Can you tell whether a recipe will work before you cook it? You can if you really know what's cooking.
In the long-awaited "CookWise, " food sleu... read full description
reviews
Jun 28, 2010
Mardel
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Recently I was cataloging my cookbook collection and the process was making me think about all the different books and why I had them. I decided to randomly work my way through some of them, cooking and reading, mostly out of curiosity about why I originally purchased them and what I thought about them now.
The first book I grabbed, Cookwise by Shirley Corriher, was chosen because although I remembered that I have used it for reference, I couldn't actually remember that I More...
The first book I grabbed, Cookwise by Shirley Corriher, was chosen because although I remembered that I have used it for reference, I couldn't actually remember that I More...
Jun 10, 2009
Cindy
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Now that I've looked through this one, I vaguely remember reading it a few years ago, but I liked it better then, for some reason. This time around, I went from being totally impressed to completely overwhelmed in just a few pages. The book starts with bread. Well, I bake bread. So I know about that. But this went so far over my head, it was into the stratosphere. I was overwhelmed with a discussion of which kind of flour I needed, based on protein content. Then we got into the importance of add
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Jan 19, 2009
Kent
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If you're a food science geek like me, this is a great reference. Not quite as approachable as Alton Brown (but you might have seen her on the Alton Brown show Good Eats). The recipes are chosen to be good examples rather than great eats, but they're still pretty good. The key is that she teaches you how food works -- which helps you to figure out how to make better food. If you're the type to cook by eye and taste and smell, this is the kind of cookbook you want to read.
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Jan 11, 2012
Benjamin
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Not the kind of book you just sit down and read cover to cover - it is a cookbook, after all - and lacking the adorable, elementary school science teacher vibe she brings to her spots on Alton Brown's Good Eats, but still a pretty amazing book. As someone who would rather learn underlying principles and then be shooed out the door than master recipes by rote, this dense volume is right up my alley. You can see why Alton hero-worships her so fervently.
Mar 11, 2010
Merrideth
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This book is absolutely fantastic! It engages all foodies ranging from the most expert cook to true beginner. The awesome chemistry of cooking is revealed and gives great insight into those meals that went wrong somewhere. A Mr. fix-it among recipe books as well as a good guide to cooking everything from the perfect pie to a standing rib roast.
May 31, 2009
Miss
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This is an amazing book. There are recipes, but the value of the book is in how it explains the processes of cooking - why foods do what they do when they're cooked. Having a strong background regarding processes and ingredients makes it much easier to experiment and succeed. It's a Bible I return to again and again.
Nov 11, 2009
See my review for Bakewise and then compound that by the fact that I NEVER cook, nor do I enjoy it, so this is WAY out of my league. I really need to get the "I Hate to Cook Book". I think that will be more my speed.
That being said, I bet this would be a great book for the people in your life who really love cooking. And molecular biology.
That being said, I bet this would be a great book for the people in your life who really love cooking. And molecular biology.
Aug 10, 2009
Jennifer
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I think I've been too spoiled by Alton Brown and his Good Eats show. Shirley Corriher tells you what the different cuts of meat are on a cow, Alton gives pictures.
Overall, interesting descriptions on the science of cooking and looking at what makes food at a molecular level. There seemed to be a lack of quality control - some pages would detail measured amounts, others would skip it.
The organization was a bit curious to me - the book clearly opens with bread recipes More...
Overall, interesting descriptions on the science of cooking and looking at what makes food at a molecular level. There seemed to be a lack of quality control - some pages would detail measured amounts, others would skip it.
The organization was a bit curious to me - the book clearly opens with bread recipes More...
Apr 18, 2010
Jen
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This is the first time I've ever read a cookbook all the way through. The value of this book is that Corriher explains what happens chemistry-wise to your food when you cook it. I feel like I've come away with a better understanding of cooking in general and WHY recipes have you do certain things. However, I don't know how much of this knowledge I'll retain (there is a lot of information in this book, which isn't a bad thing). I also don't know how many of the recipes I'll use. Many of them
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Nov 27, 2010
Cee
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Try the Touch of Grace Biscuits with ordinary flour. Great stuff. Then make it with White Lily Flour (or any soft southern flour), and you'll understand why a good biscuit is treasured in southern cooking.
Apr 21, 2009
Larry
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This is a cookbook you can read for the entertainment value, but it's all about the food. Shirley Corriher takes us through a wide swath of cooking techniques, teaching the whys of cooking, not just the hows.
Dec 30, 2008
Kathy
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this is one of the best cookbooks! why things work, why they don't, how to tweak your cooking/baking technique to get different results. fantastic. also, the best biscuit recipe ever...
