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Mary Berry's Cookery Course: Over 250 Sure and Simple Recipes

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This is a cookery course from the UK's much-loved cook. Let Mary take you from new cook to good cook or from good cook to great cook with Mary Berry's Cookery Course. With delicious recipes from soups, starters and mains to bread, puddings and cakes, you can master the foundations of cooking and build your culinary repertoire under the guidance of Mary Berry. You can learn how to cook Mary Berry's favourite recipes with ease and find out how Mary gets her roast chicken skin so crispy and how she ensures her apple pie doesn't have a "soggy bottom". Perfect the basics of cooking with 12 classic 'master recipes' such as leek and potato soup, chargrilled salmon fillets and Victoria sandwich cake with step-by-step instructions. Then cook your way to success with over 100 fail-safe recipes with photographs of each finished dish so you know what you're aiming for each time. Mary also offers advice on ingredients and how to keep a well-stocked pantry as well as teaching kitchen techniques such as whipping egg whites to guarantee perfect results every time. Mary Berry's Cookery Course is perfect for all home cooks who want to learn to cook 'the Mary Berry way'.

Paperback

First published September 1, 1991

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About the author

Mary Berry

253 books240 followers
There are multiple authors in the Goodreads database with this name.

Mary Berry is an English food writer and television presenter. After being encouraged in domestic science classes at school, she went to college to study catering. She then moved to France at the age of 21 to study at Le Cordon Bleu school, before working in a number of cooking-related jobs.

She has published more than seventy cookery books (her first being The Hamlyn All Colour Cookbook in 1970) and hosted several television series for the BBC and Thames Television. Berry is an occasional contributor to Woman's Hour and Saturday Kitchen. She has been a judge on the BBC One (originally BBC Two) television programme The Great British Bake Off since its launch in 2010.

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5 stars
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
Profile Image for Darren.
1,193 reviews66 followers
July 25, 2013
This is a very hefty book written by a well-known and loved British cook, Mary Berry, that will be a great introduction to many nervous wannabe cooks as well as a source of hints, tips and inspiration to the more experienced of us.

As befits a DK book, production values are high - a helpful and fresh design with some gorgeous food photography that means you really shouldn't look at this book on an empty stomach! It seems that nearly everything is thought of with this book, perhaps with the exception of resolving who does the washing up.

If you are a relative stranger to your kitchen's equipment you can immerse yourself in a great introduction to selecting and using various pots, pans, gizmos and machinery. Cooking techniques are clearly explained through the excellent visual "technique finder" whether it is soft boiling eggs, trimming scallops or making croutons. You no longer need to feel ashamed to ask for help or guidance over a confusing yet possibly simple technique. Mary Berry to the rescue. There is even a glossary which explains often familiar but unclear terms in plain language. Other books, particularly aimed at beginners, could learn a lot from this book.

So when it is time to start cooking, the recipes are split into key chapters of soups; first courses; eggs; fish; poultry and game; meat; pasta and rice; vegetables and side dishes; salads; puddings; cakes and biscuits and finally breads. The learning does not stop here although the more experienced can skip this stage and focus just on the recipes. A "master recipe" helps drill down and really focus on the techniques involved in making a given dish with step-by-step pictures that can help the wary and allow the more experienced to perhaps refine their skills. One should not feel ashamed for looking at this as even though we might all think we can soft boil an egg or make an omelette, maybe we've learned a sub-optimal way of doing it. Sure, an omelette might be an omelette yet the finished dish might look and taste a lot different with a bit of refinement.

The recipes are perfectly written and presented, dual measures, clear information and many hints and tips along the way. About the only niggle is the lack of an estimated cooking and preparation time - possibly an important little thing for the stressed-out cook who is worrying if something is taking far too much time and are starting to assume that things are protracted due to their incompetence! The range and selection of recipes is broad if not tending to be "basic staples" but in a book of this kind that is no bad thing.

The book ends with, as you would expect, a great detailed index that lets you navigate the book both by recipe name as well as by key ingredient. This is really a great book no matter how old you are. It would be a brilliant "starter" book for a child who might be moving out of home for the first time but equally it could be a great thing for somebody who just wants to get cooking but was unsure of how to do those things that surely everybody knows. Many "celebrity" books fail to deliver - this one delivers and will continue to deliver for years to come if you want it to.

Mary Berry's Cookery Course, written by Mary Berry and published by DK. ISBN 9781409367956, 352 pages. Typical price: GBP25. YYYYY.


// This review appeared in YUM.fi and is reproduced here in full with permission of YUM.fi. YUM.fi celebrates the worldwide diversity of food and drink, as presented through the humble book. Whether you call it a cookery book, cook book, recipe book or something else (in the language of your choice) YUM will provide you with news and reviews of the latest books on the marketplace. //
10 reviews1 follower
September 14, 2024
Not just a recipe book but an excellent guide for how to cook. Perfect for anyone who didn’t learn to manoeuvre themselves in a kitchen from a parent or via classes. It has guides of the types of utensils and tools to have in your kitchen, HOW to correctly do different techniques for cooking and baking, and the master recipes are great starter ideas to branch out and make other meals from.

Aside from this, everything in the book is something you’ll want to eat and share with your loved ones and the recipes always come out perfectly.
Profile Image for Vanessa.
3,322 reviews27 followers
January 2, 2020
Perfect Christmas Book.
Love it........I know I will be creating many of these wonderful dishes in the future.
Profile Image for Reader.
1,195 reviews91 followers
June 26, 2013
A KITCHEN ESSENTIAL


What a fabulous cook book this is, covering recipes from roasts, soups, pies, cakes and more. With step by step instructions, and beautiful colour illustrations the recipes are easy to follow. Plus there are Mary's tips for success.

The recipes are very well laid out with the ingredients listed as well as the method and fat and calorie content. At the beginning of the book there is a list of basic kitchen equipment needed for success in your cooking. Mary even lists the pros and cons between the choice of material for pots and pans.
A recommended buy.
Profile Image for Sophie Narey (Bookreview- aholic) .
1,062 reviews127 followers
April 2, 2015
Published: 2013
Author: Mary Berry
Recommended for: fans of Mary Berry and people who want to start cooking

Another excellent book by Mary Berry one of the best. Her recipes are easy to follow, and come out with great results. This book is full of lots of great recipes and ideas, there is something for everyone in this book. It is one of the ones that will become a firm favourite in the house. The instructions arent confusing and they cant be made by anybody. It is written in a clear way, with some pictures to help along the way along with some helpful and handy tips
Profile Image for Jeanette.
1,129 reviews62 followers
March 4, 2015
Recently purchased this book from my local bookstore. I have made several recipes by Mary Berry and all have been simple to make and enjoyable. So many tempting recipes which I'm looking forward to trying. With so many colourful pictures, this book will soon make one's mouth start to water.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews