, and certainly a place, for the Tiptionary in even the most petite of kitchens. --Stephanie Gold

From Library Journal

Herbst, author of Cooking Smart ( LJ 5/15/92), appears frequently on Good Morning America to offer "Sharon's Tips." Here, with the goal of letting cooks avoid common "culinary land mines," she presents hundreds of useful tips, quick fixes, and minirecipes and ideas. Even experienced cooks will find new information, and any cook will find ways to make life in the kitchen easier. Though filled with facts, the text is very readable; the Tiptionary is not only invaluable as a reference but fun to browse through. Highly recommended.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 373 pages
• Publisher: Cookbooks; 1st edition (April 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0688121462
• ISBN-13: 978-0688121464
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,753,217 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Sharon Tyler Herbst is the award-winning author of twelve books on food and wine, and the foremost writer of culinary reference books, including the bestselling Food Lover's Companion and Food Lover's Tiptionary.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Indispensible! All serious cooks need this book., May 15, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Food Lover's Tiptionary: An A to Z Culinary Guide with More Than 4000 Food and Drink Tips, ...... (Paperback)

This book by Sharon Tyler Herbst, author of another indispensible book, the Food Lover's Companion, is a cooks dream come true. It contains solutions for almost every problem you will encounter in the kitchen, from how to properly choose and prepare artichokes to how to fix burned stews and any other question or minor emergency you might encounter in the kitchen. I highly recommend this book.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This book helped to validate everything my grandmother said!, April 5, 2000

By 

Rebecca Johnson "The Rebecca Review" (Washington State) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Food Lover's Tiptionary: An A to Z Culinary Guide with More Than 4000 Food and Drink Tips, ...... (Paperback)

After completing my most recent cookbook, I ran across this excellent resource. While I consider myself to work mostly on instinct in the kitchen, it is fun to read that you were right all along. Yes, as my grandmother taught me - potatoes are easier to peel when hot. She always made me boil them in their jackets when making potato salad.

I had also wondered why lentils sometimes stayed firm after being cooked for the same time as other recipes. The secret is on page 207 and an acidic ingredient is the culprit. From personal experience I knew that I should let a cake cool before frosting it but this could save someone a lot of melted icing if they just didn't think about it.

Think of this book as your grandmothers wisdom all in one book. Sharon is truly an expert and has done her research. This book has helped me to realize why things work the way they do and has validated many of my own beliefs. It is an entertaining and education read - just take it by the Tablespoon...there is a wealth of information here.

~The Rebecca Review

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Can't cook without it!, May 17, 2001

By 

"dbjones" (Abilene, TX) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Food Lover's Tiptionary: An A to Z Culinary Guide with More Than 4000 Food and Drink Tips, ...... (Paperback)

I bought this book, really by accident, in April of 1998 and have found it an indispensable tool in my kitchen. I love it and often give it as a gift (it makes a nice wedding present, coupled with a cooking utensil, etc.).