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Learn how to cook, from the very basics to advanced Recommended titles
by Nancy Rommelmann Penguin USA, 1998. 256 pp.
by Shirley Corriher William Morrow, 1997. 544 pp.
"At some time, every chef has been perplexed by a cookie inexplicably spreading all over a baking sheet or a pie with an uncuttable crust. Why does this happen even though the cook scrupulously followed a tested, reliable recipe? Corriher comprehensively details cooking and baking techniques in a cookbook that is much more than a compendium of recipes. She knows exactly why that cookie spreads, because she understands the physics of butter and other fats, and she shares her knowledge usefully with home and professional cooks. Corriher applies her astounding food science to all aspects of the baker's art: biscuits, pies, cakes, and breads. In addition, eggs, meats, and sauces receive her probing analyses of what goes awry in the kitchen and how to remedy it. Anecdotes leaven what might otherwise be dull, dry text. Her command of contemporary nutritional science yields useful tables of comparative data. This book answers so many cooking questions that it is utterly indispensable to any cookery reference collection. " Booklist, Mark Knoblauch
by Robert L. Wolke W.W. Norton & Company, 2002. 350 pp.
"Those who follow Wolke's "Food 101" newspaper column know him for his thorough scientific answers to questions about everyday food science. What Einstein Told His Cook is a compilation of these popular columns. Wolke covers such basic questions as how cookware conducts heat, how water filters do their job, and how coffee is decaffeinated. He sets up controlled experiments to test how to extract maximum juice from citrus fruits. He addresses controversies such as the irradiation of foods. Recipes supplement and illustrate the scientific principles. Wolke writes about these serious topics with a good sense of humor that doesn't belittle the seriousness of his purpose." Booklist, Mark Knoblauch
by Howard Hillman Houghton Mifflin Co, 2003. 336 pp.
"This updated edition of a kitchen essential provides the answers to all the culinary questions that can leave cooks scratching their heads. Hillman reveals, for example, how microwave ovens work (a tube within the oven causes food molecules to vibrate, which causes friction, which in turn causes heat), why percolated coffee can taste bitter ... Divided into sections-including Cooking Methods, Baking, Seasonings, Food Storage, and Health and Nutrition-this authoritative and sprightly volume will have anyone who's interested in cookery sighing, "Aha!" ... He also offers "Principle-Illustrating Recipes" ... and kitchen experiments. Written with friendly reassurance and designed logically and thoughtfully, this compendium of questions and answers is a must for the kitchen shelves of curious cooks everywhere. " Publishers Weekly
by Anne Gardiner, Sue Wilson Owl Books, 1998. 160 pp.
"For anyone with unanswered questions about why things happen in the kitchen as they do, Gardiner and Wilson have answers ready. They can tell readers why their poached eggs look a mess (eggs too old), why adding more baking powder to a muffin may not make it any lighter (overinflation leading to collapse), or why onions make you cry (sulfurous gases). Along the way, cooks learn a host of other scientific principles underlying cooking. Less rigorously empirical than Harold McGee's The Curious Cook (1990), this approach to the physics and chemistry of cooking appeals particularly to students looking for science fair projects ..." Booklist, Mark Knoblauch
by Peter Barham Springer Verlag, 2001. 244 pp.
"A kitchen is no different from most science laboratories and cookery may properly be regarded as an experimental science. Food preparation and cookery involve many processes that are well described by the physical sciences. Understanding the chemistry and physics of cooking should lead to improvements in performance in the kitchen. For those of us who wish to know why certain recipes work and perhaps more importantly why others fail, appreciating the underlying physical processes will inevitably help in unraveling the mysteries of the "art" of good cooking. Dr. Peter Barham has long been involved in popularizing science in Great Britain where he has lectured and been on radio and television shows on the science of food. " Book Description.
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