Gordon Ramsay's Three Star Chef [Hardcover]

Gordon Ramsay (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 14, 2008

Gordon Ramsay’s no-holds-barred television persona has garnered widespread attention both stateside and abroad, but his food continues to be his greatest achievement. His passion for fresh ingredients is fully apparent in this collection of fifty classic Ramsay recipes. Describing both the restaurant methods for preparation, along with a down-to-earth guide to recreating the dishes at home, this beautifully photographed book showcases Ramsay’s immense talent. Including Gordon's signature Lobster Ravioli, Corn Reared Beef Fillet with Marrow Crust, Ginger Mousse and a Bitter Chocolate Cylinder with Coffee Granite, this cookbook is both a valuable cook’s resource and an arresting look at a man who has been dubbed “the best chef of his generation.”

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

GORDON RAMSAY's sublime cooking has consistently earned him Michelin stars at his celebrated, eponymous London restaurant in Chelsea, and he has extended his superlative cooking franchise to New York, Paris, and Los Angeles. Now a celebrated TV personality, his award-winning TV series include The F Word, Kitchen Nightmares and Hell's Kitchen. His bestselling books have sold more than 1.3 million copies worldwide. He lives in London, England.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 224 pages
• Publisher: Key Porter Books (October 14, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1554700906
• ISBN-13: 978-1554700905
• Product Dimensions: 12.8 x 10.7 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #676,521 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

29 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is an eye opener for all home cooks., October 10, 2008

By 

Felino Jason Vasquez "fjvasquez" (LA, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Gordon Ramsay's Three Star Chef (Hardcover)

As a home cook, things were simple and fulfilling.

I opted to purchase this book to see what makes a 3 star Michelin service. I was pleasantly surprised that Gordon Ramsay had the same (relatively) approach. Simple, fantastic food. This book opened my eyes to making simple dishes into what he has made fantastic food.

I do have this warning: THIS IS NOT FOR THE NOVICE COOK.

However, for the conditioned chef/cook, this has really openened my eyes, nose, and tongue for the intricacies that make a Michelin 3 star chef. Be prepared to prep chicken, veal, fish, stock the night before, however you will not only understand why sous chefs report at 7am the day of service, but you will benefit from the taste that all of that effort takes.

AGAIN NOT FOR THE NEW COOK.

There are only a few instances where a genious will let us glance into his notebook, and this is it. So for you cook's who want to expand your repetoire, GET THIS BOOK! Even if you don't like the recipes, you'll undoubtedly get ideas to make your home cooking miles from what it is now.

5 Stars on Amazon, a definite 3 stars for Michelin.

Happy Cooking.
FJV

22 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Half cookbook, half shrine, December 29, 2008

By 

David Mack (Morgan Hill, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Gordon Ramsay's Three Star Chef (Hardcover)

Where to begin?

This book is truly a coffeetable book; at over 13 inches in height, it won't fit on any of my book shelves (and I own Peterson's "Cooking", which does.)

Literally the first half of the book (128 out of 256 pages) consists of photographs of food, photographs of Gordon Ramsay, photographs of Gordon Ramsay touching food and quotes by and about Gordon Ramsay. Well, the book *is* named "Three Star Chef", not "Three Star Food".

The second half of the book consists of 50 recipes: 16 appetizers, 17 entrees and 17 desserts, followed by a section called "Basics" which describes the procedures for making assorted stocks, sauces, purees, etc.

Another reviewer of this book asserted that it is not for the novice cook. This is something of an understatement. Let me give you a sense of what is involved in the production of what I consider one of the most approachable of the entrees, the roasted filet of beef with a truffle and root vegetable infusion:

This dish is composed from five elements: braised shank of beef, a clarified stock (made from the beef shank), vegetable garnish, beef filet, and a truffle and root vegetable infusion. The braising of the beef shank takes several hours, after which the meat is shredded and flattened into very thin wafers which are refrigerated overnight. The stock from the braise is then reduced and clarified. The vegetable garnish is simply blanched. The beef filet is pan-seared then oven-roasted. The truffle and root vegetable infusion is created by simmering the vegetables in the clarified stock and straining. The braised beef wafer (warmed to room temperature), the vegetable garnish, the beef filet and the infusion are then plated and served.

None of the ingredients in the dish are particularly hard to find if you live in or near a decent-sized city (or are willing to mail-order truffles.) None of the techniques described would strain the abilities of the experienced home cook. The directions provided are clear and unambiguous (there are exceptions in other recipes: tomato petals are what, precisely?) The recipes have been sized for a small group (4-6 servings in this example.) I think the dish described here is still a bit daunting unless you happen to have a sous chef or two hanging around.

This motif, the assembly of several complex elements into a highly refined dish, permeates every recipe in the book, making the appetizers and the desserts even more daunting than the entrees for the solo cook. The idea of such a cook attempting to make an appetizer, an entree and a dessert from this book for the same meal strains the imagination. If you are capable of accomplishing that, even spread over a couple of days, then I salute you.

The four-star rating resulted from the deduction of two stars for all of the fluff at the front of the book and the return of a star for the "Basics" section.

If you're looking for a cookbook of simple recipes, this is not the book for you. If you're interested in finding out how one of the world's best chefs designs a dish, it might be.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Gorgeous book, delicious photo's & food, March 19, 2009

By 

Shana "That's my opinion- I could be wrong!" (Northern NY) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Gordon Ramsay's Three Star Chef (Hardcover)

What an absolutely gorgeous book. This book is a large coffee table style cookbook 13 inches tall (or more). This book has a ton of photos of each 50 recipes: 16 appetizers, 17 entrees and 17 desserts, followed by a section called "Basics" which describes the procedures for making assorted stocks, sauces, purees, etc. A few of the recipes included are: Lobster Ravioli, Corn Reared Beef Fillet with Marrow Crust, Ginger Mousse, Raspberry Compote and a Bitter Chocolate Cylinder with Coffee Granite. My personal favorite is the Raspberry Compote recipe. It's very simple and very delicious, but it looks fabulous when served as Gordan suggests.

Some of the ingredients might be hard to get if you do live in a rural area with no specialty food stores. I've made a few of the recipes and if I don't have an ingredient Chef Ramsey calls for I just improvise.

These really are not recipes for a cooking novice. Though, if you are a confident & experienced home cook, you could pull off many of these recipes if you have lots of time. Gordon does breakdown each recipe simpler than any other cookbook of this class.

This book also includes Gordon's cooking tips, life experiences and how he has earned his 3 star Michelin rating. This also makes a great cooking reference for those foodies who like Chef Ramsay's style and they want to learn as much as they can.