Cooking by James Peterson
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Book Reviews of Cooking
Book Review: A truly terrific kitchen bible!
Summary: 5 Stars
Ok, so where do I begin?! I think that I'll start off by saying that this is simply a GREAT book! It does what it says in the title - "Cooking". There're over 500 pages worth of recipes, step-by-step techniques, over 1,500 pictures for those of you who are visual learners, and more! How do I emphasize this enough.. The table of contents are 6 large pages long and consist of:
1. Techniques - e.g. roasting, braising, poaching, smoking, steaming, sauteing, barbecuing, boiling.
2. Starters - e.g. cheese puffs, canapes, tartlets, foie gras terrine, chicken liver mousse, fried squid, crab cakes.
3. Broths and soups - e.g. brown chicken broth, fish broth,, beef consomme, mushroom soup, miso soup, tomato soup, french onion soup, gazpacho, Thai hot-and-spicy shrimp soup, Chinese hot-and-sour soup, oxtail soup.
4. Salads - e.g. vinaigretter, caesar salad, mushroom and duck confit salad, salad nicoise, japanese cucumber sald, pasta or rice salad.
5. Eggs and cheese - e.g. cheese souffles, quiche, cheese fondue.
6. Shellfish - e.g. mussels steamed in white wine, clam chowder, oyster on the half shell, sauteed scallops, shrimp tagine, boiled lobster, blue crab soup, braised squid.
7. Fish - e.g. Salmon teriyaki, red wine fish stew, skates with caper and lemon, grilled tuna, Indian style braised fillet of stiped bass.
8. Beef - e.g. grilled/broiled steak, tenderloin sandwich, the best burgers, beef stew, boeuf a la bourguignonne.
9. Veal - e.g. roasted veal, veal pot roast, veal piccata, sauteed calf's liver, braised sweetbreads with root vegetable mecedoine.
10. Lamb - e.g. braised lamb shank with garlic, roast lamb, lab stew, lamb korma, lamb pot roast.
11. Pork - e.g. roast country ham, pork loin roast, pork tenderloin with apples, barbecued pork spareribs, sweet and sour pork.
12. Chicken and turkey - e.g. roast chicken, provencal chicken with aioli, tomatoes and basil; chicken fricassee with morels, Thai chicken curry, Fried chicken, roast turkey and gravy.
13. Duck and small birds - e.g. sauteed duck breasts, slow roasted duck with red cabbage and apples, duck confit, sauteed whole quail.
14. Vegetables, beans, and herbs - e.g. boiled/steamed vegetables, basic spinach, glazed baby carrots, roast vegetables, baked potatoes, french fries, grilled zucchini, bell peppers with herbs and anchovies, cauliflower gratin, cassoulet.
15. Sauces, salsas, and chutneys - e.g. bechamel sauce, creme anglaise, beurre blanc, bordelaise sauce, brown sauce, bolognese sauce, mayonnaise, tartar sauce, pesto, yakitori sauce, guacamole, Vietnamese basic fish dipping sauce, herb chutney.
16. Pasta, rice, and polenta - e.g. fresh egg pasta noodles, raviolo, aioli, linquine, lasagne, risotto, couscous, rice pilaf, polenta.
17. Quick breads and flat cakes - e.g. blueberry muffins, scones, pancakes, waffles, french toast.
18. Breads - e.g. basic white bread, baguettes, ciabatta, sourdough bread, rye bread, pizza dough, pita bread, focaccia, brioche, cinnamon rolls.
19. Cakes - e.g. classic sponge cakes, pound cakes, angel food cake, Devil's food cake, cheesecake, strawberry shortcake, meringue.
20. Pies and tarts - e.g. apple pie, pecan pie, banana cream pie, cherry cobblers, lemon curd, brown butter.
21. Pastries - e.g. puff pastry, napolens, croissants, danish pastries, eclairs.
22. Custards, souffles, and mousses - e.g. cremem brulee, ginger pots de creme, zabaglione, panna cotta, souffles, narquise, chocolate mousse.
23. Cookies - e.g. butter cookies, shortbread, madeleines, almond tuiles, macaroons, biscotti, brownies, lemon bars.
Plus MANY MANY MORE!!!
(PHEW!)
The recipes are very straightforward and clearly written, making it extremely easy to follow. The book doesn't call for too many hard-to-find ingredients, which is always a bonus! I've tried several recipes already and they've all worked wonderfully and are fail-proof! I cannot recommend this book enough. It'll be suitable for all levels, but especially good for beginners and casual cooks who wants to learn new and correct skills and techniques - as this book has sooooo many pictures showing you how to do things. For those who are experienced cooks, you'll also benefit from this book as it gives you plenty of ideas on what you can do with different cuts of meat, etc.
Overall, a must-buy, a kitchen bible, a good reference. Buy it! You will not be disappointed!
Book Review: Best General Cooking and Baking Book Ever
Summary: 5 Stars
I cannot overstate how good a book this is for the maniacially dedicated amateur. While I have dozens of classics to choose from, my favorite go to books for real "stretching" over the past twenty years have been Pepin's Technique/Methode and Kamman's New Making of a Cook. Peterson's 'Cooking' is far broader than Pepin's and comes with much better instructions and pictures than Kamman's, whose incessant scientific editorial comments can be bothersome.
Peterson's approach is no nonsense, modern and worldy; many of us view Hot and Sour Soup, Chile Rillenos or Indian Chutney as everyday eating out staples, and if we like the presentation or want to "shoot" the chef in action, our cell phones are on the ready. This then is the sheer genius of the work. Peterson teaches, with simple instructions and copius "how to" color photos (1500), both basic and advanced principles and then gives us recipes (600) tips and techniques that employ these skills for an evolving everyday mastery of more than just basic french cuisine. Beginners can easily master fluffy omelettes, linguine with clam sauce or thai curry. More advanced cooks can go for terrine of foie gras or croissants from scratch. Even the holiday only cook can find out how to roast turkey and get a carmelized crust for the gravy- how many once in while cooks get treated to those kinds of tips? Everything seems so accessible!
