How To Cook Everything: Simple Recipes for Great Food

Additional How To Cook Everything: Simple Recipes for Great Food Information

Praise for How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman:

"In his introduction to How to Cook Everything, Mark Bittman says, 'Anyone can cook, and most everyone should.' Now, hopefully everyone will -- this work is a rare achievement. Mark is in that pantheon of a few gifted cook/writers who make very, very good food simple and accessible. I read his recipes and my mouth waters. I read his directions and head for the kitchen. Bravo, Mark, for taking us away from take-out and back to the fun of food."
-- Lynne Rossetto Kasper, host of the international public radio show "The Splendid Table with Lynne Rossetto Kasper"

"Mark Bittman is the best home cook I know, and How to Cook Everything is the best basic cookbook I've seen."
-- Jean-Georges Vongerichten, award-winning chef/owner of Jean-Georges

"Useful to the novice cook or the professional chef, How to Cook Everything is a tour de force cookbook by Mark Bittman. Mark lends his considerable knowledge and clear, concise writing style to explanations of techniques and quick, classic recipes. This is a complete, reliable cookbook."
-- Jacques Pepin, chef, cookbook author, and host of his own PBS television series

"Sometimes all the things that a particular person does best come together in a burst of synergy, and the result is truly marvelous. This book is just such an instance. Mark Bittman is not only the best home cook we know, he is also a born teacher, a gifted writer, and a canny kitchen tactician who combines great taste with eminent practicality. Put it all together and you have How to Cook Everything, a cookbook that will inspire American home cooks not only today but for years to come."
-- John Willoughby and Chris Schlesinger, coauthors of License to Grill

What Customers Say About How To Cook Everything: Simple Recipes for Great Food:

The company I ordered from delivered well, but as to the book, nah. This book came highly recommended to me - but I am not into it.

My advice to Amazon shoppers would be this: If you're looking for a clear, all-encompassing classic cookbook with no-nonsense advice and relatively neutral suggestions, get The Joy of Cooking. I'm sorry Mark, you clearly are educated, and you're probably an amazing cook yourself, but why did you write this book in such a pretentious and condescending tone. I absolutely cannot stand to read it. Okay, look - if you're going to have one cookbook that tells you how to make just about everything, this isn't it. If you're in the market for a more upscale and modern book, go for The New Best Recipe by America's Test Kitchen, which is full of preach-free delicious recipes. This book's title is misleading because it doesn't even scratch the surface of "everything". Buy The Joy of Cooking. It should be called "How to Cook Everything Mark Bittman likes." However, this cookbook is probably good for those that: a) have a high amount of disposable cash (the recipes aren't cheap), b) like to be lectured on what to eat, why to eat it, and why what you're already eating is crap, or c) cook so rarely that an occasional recipe for a salad or a chicken dish will do when company is coming.

This book has simple recipes that helped me overcome my problems. I've never been a veggie eater, because I didn't know what to do.

Some favorite sections besides the hundreds of recipes are a glossary of fruits and vegetables, with explanations on how to buy, store, and prepare each one, and recommendations for essential kitchen supplies. Each simple recipe poses suggestions for altering the recipe to your own taste and available ingredients. As a fairly new cook who is experimenting and trying new things all the time, I find this an extremely useful resource. Bittman's simple and complete explanations are helpful and inspiring.

If you're only going to have a few cookbooks this would be my top pick. I sometimes sit down and just read the book for fun. Bittman's book is my bible for cooking basics. I use it for instructions on trussing a turkey, preparing leeks, properly making fudge and just about everything else.