Vegetables Every Day: The Definitive Guide to Buying and Cooking Today's Produce With More Than 350 Recipes [Hardcover]

Jack Bishop (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 3, 2001

The fresh vegetable sections in most supermarkets, farmers' markets, and gourmet groceries are overflowing with an amazing range of produce, both familiar and exotic. Consumers are tempted by kale and kohlrabi, taro and tomatillos, bok choy and burdock, along with all the familiar choices. Now acclaimed cookbook author and food writer Jack Bishop offers a comprehensive A-to-Z guide to this bounty of produce, complete with selection tips, preparation instructions, and hundreds of recipes for more than sixty-six commonly available vegetables. With Bishop's expert advice, you'll learn how to coax the very best flavor from every vegetable, whether it's a carrot, cauliflower, or cardoon. Wondering how and when to buy the sweetest green beans? Bishop suggests buying at the height of summer, and selecting beans that are crisp and slim (older, thicker beans will be mealy and bland). Confused about how to cook the spring's first sorrel? Bishop offers such unique and delicious dishes as Sorrel and Potato Soup and Sorrel Frittata. These recipes -- like all 350 in the book -- are clear and uncomplicated, ensuring success for even the novice cook. So whether you are looking for a salad or side dish, a vibrant main course, or simply great mashed potatoes, you are sure to find it in this essential kitchen companion. We all know that vegetables are the key to healthful eating -- now it's time to discover how great they can taste, each and every day!

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

If you find yourself in daily dread of how to fix those vegetables that Mom always told you to eat, your lifeline is here. Unique and tempting recipes are abundant in Jack Bishop's Vegetables Every Day. Throughout the book's 66 chapters--one for each vegetable he includes in the book--Bishop features the retail availability of the specific veggie, the best season to find the most flavorful choice, and which characteristics to look for in a good specimen. He also includes recommendations for best preparation and which spices and herbs will best support and enhance the flavor of the vegetable of choice.

The recipes range from the basic to the complex, from simple steamed broccoli to rich soups such as Corn Chowder with Leeks and Potatoes. Even traditional recipes get an update, such as sautéed mushrooms cooked with butter, onions, and garlic. In just two simple steps, Bishop's interpretation has the mushrooms taking on an exquisite flavor that can stand alone as a side dish or as a topping for a rich steak. There may be some vegetables that are much less well known and even more difficult to find at the corner grocery store, such as malanga, Jerusalem artichokes, or salsify, but if you're interested, his suggestions might just help you find and tastefully enjoy them. Vegetables Every Day is the solution to satisfying the recommended five servings of vegetables a day. --Teresa Simanton

From Publishers Weekly

This new cookbook by the author of Pasta e Verdura is for cooks who want to broaden their repertoire of side dishes and capitalize on the abundant produce now available in grocery stores. Not sure how to cook fresh beets? Want your family to try mashed malanga instead of potatoes? Bishop gives helpful instructions on selection, seasonality, cleaning and simple preparation techniques (especially grilling, braising and stir-frying). Readers should know that this is not a vegetarian cookbook offering a breadth of entr‚es (in fact, beans, except for fava beans, aren't even included), but rather an unadorned volume that offers an exciting twist on foods we know are good for us but often ignore. Simplicity and ease are the hallmarks of this cookbook; however, there are a few idiosyncrasies for the reader to adapt to: the table of contents is alphabetized, but the system is sometimes counterintuitive (squashes are categorized by season--"Winter Squash and Pumpkin" and "Zucchini and Other Summer Squash"--but that's a minor quibble). Many of the salad recipes, such as Moroccan Fennel and Grapefruit Salad with Olives, are inspired, and many ethnic cuisines are represented, though, unfortunately, none in great depth. Cooks who love to read cookbooks will find the streamlined text lacking in historical anecdotes and nutritional information, which would certainly add to the book's health-conscious appeal. Agent, Angela Miller. (Apr.)Forecast: While useful as a guide to selection and basic preparation, this book won't appeal to the many cooks who, pressed for time, look for more comprehensive volumes. However, this title is a natural sell to vegetarians, and enough of them may be interested to produce healthy sales.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 416 pages
• Publisher: William Morrow Cookbooks; 1 edition (April 3, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060192216
• ISBN-13: 978-0060192211
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 7.8 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (53 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #26,978 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #45 in Books > Cookbooks, Food & Wine > Vegetables & Vegetarian > Vegetables

More About the Author

Jack Bishop is the editorial director of America's Test Kitchen. He joined the staff of Cook's Magazine in 1988 and helped with the launch of Cook's Illustrated in 1993. He established the tasting protocols used in America's Test Kitchen and has authored dozens of articles for the magazine. Jack directed the launch of Cook's Country magazine and oversees editorial operations at both magazines. He edited the The Best Recipe (1999) and established the book division at America's Test Kitchen. Jack is the author of several cookbooks, including A Year in a Vegetarian Kitchen, Vegetables Every Day, The Complete Italian Vegetarian Cookbook, Pasta e Verdura, and Lasagna. Jack's wife, Lauren Chattman, is a cookbook author and former pastry chef. They have two daughters.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

