Cooking For Dummies...

[201]

The more I read eGullet, the more ashamed I am that I'm not able to cook. Well, I mean... I can make certain basic things (mostly revolving around grilling and breakfast items), but I really don't know what to do with the vast majority of ingredients.

So, here's the question... can someone recommend any books that give some very basic cooking knowledge? I don't mean cookbooks exactly; I need something that starts at the BEGINNING. Something that will explain the terminology used in cookbooks (i.e. simmer, reduce, poach, etc.) and give some detailed instructions on those processes would be nice.

Alternatively, should I take a cooking course? Obviously, I really don't know the best way to go about this. I have some friends who are chefs and cooks, but I really don't want to impose on them until I get to the level of basic competency.

Lil' help?

[Jaymes]

Well, I started off with Joy of Cooking. Very basic. You can look up pretty-much anything and you can find it there, and it'll give you a good starting point. There are descriptions of ingredients as well as recipes and method instructions. Like if you're making something with mushrooms, there'll be plenty of recipes and then a section called "About Mushrooms."

I don't think you can go wrong with that book. All-around info, easy to read, comprehensive.

A lot of brides, and other first-time starting-out cooks began with Joy of Cooking. I'd say an entire generation of American families eat food prepared by someone who began their food careers with Joy of Cooking lying open on the kitchen counter.

Edited December 9, 2002 by Jaymes (log)

[nightscotsman]

two that I would recommend to get you started are:

The Cook's Bible by Christopher Kimball (from the Cook's Illustrated folks)

"Featuring over 400 essential recipe's, reviews of kitchen equipment, and 200 step-by-step illustrations". Not fancy, but good American-style cooking and lots of detailed explanations of what works and what doesn't - like the magazine.

How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman

Not as completely exhaustive as it claims, but it is amazingly extensive. Most of the recipes are very simple with added tips for tarting things up.

Edited December 9, 2002 by nightscotsman (log)

[201]

...Like if you're making something with mushrooms, there'll be plenty of recipes and then a section called "About mushrooms."...

This sounds VERY helpful.

...200 step-by-step illustrations... and lots of detailed explanations of what works and what doesn't...

And so does this!!

Part of what makes it so frustrating is that this is one of those circumstances in which I want to be instantly fabulous, you know what I mean? I want to be able to just jump in and make extraordinary things, but I know that's not going happen. Still, I'm making this my New Year's resolution so that I don't give up and just go out to eat when something goes wrong!

(I do love the dining out experience though... there's no danger of me learning to cook so well that I'll stop going out. I'll just get enough skill that I don't have to eat the same dishes for the rest of my life.)

[awbrig]

201 - please go get Charlie Trotters Gourmet Cooking for Dummies tomorrow- thank me later...

[201]

201 - please go get Charlie Trotters Gourmet Cooking for Dummies tomorrow- thank me later...

Someone please tell me he's kidding!

You ARE kidding, right?

[Dave the Cook]

Not alternative texts, but supplementary reading, if the science of cooking helps you make sense of it: On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen by Harold McGee. It's not a cook book; even if you never cook, it will help you make sense of what you eat.

Another thing you should not forget is the incredible resource that eGullet itself represents. If you need help with cooking, you couldn't be in a better place.

[TatarsHat]

Jaymes.. Great advice there!! "Joy of Cooking" might be the best place to start. It's a bible for people wanting to learn to cook and a fabulous reference for those that know how to already.

Instant gourmet? I doubt it, but if you read and practice the techniques and try some recipes in there you will be pleasantly surprised!!

Onwards and upwards..

Awbrigs book sounds great too, although I haven't read it.

Best of luck and keep me posted!!!

[Dave the Cook]

201 - please go get Charlie Trotters Gourmet Cooking for Dummies tomorrow- thank me later...

Someone please tell me he's kidding!

You ARE kidding, right?

No, he's not. There is such a book. I haven't read it, but it looks interesting, and I'm thinking about acquiring it, since Awbrig recommends it. But based on the synopsis, I would not suggest it for an inexperienced cook; it seems more of an intermediate-level text for cooks who are comfortable with technique and want to move to the next level.

But it does remind me that we have left out an important primer:

Jacques Pepin's Complete Techniques

Having this book when I started probably would have saved months, if not years.

I hope Jin doesn't find out we forgot...

[201]

Thanks, Dave. The Amazon links are especially helpful because I can check out those sample pages!

By the way, I think Awbrig would buy Charlie Trotter-brand snow tires if given half a chance!

edit: typo

Edited December 9, 2002 by 201 (log)

[awbrig]

201 - get the book - I think you will really enjoy it...its a great great book and was the first book I used when I first started cooking- I still use it and need to buy a new one since my original is completely worn out-ask Aurora...I showed it to her tonight...its in quite an interesting condition...ANYWAY PLEASE GO GET THE BOOK TOMORROW otherwise I WILL HAVE TO SEND YOU A COPY!

[Dave the Cook]

Awbrig, pay attention!

Send it to me. I promise to send it to 201 when the time is right (and I'm done with it. ).

[201]

Awbrig, pay attention!

Send it to me. I promise to send it to 201 when the time is right (and I'm done with it. ).

That's okay with me if it's okay with Awbrig.

[ngatti]

Jacques Pepin: La Technique/La Methode

These have been collected into one volume, the title of it escapes me at the moment.

