I Need Advice on Chef Books, Please

[Afra]

I just checked out Michael Ruhlman's book, "The Making Of A Chef" from my local library and I am going to read it soon. When I checked it out the idea popped into my head to try to get a chance to buy some good chef books to read that will help me to take my first secure step to becoming a chef even before I set foot in Johnson and Wales University in Denver, Colorado, where I am still hoping to go to school. So does anyone know of any books that I should read? What about those of you who are chefs? I feel better taking advice from a real chef because then you would know better what I should read. Should I look into Border's for chef books? Thanks so much in advance for all the responses and advices!

[Shimmer]

Afra- Right now I am a folklore graduate student, and this is part of my bibliography for the method of participant observation. I found these helpful for different reasons, which I will put after each entry. And yes, Borders has all of these. Look under Cooking-General or something like that. It's at the beginning of the cooking section.


Bourdain, Anthony. 2000. Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly.

This one is not a rule book, but one guy's experience. From what I've seen and heard, it isn't far from what you might expect.

Dornenburg, Andrew. 1995. Becoming a Chef. Van Nostrand Reinhold. New York.

This one chronicles several professional chefs' paths to becoming where they are, including recipes, theories, etc.

Kamman, Madeleine. 1977. The New Making of a Cook. William Morrow & Co., New York.
Heavy reading, but might tell you everythign you need to know about what is going on with the food and many classic/basic recipes.

McGee, Harold. 1997. On Cooking: The Food and Lore of the Kitchen.

Tales and chemistry. Good combo.

Ruhlman, Michael. 2000. The Soul of a Chef. Henry Holt Co. New York.

A follow-up to the Making of a Chef. He couldn't let it go, you know.

And I know I'm the first to respond and not an actual chef, but these have helped me understand the workings of the culinary world. Hope that helps. Get a triple latte at Borders and happy reading!

~~Shimmer~~

[Afra]

Thanks for your response, Shimmer! I think the topics you referred to sound great! Unfortunately, I don't live near Border's; if there is a Border's in Idaho, it is way too far away for me to go to! I miss Atlanta; when I lived there with my sister, we went out to Border's a lot; in the bigger cities, everything is close by..sigh...when I want a book from Border's or another bookstore right now, I have to order it through the mail. Until I move to Denver, that's what my situation is.

Geez, it seems I'm responding to you again, we must have a lot in common! I wouldn't necessarily load up on a lot of books before you get to school. If J&W is anything like the CIA they have a terrific library with every cooking related book every published on earth. With that said, I agree with the other respondent that Soul of a Chef (Ruhlman) is good. You are already reading my fav. book of all time - Making of a Chef. Think like a Chef by .... oh no, the author name slips my mind, I'll re-reply on that one - is very good, as well - fairly new.

Got the author! Tom Colicchio. Book is $22.50 is at www.jessicas.com (of course plus shipping) Saw this website mentioned in another forum here on Chef Talk and I LOVE the site. My entire life savings could be spent here.

Got the author! Tom Colicchio. Book is $22.50 is at www.jessicas.com (of course plus shipping) Saw this website mentioned in another forum here on Chef Talk and I LOVE the site. My entire life savings could be spent here.

[cape chef]

I believe J&W has the largest culinary library on earth. Thanks to the donations of the late Louis S, From chicago.He donated his entire private collection to the school.FYI...he was the inventer of beef wellignton.
cc

[Afra]

Which Johnson and Wales campus are you referring to, cape chef? I am looking at the campus in Denver. If you could tell me which Johnson and Wales campus you are talking about here, I would greatly appriciate it. Or did you mean that every Johnson and Wales campus has the largest selection of chef books? hehe

[Afra]

I am almost done reading "The Making Of A Chef" and in the course of the story, I noticed that McGee is referred to again and again for help. I was wondering if his books would help me out the most?

[-d-]

Afra, McGee is probably my favorite food book, but it really depends on what you're looking for. McGee is a great book if you're interested in the history of various ingredients and the science of cooking. For some, it might be a little too dry at times, especially with details from electron microscopes and organic chemistry formulas. But if you really want to know what happens to food when you cook or bake it, it's hard to think of a better book.

I really like Shimmer's list of books. In Andrew Dornenburg and Karen Page's Becoming a Chef (one of Shimmer's recommended books), the authors have a "Chefs' Top 20 Recommended Books and/or Authors" list:

* Escoffier's Le Guide Culinaire: The Complete Guide to the Art of Modern Cookery. The first translation into English by H.L. Crackwell and R.J. Kaufman of Le Guide Culinare in its entirety.

* Larousse Gastronomique: The New American Edition of the World's Greatest Culinary Encyclopedia

* Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking

* Irma S. Rombauer and Marion Rombauer Becker's The Joy of Cooking

* Elizabeth David's Elizabeth David Classics

* James Beard's American Cookery

* Alice Waters' Chez Panisse Menu Cookbook

* Paula Wolfert's World of Food

* Richard Olney's Simple French Food or French Menu Cookbook

* Craig Claiborne's The New York Times Cookbook

* Ali-Bab's Etude Culinaire

* Paul Bocuse's Regional French Cooking

* CIA's The New Professional Chef

* Madeline Kamman's The Making of a Cook

* Fernand Point's Ma Gastronomie

* Time-Life Book's Food of the World (1968-70) and American Cooking (1970-71) series

* Harold McGee's On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen

* Georges Blanc's The Natural Cuisine of G. Blanc and Ma Cuisine des Saisons

* Patricia Wells and Joel Robuchon's Simply French: Patricia Wells Presents the Cuisine of Joel Robuchon

* Roy Andre De Grouts' The Auberge of the Flowering Hearth

Yeah, more books to choose from. . .but you can never read enough, no?

[ April 19, 2001: Message edited by: gratiem ]