109 of 112 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Rediscovering vegetables (for the first time), June 6, 2001

By 

Rick Broida (Commerce Township, MI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Vegetables Every Day: The Definitive Guide to Buying and Cooking Today's Produce With More Than 350 Recipes (Hardcover)

After hearing an interview with Jack Bishop on NPR, my wife and I were intrigued enough to order the book. Four of the five recipes we've tried thus far have been outstanding, to the point where we're building entire meals based on them. For instance, we both like broccoli, but didn't know the best way to cook it. Now we do. I've never liked green beans, but we tried Bishop's recipe for roasting them, and I'm suddenly hooked! In short, if you've been wanting to bring more vegetables into your diet, buy this book!

53 of 53 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great information, May 14, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Vegetables Every Day: The Definitive Guide to Buying and Cooking Today's Produce With More Than 350 Recipes (Hardcover)

The book is not just a simple compilation of recipes, but also includes information on how to buy and store each vegetable. The book also discusses the various cooking methods (poaching, steaming, braising, grilling, broiling, etc.) and how they affect the flavor.

Even if you don't use a single recipe in this book, you will still benefit from the basic preparation instructions given for each vegetable.

This book will also give you the information you need to try out the produce that you've previously bypassed in the store because you had no idea how to pick it out or prepare it.

48 of 48 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A big fan of Americas Test Kitchen and Cooks Illustrated, January 7, 2006

By 

Tracy Gentry (Greenfield, IN) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Vegetables Every Day: The Definitive Guide to Buying and Cooking Today's Produce With More Than 350 Recipes (Hardcover)

First, I would like to note that I am an experienced cook with an advanced knowledge of vegetables so please keep that in mind while reading my review. Someone with less experience in the kitchen will definitely get even more out of this book than I did.

Good news: Jack Bishop brings with him the credibility of being a part of the Cook's Illustrated staff. To those unfamiliar with their work this means that the recipes are diligently tested over and over to achieve optimum cooking technique and flavoring. Furthermore, I was impressed with the variety of vegetables this book contained. The expected veggies are include in addition to the more unusual such as malanga, boniato, sorrel, salsify, etc... which altogether add up to over 60 different vegetables. Each vegetables 'chapter' begins with a description of the veggies origin, flavor, availability and how to select, store, prepare and cook it. This is followed by several recipes. Some of my favorites include: "Roasted Asparagus with Peanut Sauce, Stir-Fried Asparagus with Basil and Spicy Orange Sauce, Broccoli with Spicy Balsamic Dressing and Black Olives, Braised Brussel Sprouts with Mustard Cream Sauce, Sauteed Chayote with Fresh Corn, Chile and Oregano, Soy Braised Collards with Five-Spice Powder, Corn and Mushroom Saute, Cucumber-Watermelon Salsa, Grilled Eggplant Salad with Thai Flavors, Green Beans and Corn with Tomato-Herb Vinaigrette, Jicama and Carrot Salad with Ginger-Sesame Vinaigrette, Shredded Kohlrabi with Butter and Parmesan, Mexican Mushroom Soup with Chiles, Tomatoes and Cilantro, Grilled Plantains with Citrus Glaze, Roasted Radishes with Soy and Sesame Seeds, Taro Soup and Butternut Squash Soup with Cider and Cardamom". As you can see there is much to love!

And now for the bad news: I had three problems with this book that prevented me from rating it five stars. But first I want to be clear that I am not saying any recipe is bad. It is just that...

1. I found some of the recipes way to basic, therefore wasted space. On the other hand, for those new to cooking (or unfamiliar with the "Best Recipe Series" these will be great staples and very valuable. Examples would be: "Baked Potatoes, Roasted Red Peppers, Grilled Artichokes, Steamed Artichokes, Grilled Zucchini, etc... However, I was really looking for recipes that went beyond the ordinary and presented veggies in new and exciting ways.

There were also several well known recipes included, even though they are well done, they are common. Examples would be: "Potato Salad, Ratatouille, Basic Guacamole, Carrot Salad, Brussel Sprouts with Bacon, etc... again great in composition but not useful to an established cook (see my introductory note).

2. I found some of the recipe ideas to be a little repetitive. For instance there are several recipes for vegetables with a "Mustard Cream Sauce" that only vary slightly. Also the recipe for "Curried Carrot Soup" and "Curried Parsnip Soup" to be very similar.

3. Lastly my biggest disappointment was the photography, or rather the lack thereof. Other than a few small single-hued sketches the book is devoid of any pictures. This is by no means a reflection of Jack Bishops culinary abilities, rather an err in design. As you may know we eat with our eyes first and boy am I hungry. Or maybe I am just being too demanding??? :)

All told this is an EXCELLENT book. And despite my particular disappointments there is NOT a bad recipe to be found in this delicious ode to the flavorful world of vegetables.