The Gourmet Slow Cooker: Simple and Sophisticated Meals from Around the World [Paperback]

Lynn Alley (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 15, 2003

Although the slow cooker has experienced a renaissance over the past several years, the discriminating cook is still hard-pressed to find slow cooker recipes worthy of serving at a dinner party‚Äîrecipes that reflect concern about ingredients, flavors, and appearance.For these cooks, comes THE GOURMET SLOW COOKER, an upscale approach to this new-old phenomenon by author and food journalist Lynn Alley. With fresh ingredients and imaginative recipes, you can create delicious meals to serve with pride to your guests. Drawn from slow cooking traditions from around the world, the recipes include Lamb Shanks in Tomato Sauce from Greece; Apricot Chicken from India; Chicken Mole from Mexico; White Truffle Risotto from Italy; Proven?ßal Chicken Stew from France; and Potato, Cheddar, and Chive Soup from the United States. In keeping with the sophistication of the food, each recipe is accompanied by wine or beer suggestions. The slow cooker can be so much more than a repository for nacho cheese dip. Paired with THE GOURMET SLOW COOKER, your everyday dining will be elevated from the mundane to the gourmet, while freeing you from hours of hard work in the kitchen.

A slow cooker book for discriminating cooks, with 16 full-color recipe photographs.

Includes chapter introductions to each region, focusing on the slow-cooking traditions and techniques from that country, and local wine or beer suggestions for all 60 recipes.

According to a study by the Betty Crocker Kitchens, 80 percent of U.S. households have a slow cooker. Reviews“Go ahead and sneer. I love my slow cooker. . . . Even food snobs like me are realizing their potential, albeit a little later than the more than perhaps 100 million Americans who already own one.”—Mark Bittman, New York Times

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In this volume, Alley (Lost Arts: A Celebration of Culinary Traditions) provides a montage of surprising and intriguing recipes-everything from White Truffle Risotto to Chocolate Chip Cookies-all of which are made in a slow cooker. Chapters are divided by country, and include France, Great Britain, India, Italy, Mexico and the U.S. According to Alley, signature meals, side dishes and even desserts from each of these countries, such as Chicken Mole from Mexico, Eggplant and Pea Curry from India, Pork with Prunes from France and Anise Biscotti from Italy, can be made simply in one pot. Alley includes drink recommendations with each recipe. These are generally wine pairings (with Provencal Beef Stew, "a Cotes de Provence rose or medium-bodied red table wine would do well") but the author refrains from going over the top to underscore the sophistication angle. For chocolate chip cookies, she writes, "milk is the only proper accompaniment."
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About the Author

LYNN ALLEY is a freelance food and wine journalist interested in traditional foods and techniques from around the world. The author of LOST ARTS, she has contributed articles to Fine Cooking, Cook’s Illustrated, the San Francisco Chronicle, and Appellation magazine. She frequently writes for Wine Spectator and its website. Alley has also taught classes at cooking schools around the United States. She resides in San Diego, California.

Product Details

• Paperback: 108 pages
• Publisher: Ten Speed Press (September 15, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1580084893
• ISBN-13: 978-1580084895
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 0.4 x 9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (75 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,804 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #31 in Books > Cookbooks, Food & Wine > Special Appliances
  • #33 in Books > Cookbooks, Food & Wine > Special Occasions

More About the Author

Lynn Alley began her career in cooking as a middle school teacher where she and her students gained notoriety selling their hand made gourmet items at Neiman Marcus. Alley long ago began writing and saving recipes so that down the road she could write the cookbooks for which she has become known. Since leaving the classroom, she has traveled to teach cooking in southern France and at cooking schools throughout the western United States. She has, over the years, contributed articles on both food and wine to the San Diego Union Tribune, the Los Angeles Times, the San Francisco Chronicle, Fine Cooking, Cook's Illustrated, The Herb Companion, Health, Natural Home, Organic Style, and Organic Gardening, and has authored six cookbooks, the latest of which, "50 Simple Soups for the Slow Cooker" is scheduled for release in September of 2011. For more than ten years, she has also been a regular contributer to the Wine Spectator online and magazine, and her "Conscious Cook" blog appears weekly on the Yoga Journal's website, yoga journal.com.
An avid animal lover, she has also contributed article on animal diet, travel and wellbeing to the Natural Dog, Dog Fancy, and the Herb Companion.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

