Five stars, just for the salt!
If this guy is right about salting beef, I've been wrong all my life.
This is the first book I have come across to make a case AGAINST iodized salt, just because (1) it tastes bad (2) iodine deficiency is no longer a problem in America. So use kosher salt, or sea salt, and here is the amazing concept: you can salt beef right after buying it. Salt it ahead of time (or WAY ahead of time), and the result will be that the steaks taste "seasoned" rather than "salty."
I'm still playing around with this concept, but the first field trial suggests that The Elements of Cooking: Translating the Chef's Craft for Every Kitchen is right!
Another must have from Ruhlman.
Great reference style book. Not what I expected from Michael Ruhlman but decent none the less. I was looking for more life and kitchen experience based writing, and found an encyclopedia of sorts. I wasn't sure if this was a revision to the "Food Lover's Guide" or a Ruhlman book. His writing though is as passionate and inspiring as ever. I just wish there was more of it. Personal library worthy.
Chatty, not comprehensive
I was very excited about receiving The Elements of Cooking: Translating the Chef's Craft for Every Kitchen, but on a careful reading, I'd have to say I'm disappointed. It's long on Ruhlman's self-absorbed writing style (did I really need another essay on his obsession with brown sauce after wading through _Making of a Chef_?) and a little short on useful information for serious cooks. Just a couple of examples that spring to mind: there's no entry for "simmer" (a much trickier temperature to figure out than "boil," for which there *is* an entry); and, there's no rundown on cuts of meat, which even my 1997 Joy of Cooking maintains! For home cooks looking to take their technique up a notch, I'd definitely recommend Jacques Pepin's Complete Technique in lieu of Ruhlman's book, even though it takes up 3x the ... Read More
Off to a great start, but then...
I was excited for The Elements of Cooking: Translating the Chef's Craft for Every Kitchen, having heard great things.
The first 50 pages were exactly what I was expecting - real insights into cooking not apparent to the otherwise amateur home chef and professional wannabe. Those first 50 pages are filled with the kind of dicta I like in a cookbook, such as "never do...you must try...avoid at all costs, etc."
However that wonderful writing ends when the food glossary, what makes up the bulk of the book, begins. It's not to say that the information isn't useful and insightful in its own way, but most people probably aren't thrilled about slogging through food terms in alphabetical order. It's just not reader friendly.
My suggestion would be to keep the information, but ... Read More
Elements
From stocks, sauces, salt, ghee to Nage- a court like bouillon or anromatic liquid. The Elements of Cooking: Translating the Chef's Craft for Every Kitchen has all the facts and terms that you will come upon when looking at recipes. I learn about food sources I never knew about before picking up The Elements of Cooking: Translating the Chef's Craft for Every Kitchen as well as some old ones that gave me new insights to my meal I prepare. Good for anyone who cooks.
