I
have spent hours drooling over this book! When it
arrived in the post I was wondering what was in the
package because the book was a lot bigger and thicker
than I had anticipated.
When
it comes to cookery books this one is quite something.
Most of today's cookery books seem to be just recipe
books and assume you know everything about cooking
. . . which of course most of us don't, otherwise
why would we be buying them.
Back
in the 1950s and early 60s every housewife would have
started married life with a cookery book showing her
all that was needed to cook traditional meals and
showing the different techniques in the kitchen, books
like the Radiation Cookery Book or the Main Cookery
Book (published for use with gas cookers). Fairly
basic books but full of useful information.
The
Conran Cookbook has taken this idea and expanded it.
The inside cover describes the book as "Taking
you from the market place to the plate . . . encompassing
everything the home cook needs to know from the essential
knowledge necessary to choose and prepare over 1,000
ingredients to equipping the kitchen, planning successful
menus and cooking over 450 delicious and nourishing
dishes".
A
few words are not going to describe to you what this
wonderful book entails. The book is split into three
main sections, which are:
- The
Purchase and Preparation of Food
- Equipment
- Recipes
The
most informative section of the book is The Purchase
and Preparation of Food which is sub-divided into
nine categories:
- Fish
and Seafood
- Meat
- Game
and Poultry
- Eggs,
Dairy Foods, Cooking Fats and Oils
- Grains,
Breads, Pasta and Dumplings
- Vegetables
- Fruit
and Nuts
- Herbs,
Spices and Flavourings
- Coffee,
Teas and Tisanes
If
you have a question about something to do with food
and its cooking you will more than likely find it
here. If you have only one cookery book in your kitchen
this should be the one.
As
you would expect from any book carrying the Conran
name, it is beautifully designed and illustrated,
as well as been clearly written and easy to follow.
You wanted to know about fish? All the main varieties
of fish and shellfish are illustrated and there are
guides to preparing all the different types, with
each guide having step by step photographs showing
how it is done. This is the theme throughout the book
covering every area of food and its preparation.
It
is a mine of information. Not only is it for those
new to the art of cooking but also for those who have
been cooking for years and are afraid to ask about
something for fear of embarrassment.
This
would make a great Christmas present or be ideal for
newlyweds . . . or better still why not enrich your
cooking skills by getting a copy for yourself. It
will be a shame to get food stains on it but that
is where it is going to be kept, close at hand in
the kitchen. Did I forget to mention that there are
some great recipes as well?
