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On Food and Cooking by Harold McGee

post #1 of 15
10/18/06 at 6:34am
Thread Starter 
Ordered this book from the internet. Came yesterday.
What a disappointment. Instead of simple kitchen lore and explanations why things work and others don't, there are 400 pages of food history, another 300 pages of chemistry and maybe some 50 pages of real useful information.
I realized its not the book I wanted.
For example, there are no recommended cooking times for vegetables, instead we learn who brought potatoes to Europe. Instead of explaining why you have to cover the rice when you cook it, we get a detailed description of how rice is manufactured. Who cares? I don't mill rice in the kitchen. Basics like how to peel onions without tears are not explained there.
That's what happens when you order a book without browsing in it first.
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post #2 of 15
10/18/06 at 7:13am
If you'd looked at the whole title, you would have had a better idea of what it was.

On Food and Cooking: the Science and Lore of the Kitchen. Emphasis on Science and Lore.

You can certainly sell it at and get most of the cost back. It's a popular book and for good reasons.

Phil
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post #3 of 15
10/18/06 at 10:13am
I bought the book and it's one of my favorites. Well-written and informative.
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post #4 of 15
11/4/06 at 2:27pm
Bought it after his forum appearance here. It's one I take to bed to read myself to sleep - and NOT because it's boring - because wherever you take it up, it's interesting and informative.

It's also unmatched as a technical reference, which is what it really is intended to be. Whenever a question comes up about an ingredient, or a cooking method, you are likely to find a detailed and readable explanation in the book.

One of the best books about food I've got, and I've got a lot.

Mike ;)
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post #5 of 15
11/4/06 at 2:50pm
That book is never a disappointment. Its great! I think what your looking for is not technical in nature. Your wanting a book for techniques with recipes correct? Well, Google Jacque Pepins book "Complete Techniques" think you will find that interesting enough. Another one you may want to consider is Shirley O Corrihers book "Cookwise" filled with about 240 recipes and she gives you the ins and outs of what to expect. And I agree with MikeLM its one of the best books on food I have too and I have quite a few.

Rgds Rook
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post #6 of 15
11/4/06 at 4:44pm
I borrowed Mcgee's book from my local library to see if i wanted to buy it. I gotta admit, I learned alot from it and will buy it when i find a good price. I recently bought Larousse Gastronomique (sp?) and haven't read much of it, but it seems pretty good too.
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post #7 of 15
11/4/06 at 7:05pm
On food and cooking is a fantastic book, how it could be a disapointment to any cook, professional or otherwise is beyond me. 50 pages of usefull information......are you nuts?
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post #8 of 15
11/5/06 at 4:53am
The entire book is loaded with useful info. I think if you sat down with it and really read it you will understand better. Its great that you are interested in cooking or you would not be here but in order to cook and cook well you have to understand a little bit of the science behind the scenes. Knowing your ingredients and how to prepare your foods are important but the science of how and why an ingredient reacts the way it does is even more important in the long run. I would never say this book is a disappointment, at least not in public because its not. I am a big,big, fan of this book and of Mr Mcgee.

Rgds Rook
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post #9 of 15
11/5/06 at 11:40pm
Eugene:

My best advise to you is to set McGee aside and read some Shirley Corriher and Alton Brown. They write kitchen science geared towards a beginner / intermediate level. Both are very knowledgeable and entertaining and both contain valuable, practical information and ideas.

Then, when your kitchen experience and knowledge expands, go back and pour through McGee.

As Alton Brown is oft to say, "your patience will be rewarded."
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post #10 of 15
11/6/06 at 9:22pm
I didn't mention it in my other review, but the historical aspect dissapointed me as well. The first version of the book was almost all food science/myth debunking and almost no history. If the history related in some way to the science, it would be helpful, but for the most part, the two are unrelated. He should have written a separate history book and stayed true to the original scientific slant of the first tome.

I've read it from cover to cover a couple times, and, to be honest, the historical info makes a really tough read.

At the same time, though, I'm sure there's a food history buff out there saying that the scientific information was hard to get through.

And, although not Harold's fault, I will re-iterate my thoughts on the index. It stinks.
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post #11 of 15
11/22/06 at 3:47am
Agreed.

Rgds Rooks
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post #12 of 15
11/22/06 at 9:42pm
I also took this one out from my local library a couple of times. I chose based on Alton Brown's back-of-book reccomendation. I think it is a great read, although I wish Harold didn't include all that evolution mumbo-jumbo. I suppose that is a topic for a different kind of forum.:D

I prefer reading Alton Brown for a "teaching" kind of book. Harold McGee's book is more like a food dictionary.
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post #13 of 15
11/23/06 at 12:53am
Hi, sorry, but I was just wondering what the title was of the Alton Brown book you read? Or does he only have one book out? Sorry, cheers.
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post #14 of 15
11/23/06 at 4:01am
No Alton has several books out "I am Here Just for the Food" is one he has another one I think its called "Altons Kitchen" or something like that. Go to Amazon and type in his name it will come up with a bunch of titles for him or go to E-Bay. One note on McGees book that seems to be confusing to most. This book in my interpretation was not written as a recipe book. Its a food science text it tells you how and why things happen the way they do. How ingredients react, their origins and such. Anyone considering this book because they think its chock full of recipes then you had better look else where for that. Want a book with origins and history along with recipes then try Larousse "Gastrominque" about 1100 pages.

Rgds Rook
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post #15 of 15
11/25/06 at 3:52am
Cheers. Took your advice about searching Amazon, worked great.
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