Kitchen Sense: More than 600 Recipes to Make You a Great Home Cook

by Mitchell Davis

Imagine if everything you needed to know to be a great home cook were contained between the covers of a single volume. There’d be new twists on cozy favorites like Macaroni and Cheese with Buttermilk Fried Onions and Crumbled Bacon, classic stews such as Chicken Paprikash, Asian-inspired dishes like Chilled Soba Salad, and all-American staples such as juicy hamburgers hot off the grill. There would be reliable, fundamental recipes for basics, including rice (white, yellow, basmati, jasmine, and brown) and vinaigrette (French, Italian, creamy, and others), along with countless creative variations. There would be boxes packed with time-saving tips and useful information on topics ranging from cleaning leafy greens to putting up jams and pickles. There’d be advice for mailing baked goods and pointers for making pan sauces. Each recipe would include not just a list of ingredients but also accurate cooking times, notes for advance prep, and specifics on how to store (and reheat or recycle) leftovers. In short, there’d be kitchen sense. And now there is.

In Kitchen Sense, renowned food authority Mitchell Davis provides more than 600 of his inviting, foolproof recipes along with the guidance you need to become a terrific home cook. If you already are one, you’ll find plenty of dishes to add to your repertoire. Because so much great American home cooking is inspired by this country’s unprecedented infusion of international ingredients, techniques, and preparations, Davis’s enticing collection takes its cues from far and wide, combining recipes from across the globe to create a true melting pot of flavors.

Written with flair by a true scholar of food who enjoys cooking and eating everything, from the simplest down-home cooking to the most sophisticated international cuisine, and crammed with informed, lively, passionate opinions, Kitchen Sense is like cooking alongside the Italian-Midwestern-Thai-Hungarian-Mexican-Southern-French-Israeli-Yankee-Indian grandmother you never had.


From the Hardcover edition.

Genres: Cookbooks, Cooking, Nonfiction

528 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2006

Reviews

[Denise Schwahn · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great cookbook. In entering it here, I am re-invigorated to make some of the recipes again!

[Lorettab · Rating 5 out of 5]

I like browsing cookbooks. Nothing like some good food porn.
The more pictures the better. Tease me and entice me. . .
I originally borrowed this one from the library.
I found an excellent chocolate chip cookie recipe here.
I was on the search for my favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe at the time.
I did replace the corn syrup with pure maple syrup per Comet's suggestion and it made these even better.
I liked the book so much, that I bought a copy for my home library.

[Megan · Rating 4 out of 5]

For a starting Cook, this book has it all, from Meats and Fish to Grains, Breakfast to Dessert. Davis adds in extra tips, such as how long a dish will last after cooking, best ways to store it, and other ways to prepare it. I like the litte side bars that have interesting facts and notes about cooking, making it seem more personal. A great cookbook for a starter or pro.

[Sarah left GR]

Recommended by Marion Nestle in her SF Chronicle column:

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article...

[Christopher · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent cookbook. Highly recommended. Straight-forward recipes with a dash of personality. Member of the James Beard foundation. I look at kale in a whole new light ;)

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Flavorful recipes and thoughtful explanations, to both prevent missteps and encourage improvisation.

Try the roasted cauliflower -- I never thought this bland veg could taste so good!