Customer Reviews

100 Words for Foodies

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

 

 

This is a slight book, and I can't figure out who the intended audience is. For anyone interested in food, there is not much here that is new or interesting, and it is too brief and random for someone looking for a food dictionary. And I really hate the word " foodie", so even the title is a turn -off.

Possibly a good gift for someone just getting interested in the culinary world.

For others, I recommend The Food Lovers Companion by Herbst.

There are no obvious criteria for the words chosen. There are the common (hominy a.k.a. posole, garlic, madeleine), the faddish (umami, ponzu, meze), the foreign (lavash,fufu, pho). Sprinkled among the words with a definition and etymology are occasional recipes and word histories. A fun book to carry for reading in small, random snatches. Fun - nothing less, nothing more.

What a wonderful little book this is! It's short, just 86 pages, but it's the go-to guide for words that the aspiring gourmet and cook needs to understand. Some of the words are fairly commonplace. Who in today's society does not know nacho, aioli, and bruschetta? Then you move up into the midrange: pierogi, chayote, and vindaloo, for example. But finally, terms worthy of a quiz show come into play. I was stumped by such candidates as waterzooi, quahog, injera, and fufu. Both nouns and verbs are included in the list. Look up words just as you need them, or use the book as a guide to the kitchens of the world. Either way, it's a fun read.

100 Words for Foodies is not a typical recipe compendium (though it does include a handful of recipes such as "Turkish White Bean Wrap Sandwiches" and "Edamame and Spinach with Golden Onions") - instead, it defines one hundred terms that any aspiring chef or gourmet should know, from "bruschettta" (bread served in slices that have been broiled, rubbed with garlic, brushed with olive oil, seasoned with salt, and layered with various toppings) to "umami" (a taste sensation produced by glutamates and nucleotides, associated with meats and high-protein foods and often considered to be the fifth basic taste along with sweet, sour, salty, and bitter). Some of the words even have extensive "word history" sections describing their origin. An excellent, inexpensive supplementary resource for anyone looking to broaden their vocabulary and culinary knowledge!