Jan 08, 2011
Julie
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Everything made from this book is amazing. It's also great to learn the reasons behind why each recipe works and might not work. Our copy is highly worn from years of use.
May 23, 2011
An indispensible resource for cooks, basically the cooking bible. Find out why pie crusts fail, roasts are dry, etc. For all the food science geeks out there. - Paula C.
Nov 27, 2011
Dan
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Seattle John suggested this chatty food science book, full of examples of theories. It looks like an amazing book, but I never got into it.
Dec 03, 2008
Came across this unpacking. I think I got it for our wedding. Thought I'd take a look and hopefully learn a few tricks.
Dec 15, 2008
Crystal
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This one's a good read. Interesting food science information, though I don't remember cooking much from it.
Oct 10, 2009
Andrea
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Cooking from the food chemists pov. Geeky goodness including things like illustrations of fat molecules.
Apr 03, 2009
Deidre
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A fantastic reference I'll, no doubt, keep returning to when I forget the details. A book every serious home cook should have handy so they know why their hard work might run awry in the cooking process. I loved the in depth chemical explanations in particular.
I did feel like some of the recipes she listed detracted from the material, however.
I did feel like some of the recipes she listed detracted from the material, however.
Nov 30, 2010
Zanthera
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A balance of science and creativity. You can't asked for more. Fun to cook with and I am always a sucker for learning something.
Sep 26, 2007
Paul
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I think there are two ways to cook: you can memorize recipes or you can understand what those recipes are doing. Cookwise is a great reference for the latter. Corriher does a great job describing how each ingredient and technique affects the final outcome. In doing so, we come to understand how we can get the effect we want (cripsy vs. chewy cookie) and figure out what we've done wrong (pastry creme coddling: add more sugar so that the egg proteins don't coagulate as quickly). I wish Corrih
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Sep 26, 2009
Kathryn
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Ever have a hard time trying to cook eggs just right? This book gives many suggestions on how to get the results you want.
May 10, 2010
Matthew
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Outstanding cooking book. Sure, it's a recipe book, but that's beside the point. Shirley tells you the ins and out of making everything from perfect pie dough to wonderfully prepared meats and veggies.
It's a kitchen companion and up there with "On Food and Cooking". If you've ever wondered how cakes from scratch go together or what part egg whites and yolks play in a dish, this book is for you.
It's a kitchen companion and up there with "On Food and Cooking". If you've ever wondered how cakes from scratch go together or what part egg whites and yolks play in a dish, this book is for you.
Dec 16, 2009
mia
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I reference this book all the time for all kinds of reasons. It explains everything you've ever wondered about cooking; has lots of good tricks, tips and alternatives too.
It also has fun charts with the same recipe using different sorts of the same ingredient (like butter, shortening, oil, lard) so you can play lab at home for the sole purpose of inspecting the different ways the recipe turns out (and not at all as an excuse to make lots of chocolate chip cookies).
It also has fun charts with the same recipe using different sorts of the same ingredient (like butter, shortening, oil, lard) so you can play lab at home for the sole purpose of inspecting the different ways the recipe turns out (and not at all as an excuse to make lots of chocolate chip cookies).
Feb 27, 2011
Spankky
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Ilove this book!! If you want to know why anything you cook dosnt turn out the way you want and how to make it right, thix is the book for you! Awesome recipies and soooo informative!
Mar 25, 2009
Alison
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Great information on food science for the non-food scientist. It explains how it all works and why recipes are put together the way they are. I found this helpful as I improvise and modify different recipes. There is a recipe or two to illustrate each point. I found the recipes not to my taste. I like to know how things work, but I cook rather simply and I am not a foodie that the recipes seem to cater to.
May 30, 2007
Pioden
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This is an awesome book - She breaks down the mysteries of why one person can get a recipe to work fabulously, and for another it flops. Cooking is a science, and she reveals the basics in this textbook for working with what you have, and knowing why something turned out the way it did. Also full of recipes that illustrate her points, and choices in ingredients to affect the outcome. Big thumbs up.
Aug 28, 2008
Liz
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Excellent resource for information on the cooking process. Source notes on where to obtain various suggested items/materials were unfortunately a bit dated. And there wasn't that much in the book I actually wanted to rush out and make. More indulging of curiosity than inspiring, I felt.
Jul 13, 2010
Karen
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I have learned so much from this book. Not surprising, as I'm borrowing it from one of our cooking goddesses, but I really must own a copy of this. It's scientific, but well written and well organized. It's enormous, but with the recipes interspersed, it feels like a faster read.
