Customer Reviews

Jane Butel's Southwestern Kitchen

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I have never taken the time to review a book before, but this one definitely deserves the kudos. It is well-written and nicely displayed. The recipes are exactly as described. The vast majority use ingredients that are easy to find (even in my rural town) and the instructions are easy to follow. Everything I have made from this book turned out wonderfully and most require only an average amount of effort in the kitchen (nothing too complicated!!) The dishes were truly beautiful and delicious.

When I cook using this book, I create mouthwatering masterpieces! Living in Texas, it's common to serve Southwestern-style cuisine for a humble get together with friends. If you're having a fiesta, and you WANT your guests to visit again, you should use this cookbook. The food will please your guests' tummies and tastebuds! They'll think you're a superior chef.

Granted I've not tried ALL of the recipes, but I've made *several*-- enough to have confidence and faith in the rest of the book... enough to cast a vote of confidence for Jane Butel.

Jane's recipes are well written, and I've enjoyed the diversity of her recipes. Many different salsas and sauces, entrees, drinks, and desserts! My creations have tasted so very fresh and delicious. Jane Butel knows what she's talking about! So, check out this great cookbook and start delighting tastebuds in your town!

Every time I open Jane Butel's Southwestern Kitchen, I find another recipe that I cannot wait to try, such as Jicama & Grapefruit Salad with Raspberry Vinaigrette. The only problem is that I don't know where to find some of the ingredients. The Jicama & Grapefruit Salad recipe calls for walnut oil, which may be difficult to locate. My mouth drools, however, at the prospect.

The recipes for salsas intrigue me. This chapter, "Fresh Salsa & Other Southwestern Favorites," provides a wealth of recipes, which capture the nuances of Mexican and Southwestern cooking. There are red salsas, green salsas, and orange salsas. Jane Butel explains the difference between East Texas Barbecue Sauce and West Texas Barbecue Sauce. She cooks with chocolate, which is a key ingredient in Mole Sauce.

Jane teaches the methods for cooking many of the Mexican dishes I am eager to perfect. For example, she teaches the traditional way to cook tamales. Then there are pages of variations. Rellenos, frijoles, rice, flan, nachos - all these wonderful Mexican dishes are here. By following her recipes, I plan to wow my guests!

Jane is a great teacher. In the Introduction to this book, she does not waste words. Instead she promptly starts instructing. The following quote is an example:
" [Southwestern cooking] is a cuisine founded on the three C's - chiles and corn, which are indigenous to this hemisphere, and comino, or cumin, which was brought by the Moors into Spain by the conquistadors to here."

Although this book was copyrighted in 1994, it is still a valuable resource for anyone who loves to cook Southwestern and Mexican foods or anyone who wants to develop an appreciation for the preparation of these foods.

Get your hands on a copy of Jane Butel's Southwestern Kitchen!

My wife and I got to know Jane Butel's culinary delights when she worked for the Public Service Company of New Mexico. This was in the 1967-1970 timeframe. After I separated from the U.S. Air Force (Kirtland AFB, Albuquerque) in 1970, our family relocated back to the midwest where my wife and I grew up. When we retired in 2006, we decided to relocate back to the Great Southwest and now live in Green Valley, AZ. It was then that my taste buds wanted to savor true southwest cooking once again. Remembering Jane Butel, I did an Amazon.com search and found that a number of her books were still available! I have since purchased three of them, one first published in 1980. My mouth is STILL watering! Great food, great book!