The Best Recipe?

[Nicko]

Has anyone picked up a copy of The Best Recipe by Cooks Illustrated? I was sent a copy and so far it is very interesting and I think it is a great book for the home. Any thoughts?

[Isa]

I just got this book. I love it. Specially for the discussion of why one ingredients works better with another one. I haven't finish reading it. It's great to learn the chemistry behind cooking. I am sure it will proove to be very useful knowledge in the future.

Sisi

[Nicko]

Hi Sisi, thanks for you post. I agree the book is excellent and I like how they explain how they arrived at a particular method for cooking something. The fact that they also make an effort to find the fastest method for achieving the best recipe is a huge plus. Have you tried any of the recipes in the book yet?

[Isa]

Nicko,

I tried the devil's food cake recipe. I can't remember which of the two recipes I did make though. I was in rush and didn't note the recipe like I usally do.

The cake was very good. It was moist and had a good chocolate taste. I did reduce the amount of sugar by at least 25%, I always find dessert too sweet which tent to mask the flavours, but that's just my taste.


Sisi

This book has been a real life saver to me. I highly recommend it to anyone who loves to cook.

The "Best Recipes" may be what the author says, but don't make use of convection and microwave ovens.

Originally posted by Nicko:
Has anyone picked up a copy of The Best Recipe by Cooks Illustrated? I was sent a copy and so far it is very interesting and I think it is a great book for the home. Any thoughts?

[KyleW]

I am an avid reader of the magazine and this book is the magazine on steroids! I like it because it combines basic information with explanation.
KW

[mudbug]

For someone who has only recently been introduced into the world of the culinary arts, I have found this book to be a tremendous help in understanding why things might work better one way as opposed to another. I highly recommend this book.

[Katherine]

I subscribe to the magazine, and I find their research very helpful and interesting, but... You need to read an article very closely to see if their goals are the same as yours for the same dish. They're very opinionated, but, then, so am I. Lots of time I read a recipe and say, why would they want to do that? For instance, I like an apple pie you can slice and serve up on a plate. They didn't put any thickening in, so that it would be a "breath of the orchard." Well, between the lack of starch and the fact that they used apples that break down when cooked, they must be scraping the pie, soggy bottom crust, stewed apples and all, into bowls with a spoon. I can't call that 'pie'.
The "hash browns" were grated, seasoned carefully, pressed into a buttered nonstick pan and cooked on both sides until crispy brown on the outside and a glutinous mass on the inside. It looked beautiful, but I couldn't get my daughter to eat it.
I read the magazine with a grain of salt.

[Isa]

Cchiu,


I have to agree with you on that. I have more recipes book then I could ever use. Now what I look for in a book is technical informations on the hows and whys of cooking. I found lots of that in this book.


Sisi

Originally posted by Katherine:
I subscribe to the magazine, and I find their research very helpful and interesting, but... You need to read an article very closely to see if their goals are the same as yours for the same dish. They're very opinionated, but, then, so am I. Lots of time I read a recipe and say, why would they want to do that? For instance, I like an apple pie you can slice and serve up on a plate. They didn't put any thickening in, so that it would be a "breath of the orchard." Well, between the lack of starch and the fact that they used apples that break down when cooked, they must be scraping the pie, soggy bottom crust, stewed apples and all, into bowls with a spoon. I can't call that 'pie'.
The "hash browns" were grated, seasoned carefully, pressed into a buttered nonstick pan and cooked on both sides until crispy brown on the outside and a glutinous mass on the inside. It looked beautiful, but I couldn't get my daughter to eat it.


I read the magazine with a grain of salt.

Opinionated, yes, CI is, and, following your lead, I admit that I am. No, I haven't made their apple pie. But the dozen or so of their recipes that I have made impressed me most favorably. Even the hash browns. Surprised you didn't like the recipe, but I can certainly live with that. I am glad you shared your comments with us.

[Chef David Simpson]

This is full of information. It's saved my butt a few times as well.