Format: Kindle EditionChange
Price:$2.99
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on August 8, 2015
This is, by far, one of the BEST books to read if you like to cook! It gives cooking a whole different perspective and understanding. I have been cooking for many years and even own my own restaurant but I found I learned at least one new thing on EVERY page in this book! Whether you have been cooking for a long time or are brand new in the kitchen, THIS is the best book you will ever own!
on January 10, 2013
So 'my' review of the book comes via my experience of my husband. "Honey, he has a whole chapter on salt. Just salt. And it's followed by a chapter on butter....because, you know, roux." And then said husband wanders into our kitchen and begins humming and wielding pans, knives and vegetables like a veritable mirepoix maestro. And now my freezer is stocked with THE most amazing tasting stocks that have ever come out of a pot, and my dinner guests are holding their breathe waiting for my husband to bring his wine gravies to the table. All because my husband read about the whens and when nots of salt from this book.
We have always loved cooking meals together, but the addition of this book to our existing repository of knowledge has kicked the culinary bar up about 5 notches for us. If you consider yourself a home chef, this book would not be amiss in your collection of mainstays.
We have always loved cooking meals together, but the addition of this book to our existing repository of knowledge has kicked the culinary bar up about 5 notches for us. If you consider yourself a home chef, this book would not be amiss in your collection of mainstays.
on January 3, 2012
I'm a fairly experienced cook, and wanted to improve my skills. Additionally, my daughter, who's 20, is learning to cook. I bought both of us a copy, and have found it to be a virtual cooking class for nearly every aspect of cuisine. For me, there was some review of skills and ingredients that I was familier with, but also there was a lot of new information and techniques that really set my existing skills off. As for my daughter, she is sending me photos of homemade chocolate cake, pan roasted pork loin, really good mac and cheese, and roasted cauliflower. I've enjoyed not only my new skills and recipes, but also seeing her skills blossom. This is without a doubt, the very best cookbook in my collection.
on March 24, 2013
I am not a professional chef, or even someone who cooks often. Yes, I watch a lot of cooking shows. Through that, I have become really interested in cooking techniques, rather than being singularly focused on specific recipes. This book fit right in that wheel well. The focus is on using some of the more common ingredients in the kitchen, showcasing their versatility, and then giving a few examples (through recipes) how to use the item. The book is put together well and, for a cookbook, has a pretty interesting narrative. While I would probably have preferred to have a physical copy of the book, the Kindle version has served me well enough. My feeling is that if you're a seasoned vet, or someone who has spent their whole life in the kitchen this book might not have a whole lot to offer other than perhaps a different perspective on some skills you probably have already mastered. For a beginner or someone who is interested in trying to acclimate to a new life in the kitchen, it's pretty invaluable.
on January 11, 2017
Best cookbook I have owned. The french onion soup, dutch oven bread, and coq au vin are fantastic (as is the Whiskey sour).
on December 26, 2011
Who should read this book? Anybody who cooks will enjoy Ruhlman's informative and upbeat writing style. The recipes are first rate, so we older cooks will find some very good things to cook a broad range of dishes, but anyone will learn some really practical advice about the entire range of "cooking".
This is an ideal gift for a person who enjoys food and wants to learn to cook. I enjoyed the way the book is organized (in some sense, by techniques), but also by key food groups. Recipes are simple, clear, and achievable.
If you can't afford to go to cooking school but want to enhance your knowledge in the kitchen, by all means try this book. Illustrations are beautiful and useful. If you know someone who thinks they might want to become a great cook, I can't imagine a better book to start from.
There is a superb balance between explaining what we do in the kitchen, and explaining WHY we do it. The book is never dry or pedantic, but there is great knowledge here. My wife and I can't wait to explore this book together in the kitchen.
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
This is an ideal gift for a person who enjoys food and wants to learn to cook. I enjoyed the way the book is organized (in some sense, by techniques), but also by key food groups. Recipes are simple, clear, and achievable.
If you can't afford to go to cooking school but want to enhance your knowledge in the kitchen, by all means try this book. Illustrations are beautiful and useful. If you know someone who thinks they might want to become a great cook, I can't imagine a better book to start from.
