Customer Reviews

The Professional Chef's (c) : Techniques of Healthy Cooking

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This is an excellent resource for over 400 easy and elegant recipes. Not only are the recipes delicious, the author teaches you how to incorporate more fruits, vegetables, legumes and grains into your diet. I have been searching for a cook book that provides delicious meals without sacrificing taste, and this fits the bill! If you are looking to monitor your weight, this book is an wonderful source of fabulous recipes. I definately recommend it!

This book provides a number of helpful suggestions for the knowledgeable amateur who is interested in learning healthier techniques, (ie - poach carrots in orange juice and ginger). The "background" on nutrition, however, is rather elementary.

The wealth of information contained in The Professional Chef's Techniques of Healthy Cooking is "must have" for the dedicated healthy kitchen. Each topic is fully discussed, and a full set of appendices offers quick access to a variety of nutritional and food prep tables. Recipes included in the book prepare large volumes of food in most cases, but they provide good general guidelines, cooking techniques and ideas for the creative cook. First rate photography illustrates the versatility of a healthy diet and adds considerably to the volume's visual appeal. The comprehensive information in this beautiful book is the perfect "go to" reference -- I couldn't recommend it more highly.

This book contains an incredible amount of excellent information. It contains everything you need to know for an education in healthy cooking techniques. There are excellent photographs. The recipes are very well explained and each recipe contains a nutritional analysis. Although a basic knowledge of cooking would be helpful for alot of the recipes, a novice cook who is very focused should be able to get quite a bit out of the book.

To put this review into perspective for you, it is written by a serious student of cooking that has been actively studying food on their own for 25 years. I have been focusing on Italian food for the last 10 years. My favorite cookbook is "The Professional Chef" by the Culinary Institute of America.

This book is laid out as follows:

Section One: Healthy Cooking

1. The language of nutrition

2. The pyramids

Section Two: The Principles of Healthy Cooking

3. The elements of flavor

4. Fruits and vegetables, grains and legumes

5. Cooking with less fat

6. Moderating Salt

7. Sweeteners

8. Beverages

9. The techniques of healthy cooking

10. Agricultural issues in ingredient selection

Section Three: Creating and Marketing Healthy Menus

11. Menu and recipe development

12. Analyzing the nutrient content of recipes

13. Nutrition Labeling in menus and advertisements

14. Staff training and customer satisfaction

Section Four: The recipes

The book is geared to the professional kitchen. However, there is much information in this book for the home cook beyond the recipes. Many of the same considerations that the restaurant must address should be part of the menu development in the home.

If you are looking for ways to improve the "health quotient" of the meals you prepare your family, you will enjoy this book. All the recipes in this book have complete nutrition stats including: calories, total fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, sodium, total carbohydrate, dietary fiber, sugar, and protein.

The book does a nice job of explaining smoking and the flavors given to foods by various wood chips. Their recipe for oven-smoked tomatoes (without purchasing a separate smoker, I used a heavy lidded roaster) was extremely easy to follow and turned out wonderfully.

The recipe section is more than 2/3's of the book. The recipes are developed for larger quantities than most home cooks will prepare. I have not had any difficulty reducing the size of the recipes to accomodate my family. The recipe for Risotto Cakes and Green Beans with Chanterelles was fabulous, as was the one for Chianti Granita. The recipe for pasta that uses only egg whites is also very nice, and versatile. Of the recipes that I have prepared so far, all of them have been very good.

I consider this book to be a valuable addition to my cookbook library. If you want to cook more healthfully, you will enjoy this book.

This volume is targeted for the advanced home or professional chef that needs a readily accessible source of current information on nutrition, ingredients, and preparation. As such, it succeeds well with discussions of dietary content and balance and how those needs can be met with appropriate preparation techniques and portioning. The later part of the book is filled with "example" recipes, ones that can easily be prepared and serve to illustrate how the ideas of the discussion can be implemented in dishes that appeal to a wide audience. Many tables summarize useful reference information on topics including ingredients, cooking, storage, portioning, and conversions.

The sections on "health claims" are interesting for the consumer, and essential for the professional. It lights up a bit of the legal-ese behind what menus and packaging can and can't say, at least here in the US.

The recipes are generally reproducible by a home cook with a knowledge of cooking techniques and terminology, though are not a step-by-step as, for example, Cooks' Illustrated instructions. The dishes have been generally flavorful and enjoyable.

If you're looking for the latest fad in "health food" cooking, this isn't your book, as the Shraders point out.

"Techniques of Healthy Cooking" provides sound, well supported information on nutrition, ingredients, preparation, and portioning in a very accessible format, along with enough interesting recipes to make it a strong addition to culinary collection.

(4 stars instead of 5 only as its a little pricey compared to other cookbooks)

The written material encourages use of whole foods, including whole grains. However, many of the recipes use all purpose flour, sugar, and white rice. I expected to find recipes that used whole grain flours, whole grains, and honey rather than sugar.

I also expected recipes that ensured balanced portions of omega 3 fatty acids vs omega 6 fatty acids. There was no mention of the difference between farm raised and wild fish or between grain and grass finished beef.

A significant number of the recipes leave much to be desired for the healthy eater. If you are looking for a healthy cookbook, this is not a good choice.

I really like this book so far. I've made about 7 recipes from it and its quite nice learning recipes that taste really good and also don't make you really sleepy after eating them. I am going to buy one for my mom because she liked some of the recipes I made from it so much. I made the grilled red snapper with cilantro lime dressing, with tomato salsa/avocado slices/and grapefruit and it was really refreshing. I also made the spinach souffle -- the first souffle I've ever made and it turned out!

I like that it has all the calories listed for each recipe right next to the recipe.

Sometimes really specific instructions may be left out and you have to infer what you need to do. I only gave it 4 stars because this edition of the book has something weird with the page numbers in listed in the index. maybe they'll correct that in the next edition. (I have 2008).

I purchased the 1997 edition of this book quite some time ago. Being of Asian descent, lighter fare has always fared well with my palate and digestion. Now a full decade+ later, I am approaching an age where health rules my diet more than preference.

These books provide an entire overview of healthy eating: not just the current nutritional pyramid and guidelines of the day, but the specific benefits of certain foods and some comparative assessments to aid me in making the right choices for my family - including cooking techniques. It appears the salad and soup sections have expanded quite as has use of various grains.

I like both editions but believe the current, 2007 edition is easier to use. The Table of Contents is more complete and the recipe listings better organized. Both have many tasty, complex recipes that are designed to put into practice both culinary and dietary knowledge. The 1997 version includes and builds upon a small repertoire of base stocks and sauces. The 2007 does not, significantly reducing the prep work required. Overall, it appears that there are a greater number jof faster recipes in the newer, 2007 edition. That being said, I am keeping the original for the healthy stocks and stock based sauces.

These are not books I typically pull out after a busy day at work. However, CIA taught me the wonders of cooking to develop flavor in a variety of cuisines using a variety of ingredients. There are several mainstay recipes in each to ensure my palate, stomach and health remain happy campers. The current 2007 is a more accessible book. This is my go-to book to refresh my nutritional background. The recipes provide a broad range of healthy selections, and this newest addition will keep me on my toes for several years. Overall, of all my 100s of cookbooks, this is the base for my current healthy cooking style. Great for those serious about food, nutrition and good cooking.

My book came in 3 days,I ordered a used copy but it was hard to tell. This is a very educational book all health conscious persons should get a copy.