Get Saucy: Make Dinner a New Way Every Day with Simple Sauces, Marinades, Glazes, Dressings, Pestos, Pasta Sauces, Salsas, and More (Paperback)

~ (Author) "Compound butter is really nothing more than a mixture of softened butter and aromatic seasonings..." (more)
Key Phrases: herbed compound butter, meaty fish like swordfish, finger chile, Corn Salsa, Scallion Pesto, The Right Yogurt (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Parisi, a chef and writer for Food & Wine magazine, goes far beyond garden variety ketchup- and barbecue-based sauces in this compendium of flavorful recipes. Though she includes versions of those too, the bulk of her book is taken up by more unusual vinaigrettes, pestos and dessert sauces. She takes her inspiration from all over the world, showing that the French don't have a monopoly on inspired flavor combinations. On a two-page spread, recipes for marinades from Turkey, Tuscany, Vietnam and Latin America appear, all giving simple takes on ways to spice up various meats. Most of the ingredients are readily available, with the exception of a few Middle Eastern and Asian specialty items, and the instructions are easy to follow, though they do require some cooking knowledge, particularly for main-dish recipes like Turkey with Roasted Shallot-Teriyaki Gravy. Parisi introduces each recipe with a short note about appropriate ways to serve the sauce or tips on preparation; other helpful hints pop up in boxes throughout, addressing such dilemmas as how to keep gravy warm and lump-free or how best to freeze pesto. Cooks who want to take their meals to another level without learning a whole new repertoire of full-fledged dishes will find this book to be a great resource.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Review

A comprehensive book that is full of ideas to help cooks broaden their repertoires. -- Winston-Salem Journal

All [recipes] offer new ideas for the dinner table . . . The variety of her recipes is stunning. -- Providence Journal

Full of concise recipes and expert tips. -- New York Times

The recipes are easy to understand and execute . . . The results are well balanced and satisfying. -- San Francisco Chronicle --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 428 pages
• Publisher: Harvard Common Press; First Edition edition (March 25, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 155832237X
• ISBN-13: 978-1558322370
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 7.9 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #113,661 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars very thorough collection, inviting and approachable, June 7, 2005

By	Marie D' "MD" (Hawthorne NY) - See all my reviews

I've been a subscriber to Food and Wine magazine for years and have really come
to depend on Parisi's recipes. So when I read about her book Get Saucy
recently, I was very excited for its release.
I found the collection of recipes to be thorough and the recipes themselves
concise and totally approachable. I've nearly made my way through the pesto
chapter and particularly loved the Wild Mushroom and Herb pesto, Scallion
Macadamia Nut pesto, Green Chile Scallion pesto and Romesco. The fact that
these are not included in the pasta sauce chapter was initially a little odd,
but upon closer reading, the reason becomes clear. Pestos have multiple uses
that most of us wouldn't ordinarily think of. To put that to the test, I tried
the Green Chile pesto worked into meatballs and inside quesadillas and it was
super!My only quibble is that I wanted more than the recipe made. Next time
I'll double it.
I also liked how the author begins a chapter with a standard type of recipe and
then makes numerous variations. If my pantry lacked a certain ingredient, I
always felt like there was something else I could make or find some
approximation since she offers lots of alternatives to harder to find
ingredients.
Based on my level of cooking, I'm sort of glad Parisi didn't include the dozens
of classic French sauces she could have. Though interesting historically, I'd
never make most of them anyway. She makes a good point that the ones she did
include probably have the most universal appeal or at least are the most
indicative of the technique.
I quite enjoy reading the informative, quirky and anecdotal headnotes. They
make good reading and spark my interest. One issue I have with the organization
of the book however, is that the side bars, recipes contained in boxes and
other tips aren't included in the index. You have to read through a chapter to
find that information. It would be helpful to have those recipes at least
included in the index. I tried the Stir-Fried Beef with Scallions and Mushroom,
a recipe that shows you how to use a stir-fry sauce and it was delicious. There
is a page at the back that lists all those recipes, but it should be easier to
find them. The index otherwise is so overwhelmingly complete. The Sauce Index
by Suggested Use breaks down the food groups and pairs food with them.
Brilliant.
It seems fitting (though maybe a bit contrived) to end the book with dessert
sauces. But I'm never too full at the end of a meal to have something sweet and
I guess the same could be said of reading and using this book.

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Highly Recommened Time-Saver!, January 22, 2006

By	A. Lupia "amlbee" (Branford, CT United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Get Saucy: Make Dinner a New Way Every Day with Simple Sauces, Marinades, Dressings, Glazes, Pestos, Pasta Sauces, Salsas, and More (Hardcover)

This gem threw itself at me in my local cooking store and I have been very happily "saucing!" Sure, there are many wonderful books on sauces already, some very sophisticated and some not. This book is a mix of both worlds. It is like someone has gone through all my cookbooks (and there are many...) and pulled out most of the sauces, from classic to fusion. It is well organized, directions are clear, ingredients are easily obtained (and if you are a card-carrying foodie like me, you already have almost ALL the ingredients already...) and it has a great pairing section for easy, no-brainer combinations of sauces for salads, pork, fish, beef, desserts, etc. This book helps spiff up whatever you are serving from salad to dessert.

My very first experience with the book successfully hooked me. Having scored a counter-top, electric roaster for Christmas, I have been experimenting with the cooker to see what it can and cannot do by using larger roasts, chickens, etc. Granted my 16 year-old is 6'1" and eats eight meals a day, but left-overs are not his cup of tea. After you slice off lovely large pieces of a six-pound pork roast for Sunday dinner, what the heck do you do with the rest to make it interesting and different and creative without a degree from the CIA? Grab this book: Sunday, I roasted the six-pound roast and served it with the "Creamy Sherry Vinegar Pan Sauce"; Monday, I cubed some of the meat and served it over rice with the "Sweet-And-Sour Stir-Fry Sauce", pineapple and some green peppers; Wednesday, the rest of the roast got shredded and mixed with "Smoky Texas-Style BBQ Sauce" and was served with coleslaw on hamburger rolls to my son and two of his friends. The plates were clean.

Now, THAT's economical, and fun! Three meals for the cost of one pork roast (on special, by the way) all very different and very tasty. This is not gourmet cooking, I know, I know...but at 5:30 pm on a week-night when my creative juices are well, not as "juicy" as I'd like, this is just fine by me.

My only complaint was that my book is a paperback. But Amazon has again saved the day: Just ordered the hardcover for myself and my daughter will get this one.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A home cook's go-to book, June 22, 2006

By	Baking Enthusiast "Liza" (Chicago, IL USA) - See all my reviews

Quite frankly, having no more than 30-45 min. after work to fix dinner for a family everyday, I will invariably go for the dish with the least amount of work. As such, roasting, quick sauteeing, grilling, etc. are what meats, poulty and seafood are subjected to nightly in my kitchen.

Having "Get Saucy" is of tremendous help to me. I'm able to vary and improve the tastes of our everyday fare. I'm not making the same spaghetti sauces or the same gravies week in and week out. I've made about a dozen sauces, pestos, marinades, etc. from this book and each one has been simply delicious. I will usually prepare the sauce the night before, stick it in the fridge and warm it up or incorporate it with what's cooking for dinner next day.

As to whether the sauces in this book are authentic or not hardly concerns me. If it's quick to prepare, reasonable in cost, tasty and complementary to the main dishes and sides I cook, then it's a keeper for me.