There is a superb balance between explaining what we do in the kitchen, and explaining WHY we do it. The book is never dry or pedantic, but there is great knowledge here. My wife and I can't wait to explore this book together in the kitchen.
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
on June 15, 2012
"A great cookbook" can be a few different things. Most usually, a go-to compilation of recipes trusted to turn out wonderfully, but sometimes a motivating or inspiring collection, or an instructional tool. This book is a solid tool: a textbook that teaches the principals underlying the behavior and use of a number of startlingly simple (at least for this home cook) basic ingredients. Each ingredient is discussed broadly in terms of the chemistry of its interactions and utility (in the most general sense, no actual molecules were named in the creation of this work) and then a few recipes follow that were well chosen to illustrate specific points made by the discussion. Some reviews have critiqued the number or scope of the recipes, or their inclusion in various chapters, but I think they're missing the point. This is not a recipe compilation. It's a textbook with illustrations that you have to go 'do' in your kitchen.
The icing on this cake, however, is how pleasurable the text is, to read. From the first chapter, "Thinking," this book feels like a conversation, like Mr. Ruhlman is sitting, chatting with you, explaining how things work. Delightful isn't really a word I use ...but this book is delightful. I think it's going to take me six months to read, or maybe 20, because half of the pleasure is coming from thinking about each chapter and how I can apply what I'm learning to the things I like to make. What was I doing for a good reason, and what might I change in order to improve something? It's also gratifying to learn that I've had good reasons for some things, and to now be able to explain them, or at least to understand.
If you like to know why (if it isn't enough to know 'that'), and if you like to cook, then this is a good book for you to chew on and digest slowly.
The icing on this cake, however, is how pleasurable the text is, to read. From the first chapter, "Thinking," this book feels like a conversation, like Mr. Ruhlman is sitting, chatting with you, explaining how things work. Delightful isn't really a word I use ...but this book is delightful. I think it's going to take me six months to read, or maybe 20, because half of the pleasure is coming from thinking about each chapter and how I can apply what I'm learning to the things I like to make. What was I doing for a good reason, and what might I change in order to improve something? It's also gratifying to learn that I've had good reasons for some things, and to now be able to explain them, or at least to understand.
If you like to know why (if it isn't enough to know 'that'), and if you like to cook, then this is a good book for you to chew on and digest slowly.
on January 7, 2013
The title is a little misleading. It should say 20 Things - not 20 Techniques. Braising and Sauteing are techniques. Water and eggs are not techniques - but items that need different techniques to be used effectively. That said, I bought the book blind - had never read it - to give to one of my kids for Christmas. It sounded like she might learn something from it if it wasn't too difficult to read, or if the techniques were kept simple. I opened the box and started to peruse the book. Five minutes later I bought three more (one for each of my kids - and kept the one I'd just gotten for myself). The explanations are short and to the point. The "techniques" are about the basics. Dan Gable - arguably the greatest college wrestler of all time, once said, "the most basic and fundamental moves, practiced and perfected, become the most advanced moves." The same could be said about techniques in the kitchen. I think I just saved my kids 15 years of bouncing around in the kitchen and wondering "what the hell just happened?" (both good and bad) - if they'll read the book! Now - they'll know why!
on April 17, 2013
M. Ruhlman is a great writer and this book, I think, is a great concept. It teaches the reader technique and concepts, rather than cooking by recipes. I am "cooking" my way through this book and taking my time with it, so I am not finished with the read yet, but I can say that so far I am enjoying the read, and it is helping my cooking skills develop. Also the author is readily available to offer any advice through his Blog, twitter fed, and e-mail. So what more could you ask for? I have purchased two other of Ruhlman's works "The reach of a Chef" and his bread making app. I haven't been disappointed with either. I own the Kindle version of this book and the pictures are great. I wish there were pictures for EVERY recipe however. Instead there are pictures for about 2 out of every 5 recipes I think. I like to see how the dish is suppose to look and replicate it. So that is why I wish their were more pictures in this book. No other complaints.