Very very good basic culinary/kitchen technique. Not individual dishes but good solid musical training. How to form a "C" chord type of stuff. How to tune up to a reference point etc...

This is "teach a man to fish" type of stuff. With these techniques, you'll nver be afraid to tackle any of the recipes in any book you may want to. In fact, you'll be improvising on those recipes as your skill level will be such that you can find the flaws in the recipes. You'll end up knowing how to cook stuff.

Nick

[Dave the Cook]

Awbrig, pay attention!

Send it to me. I promise to send it to 201 when the time is right (and I'm done with it. ).

That's okay with me if it's okay with Awbrig.

[Suvir Saran]

Awbrig, pay attention!

Send it to me. I promise to send it to 201 when the time is right (and I'm done with it. ).

Maybe Awbrig can arrange for you to have a special one on one class with CT.

That could be his gift to you for the New Year. And also as a generous thing he did for a fellow eGulleteer.

And then you could go and teach 201 what you learned from CT..

And 201 can share that knowledge with another.. and they with another and so on..

CT's fame would continue to grow.. and Awbrig would have done a great Mitzvah.. and he too would be thanked everytime someone learns how to cook great food.

[snowangel]

I'm amazed at how often I reach for my copy of Michael Field's Cooking School.

It is not a very big book, but I love it.

[Dave the Cook]

Awbrig, pay attention!

Send it to me. I promise to send it to 201 when the time is right (and I'm done with it. ).

Maybe Awbrig can arrange for you to have a special one on one class with CT.

That could be his gift to you for the New Year. And also as a generous thing he did for a fellow eGulleteer.

And then you could go and teach 201 what you learned from CT..

And 201 can share that knowledge with another.. and they with another and so on..

CT's fame would continue to grow.. and Awbrig would have done a great Mitzvah.. and he too would be thanked everytime someone learns how to cook great food.

A suggestion that is far superior to mine.

Maybe Awbrig will think so, too.

[gknl]

What kind of stuff do you want to cook? I think maybe some of the books mentioned above, while you'll eventually want them all, might be a bit intimidating to someone just starting out. But you'll be able to tell what the appropriate ones for you are.

I like Joy of Cooking too, I have the last two editions. For some things I like the older one better, but I'm glad I have both.

If you're looking for bare-bones basic American fare, then check out Better Homes and Garden New Cook Book.

Alton Brown's I'm Just Here for the Food is a pretty good cooking and kitchen science primer, but if you hate his show, you'll probably hate his book too (you can tell he was a music video guy from the visual style of "Good Eats" but I think a lot of his camera work and editing is pretty clever).

And I know this is really uncool, but I still like the Frugal Gourmet books too.

Be careful though, cookbooks can be way addicting.

[maggiethecat]

Ernest newlyweds that we were, we cooked our way through Julia's "Mastering the Art of French Cooking," volumes one and two. Sounds quaint now, but we really learned a lot.

The book that was on my shelf, pre-marriage, was...guess what? "The Joy of Cooking." It's still the desert island cookbook.

Anything by Pepin is reliable. We also like Mark Bittman's "The Minimalist Cooks at Home."

Remember that old canard "A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step?" Just wake up and say: Hmm...a cheese souffle would be good for lunch...or a Salad Nicoise, or whatever, look it up and give it a shot. Even if it isn't perfect it will probably be edible, and you will have learned lots.

My dear, it ain't brain surgery. And the results of the experiment are much tastier! Good luck.

[Suvir Saran]

Ernest newlyweds that we were, we cooked our way through Julia's "Mastering the Art of French Cooking," volumes one and two. Sounds quaint now, but we really learned a lot.

The book that was on my shelf, pre-marriage, was...guess what?  "The Joy of Cooking."  It's still the desert island cookbook.

Anything by Pepin is reliable.  We also like Mark Bittman's "The Minimalist Cooks at Home."

All great books. I would not part with any of them. They have each taught me a great deal.

And Julia's "Mastering the Art of French Cooking" is far from quaint. It is the best.

[oraklet]

anne willan's book.

it's tells about it all, in a very instructive way. good deal of basic, classic recipes, too. i spent the first two weeks after buying it reading, reading, reading, because though it is not just theory, reading it all makes you sense what are the groundstones. gives you an idea of where you stand, and what you have to learn.

it's cheap in denmark, must be DIRT cheap in usa as it's a reader's digest thing (it is, really).

[KarenS]

If I could not cook (which I can,verywell). I think that I would be employed in the market. In another market, perhaps I should be selling fresh produce and cheese.

me

[britcook]

The Way to Cook by Julia Child is a great primer, shows master recipes and then how to vary them. If you can get them in the US then Delia Smith's books like her "Cookery Course" are great for beginners, her new series (name escapes me for the minute, might be How To Cook) even starts with how to boil an egg.

I've read some fairly bad reviews of the Bittman book which point out that it is not as simple as it claims to be, and not as comprehensive.

[Dave the Cook]

I've read some fairly bad reviews of the Bittman book which point out that it is not as simple as it claims to be, and not as comprehensive.

Though I think it's an admirable compendium, Bittman's book is not for the beginner. I came home one day to a disappointed daughter, whose first words to me were (thrusting How to Cook Everything) in my face), "Daddy, this title lies!"