Soror Posted December 11, 2013 Share Posted December 11, 2013 I'm a decent home cook but I'd really like to up my game and learn more about technique. I like learning the whys and hows and such so I can make my own recipes and cook on the fly. I'm not looking for a baking book, I don't like baking and we're gluten free. I thought there was a thread on here previously but evidently I cannot figure out the right search string. I want one that assumes you are cooking from scratch and using good ingredients, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fraidycat Posted December 11, 2013 Share Posted December 11, 2013 Nourishing Traditions? I haven't read it, but want to! Or Fannie Farmer. I have that one, but have only thumbed through it so far. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SadieMarie Posted December 11, 2013 Share Posted December 11, 2013 Julia Child? Your library probably has it. In fact, I would just start at the library. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happy Posted December 11, 2013 Share Posted December 11, 2013 Alton Brown's 'I'm Just Here for the Food' is a good cookbook with lots of why explainations. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erica in OR Posted December 11, 2013 Share Posted December 11, 2013 Maybe "The Best Recipe" (a book by the editors of Cook's Illustrated Magazine). It has a lot of explanations of things they did in the test kitchen and why they chose the final recipe version. Sometimes I just sit and read the cookbook for interest, with no thought of actually cooking. Erica in OR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mandylubug Posted December 11, 2013 Share Posted December 11, 2013 Love Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking. It is very thorough on techniques. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
6packofun Posted December 11, 2013 Share Posted December 11, 2013 How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman along with Cook's Illustrated magazine! (But I also like this America's Test Kitchen book: Cooking School ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soror Posted December 11, 2013 Author Share Posted December 11, 2013 Thanks guys perusing and adding to my list :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
El... Posted December 11, 2013 Share Posted December 11, 2013 I like Martha Stewart's Cooking School. While it is a little fussy, most of the recipes are fantastic, and I love the detailed photography! The only recipe we disliked is one with red cabbage and apples. Blech. The chicken tortilla soup recipe is fantastic. Also, I just got The Science of Good Cooking by the Cooks Illustrated magazine publishers, and it is fun to read. I'm a little weird - I like to read cookbooks. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LostSurprise Posted December 11, 2013 Share Posted December 11, 2013 If you're looking for just techniques, not recipes, I would recommend finding something by James Peterson. I have his Essentials of Cooking and his Sauces: Classical and Contemporary Sauce Making and both focus primarily on the basic techniques all cooking is built on. Essentials is only technique. Sauces teaches the basic sauces of (mostly western/European) cooking. It looks like he has a newer book, Cooking, which does the same thing but on an even grander scale. Check them out at your local library if you can. It's a good way to see what you want to own. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mandylubug Posted December 11, 2013 Share Posted December 11, 2013 I like Martha Stewart's Cooking School. While it is a little fussy, most of the recipes are fantastic, and I love the detailed photography! The only recipe we disliked is one with red cabbage and apples. Blech. The chicken tortilla soup recipe is fantastic. Also, I just got The Science of Good Cooking by the Cooks Illustrated magazine publishers, and it is fun to read. I'm a little weird - I like to read cookbooks. :D Not weird! I keep one on my nightstand for free reading, too! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThatHomeschoolDad Posted December 11, 2013 Share Posted December 11, 2013 Any of the America's Test Kitchen books. Some go into great geeky detail, some less so, but all I've read are really good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soror Posted December 11, 2013 Author Share Posted December 11, 2013 Seems like America's Test Kitchen is a big hit! I remember look at their recs when I outfitted my kitchen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soror Posted December 11, 2013 Author Share Posted December 11, 2013 Ya, I had NT before and the recipes are notoriously bad, really bad. It is more the book to sell you on traditional foods. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
umsami Posted December 11, 2013 Share Posted December 11, 2013 Amazon has Jacques Pepin's Technique in Kindle for like $6.00. Jacques is a great teacher. (OK, now it's $13, guess I got a good deal.) Cook's Illustrated has "The Science of Good Cooking." I'm a fan of any of the Cook's Illustrated, Cook's Country, or America's Test Kitchen books. (ATK has a Cooking School book too.) Plus, they're all usually available at libraries. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tammyw Posted December 11, 2013 Share Posted December 11, 2013 Subbing because I love checking out different cookbooks. I love cooking but I don't know more difficult techniques and it'd be great to try new things with my daughter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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