To be sure other texts offer more in depth text and picture coverage of specific areas (Rinehart's 'Bread Bakers Apprentice' or Pepin's 'Technique/Methode' with instructions for the arduous but rewarding 48hr. meat glaze are good examples). And there are more genuinely encyclopedic books of great value- James Beard's 'American Cookery' comes to mind. Still, with numerous alternative recommendations to the recipes, this book covers a vast canvas of modern cookery. We even get a colored pictorial "degree of doneness" guide to steak "bleu" showing 90 degrees all the way through to medium well at 145. Your guests will be fascinated choosing their "color" and will leave your home knowing what temperature they like!
One glaring deficiency is that Peterson does not provide US or metric weight measurements to more easily execute and scale recipes- a major disappointment. Another early complaint- I've only had this book two weeks but have already spent many hours with it reading and cooking- is that Peterson tells his audience that plain jane salt is "fine" for regular use when even the most novice cook should be instructed to use Kosher salt (at minimum) for reduced salinity and increased control. I know- get a life!
In summary, the beauty of this book more than any I've seen is that rather than showing us how to prepare a fish dish, Peterson teaches us how to fish (figuratively). This fundamental skill development, so available at both the novice and advanced levels, across so many genres of food, is what makes this work a "budding" classic. Peterson is no stranger to James Beard Foundation and other awards. And as there are only two reviews on Amazon at 31 December, we can see just how new and relatively undiscovered this work is(published 2007).
I have ordered copies of this for my children, nieces and nephews. They are aware of my obsessions, as well as the the smells and tastes of my kitchen, and so too have begun gravitating toward more adventurous eating and cooking. What a great introduction to the joys of mastering a broad array of culinary skills, from the how to's of vinagrettes, starters and sauces, through meats, fish, veggies, eggs and souffles, complemented with a surprisngly strong take on breads, pies, pastries, and cakes. 'Cookbook' is the single best of its kind. A real winner.
Book Review: On second thought
Summary: 5 Stars
I'm actually very glad I did not review this one right away, as it took a second chance for me to appreciate it. I'd initially purchased it at the behest of a friend, whom I'd directed to Peterson's Sauces (which was and still is my favorite cooking reference); on first reading I was simply not impressed.
However, on going back recently, I have realized that I definitely missed something the first time around. Sauces is a truly remarkable reference; this is far less grand in scale, but considering the ubiquity of diagrams and illustrative photos, it is immensely more reader-friendly -- which would be absolutely invaluable to someone new to the culinary arts. Combined with Peterson's depth of knowledge and powers of expression, this book should be the first or second stop for aspiring home cooks.
Many common processes are mapped out photographically, from trimming various cuts of meat to preparing many sauces and the various ways to cut vegetables. The book presents many great recipes, but its true strength -- as it seems to be with all of this author's work -- lies in the clear and consistent description of what exactly you're doing, why it needs to be done and how else you might do it if you were so inclined.
I am not new to the kitchen, and I still get excited to try new things (or revisit old ones) based on this book; a very advanced student of cooking would not get much utility out of it, but I am confident that the vast majority of casual cooks will find many hours of giddiness in these pages.
Book Review: Wonderful illustrations accompany the recipes
Summary: 5 Stars
The cover of Cooking proclaims "600 recipes, 1500 photographs, One Kitchen Education." The recipes are well catalogued for easy finding and the pictures to die for. In the Assumptions page, Peterson states "I don't believe in observing a lot of rules when I cook, but I do have strong preferences about what makes cooking taste best." In Assumptions he gives a quick overview of some ingredients--for instance he basically says if you only have salted butter vs. unsalted then don't sweat it, just cut down on the salt. Simple common sense statements are a welcome relief from cooks and cookbooks that take a very strict, unmoving view of how a recipe should be executed.
I make a lot of soups and this book has some great recipes. The book contains a great recipe for Asparagus soup which is based on a basic potato and leek soup. The Fresh Corn and Chili soup is absolutely wonderful on a cold day. Peterson also has a really good Chinese Hot and Sour soup complete with illustrations on how to make it.
The book has some interesting recipes and the accompanying illustrations that many of them have make the step-by-step prepartion much easier. My biggest issue with the book is that some of the ingredients for the Asian-based dishes are rather hard to find. Other than that, there are some absolutely wonderful tasting adventures awaiting for you to whip up and serve.
Book Review: Purchased for a gift and now I'm buying my own
Summary: 5 Stars
I purchased Professional Chef for myself and "Cooking" as a gift for someone. Having both books side by side I decided to return Professional Chef and buy a 2nd "Cooking" book for myself. I'm a seasoned amateur nd I found this book to be great for my friend who is not quite intermediate level and good for me as a reference and as an instructional book to develop additional culinary skills. BTW, if you buy the book you have to try the twice baked soufflé. Wow! Great tips, tricks, etc. As an example of a side by side comparison, the compound butter section blows away the Professional Chef book that lists one recipe and then suggests herb substitutes AND all recipes are in restaurant size portions. Another comparison is how to store herbs where "Cooking" breaks down herb storage by category of herb and gives you multiple ways to store or use excess herbs versus "wrap in a paper towel and store in a plastic bag for longer storage" provided by the Professional Chef. The photos also make the book much more appealing and useful.
I know one book can not be the "be all end all" but one addition that I believe could help take an amateur to the next level is a flavor paring chart(s). Something to encourage creativity and to enhance the value of the book as a true reference guide.