338 of 339 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Slow Cooking for flavor rather than convenience, May 2, 2005

By 

H. Mccartor (Portland, Oregon) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Gourmet Slow Cooker: Simple and Sophisticated Meals from Around the World (Paperback)

Judging from reviews of slow cooking cook books there seem to be two distinct groups of users - those who work all day and need something ready when they get home and those whose interest in slow cooking is the quality that slow cooking adds to many foods. This is a book for the latter group. The recipes are delicious but may require attention during the cooking. When I bought my slow cooker I read the Amazon reviews and bought 4 slow cooker cook books. This is the only one I have used and the results have been great. The recipes in the other books seemed uninspired and except for the Betty Crocker book were not accompanied by photos to entice me. The Greek lamb shanks were a snap and delicious. The Moussaka was a little more complex and required adding the topping after 3 hours but tasted great. The recipes are organized by country of origin and include French, Greek, Indian, Mexican, Italian, English and American. If you need a dinner ready when you get home from work this is probably not the book for you but if you want to have dishes that you will be proud to serve to guests this it the best of the 4 books I purchased.

450 of 454 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Finally, a Slow Cooker Book That Works!, March 20, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: The Gourmet Slow Cooker: Simple and Sophisticated Meals from Around the World (Paperback)

I've tried three recipes so far from this collection, each one more complex than the last, as I gain my trust in this author. The Baked Eggplant was ridiculously easy (just cut the eggplants into cubes and cook on low for 4-6 hours, then add the seasonings after the cooking is done.) Next I tried the Tuscan White Bean Soup, which was excellent and not at all watery, like most crock-pot soups. Finally, I made a pot of Mexican Chicken in Peanut and Ancho Chili Sauce, and I can finally say that I've found a crock pot book that really does work.

The author encourages crock-pot users to lift the lid and stir while the food is cooking; I heartily agree, because the food ends up well cooked and NOT the watery, insipid mess I usually got. These are recipes that will not taste like a well-meaning, "good-for-you" home economics project. But this means you can't start your supper in the morning and have it done when you're back from work: the result may be watery. That's been my experience with other books, like Judith Finalyson's.

So if you're going to be home and willing to keep an eye on your slow cooker while it's doing its thing, you will be very satisfied with the recipes in this book.

150 of 151 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars You will still have to do prep work, October 29, 2005

By 

Jay P. Francis (Houston, Texas United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Gourmet Slow Cooker: Simple and Sophisticated Meals from Around the World (Paperback)

We think of slow cookers as labor saving devices, and they are. However this book focuses on utlilizing the slow cooker as another tool in the kitchen, one that, by its design, results in tender cooked meats. This is not a book for those who want to be able to throw stuff into the cooker and come back 8 hours later. There is a lot of prep work, and, the three recipes I have prepared so far, require sautee skills, blender skills, roaster skills. Excellent, flavorful end results though. I have tried chicken and dumplings, tamale pie, and pork stew with tomatillos. The winner is the pork stew. Honestly I have never tried a recipe that required 3 lbs of tomatillos. But it worked. Also I haven't ever used my broiler before to roast chiles, onions, tomatillos, etc. I always used my comal on top of the stove. But the broiler method worked great.

Of the tamale pie and chicken with dumplings recipes, neither the dumplings nor the cornbread were spectacular, but the flavor was very good.

For the way I cook, and because I enjoy prep work, I can recommend this book.

But be warned.

Supplemental: The artichoke risotto was a complete bust. It just didn't work. I don't know what kind of crockpot she was testing this recipe in, but I followed the directions to the letter, and after two hours on high, the risotto was inedible. I moved it over to a rice cooker to finish off. So my rating goes down to 3 stars with this experience.