The Gourmet Cookbook: More than 1000 recipes

I love this cookbook and the only problem I have with the cookbook is that some ingredients you make not have on hand or are available at your local market. That being said it is a gourmet cookbook so it is cooking above the normal everyday cooking.Over 1000 recipes and it shows, the book is massive. The recipes cover cuisine from all over the world and that is wonderful. You can look up recipes such as Japanese, Korean, Thai, French, Hungarian, Jewish, Italian, Mexican, Turkish and many more. This is great if you want to experiment outside of American cuisine. It can be a wonderful way to introduce your family to the cuisine of other cultures. I try to teach my kids about other cultures and we will research an area and learn about that area and I will prepare a dish from that culture, this is one of the cookbooks I turn to when looking for a recipe.Throughout the book they also teach you about food like information on Chile Peppers, Potatoes, Oysters, Italian Cheese, Noodles and many more. The information is brief but very helpful.Be prepared many of the recipes require lots of ingredients and quit a bit of work, but I have found the recipes to be worth the effort. Some of the recipes include notes, such as parts that you can make ahead, how long you can store the dish, and if you can freeze the leftovers.The sections covers the normal: Vegetables, Soups, Beef, Ect. In the back there is section that covers the basics: stocks, Creating spice blends (Chinese five spice powder), pastes and clarified butter.There is a very short section of tips and techniques, like using salt and pepper, toasting seeds and toasting spices.The glossary is very helpful to me because occasionally I ran across an item that I did not know what it was like Asafetida(an Indian spice), Calabaza(pumpkin) and Urad Dal(black lentils).There is an sources sections with website addresses. This cookbook is not new so many of the websites no longer exist, but many do and provides a great resource for finding ingredients not available locally.When you are looking to step up your cooking game, this cookbook will help you do the job,

This is the best cookbook I have ever read! Not only is it a wonderful compilation of recipes from Gourmet Magazine (everything I've tried so far is wonderful!!) but there are pages that explain techniques, (I was always afraid to try artichokes before...), different cuts of different meats, differences in dried chilis or mushrooms or onions, and what to look for when you are buying. In addition, there is a large section called Sources in the back that provides places to look for harder to find items if you live in a small or remote area as I do. I was afraid this book would be inaccessible because it's called Gourmet (after the magazine) but it is completely down to earth and each recipe gives additional information about where the recipe came from or things that would go well with this item. There is often a note (or two) at the end that talks about things that can be done ahead or how it should be stored. Finally each recipe lists the amount of active time spent making the item and the total time (including things like soaking beans or cooling cakes) to help you plan ahead. Each one also contains a list of any special equipment needed (most recipes don't require anything outrageous)to prepare the dish. I absolutely love this book and I will buy it for any of my friends who are getting married or who express an interest in learning to cook because it is a primer in general cooking as well as fine food!Thank you, Gourmet and Ruth!!! (Could you do another, please?:))

Be sure to purchase the newer version, the 2006 edition, with the DVD. It has the darker orange recipe titles, unlike the light yellow text of the original 2004 edition which was difficult to see.The "look inside this book" feature on this webpage still shows the light-yellow text Kindle sample pages, but it also states you will get the newer book version when ordering it. The samples also show the entire index, if you want to see what recipes are in the book. It's an awesome list.I really enjoyed the DVD, which has four cooking demonstrations of recipes from the book. The experts give detailed tips on what to watch for, as well as techniques, at different stages of the process.Given the size and scope of the book, it's unfortunate that photos couldn't be included. The illustrations, used as fillers of blank spaces between recipes, weren't helpful in any way (simple line drawings of eggs, milk bottles, herbs, etc.). A detailed drawing of how the dish will turn out, or a small photo, would have been more useful.There were many beautiful photographs accompanying the recipes in the Gourmet magazines; they could have easily been put into the DVD. Wouldn't that have been great?

I know you can get any recipe off of the internet. But you can not write suggestions for yourself, or your own review or the date you made a recipe for a special party. A there won't be any splatters on the page from your children's cookie disaster. It is a great book with quite a variety of unusual recipes and fairly fancy old standards.

Excellent price and great cook book

If I had to have just one cookbook, this would be it! A complete book with many classic and easy recipes.

FOR THOSE THAT ARE LOOKING FOR A COOKBOOK THEY CAN ACTUALLY USE WITH RECIPES THAT ACTUALLY WORK !!!! EXCELLENT. IT CONTAINS EVERYTHING FROM YOUR BASICS TO MORE ELABORATE AND COMPLICATED RECIPES.

This can be viewed as a Recipe Bible It is well written and organized.There is a visual shortcoming - recipe titles are hard to see because they are printed in a light yellow.

Purchased the book because it contains some recipes that have never been made available online (e.g. Mushroom Charlotte on page 67). It is big, having over 1000 recipes, nevertheless it is one of the few cookbooks that I will keep in printed (vs. online form).For all the fans of the now gone Gourmet Magazine who didn't keep all the back issues, it is a great addition to your cooking arsenal.P.S, I am also very happy to report that it was a used book in excellent condition at a very reasonable price.