Skip to main content

Lookery books



If you're a serial offender in the cookery book purchase stakes (I declare right now that its more of an addiction than a hobby for me) you will, I'm sure, have many books that you have never cooked from ... or perhaps more tellingly only cooked from once.
In my collection many of these are actually amongst the best looking books in my collection, I have dubbed them 'Lookery' books. They lure you in with fabulous design, often combined with a cover that not only looks good but feels so good you want to lay your face on it.
In my collection many of them are from restaurants that I have enjoyed being to, loved the food and thought I must cook that at home. They are the culinary equivalent of ouzo and limoncello great when you're there not so great when you're back home ( actually limoncello isn't great anywhere)
This weekend I tried the Slanted Door by Charles Phan. We went to the restaurant, which is in the old ferry building in San Francisco when we were on the West Coast last year. Its great, don't let this review put you off if you happen to be in the area, but .......
This Saturday was a horrible day weather wise, I know, I thought, I'll cook something different, different cuisine and different book ... surprise myself.
Like many Asian recipes there's quite a lot of prep and then a last minute bringing together. I cooked a tuna tartare, Shaking beef and prawns with long beans. The tuna was fine but no better than any other tartare I had prepared before. The prawns were nice but the beans were basically raw and the beef ... well lets say no piece of fillet beef should end up tasting that way.

It didn't end up looking like the picture, it was a bit of a soupy mess of stewed beef and pondweed, which is a bit frustrating when you have spent a few hours 'labouring' away at it. I was as always grumpy about it and couldn't be consoled by Mrs Cook's entreaties that it 'tastes great'
The point of this is not to blame the book ... it's almost certainly my fault ... but sadly it had to be consigned to the lookery book section in my study not the one in the kitchen where the atual cookery books hang out.
It seems comfortable in the cookery book graveyard with my Manoir Quattre Saison book and a Locatelli or two. Its not that I wont look at them again, there will come a time when I need a respite from 'working at home' and i'll pick them up and slaver over the recipes ... I just wont cook from them.... well at least not for a while.
Theres a skill in putting together a really good cookbook, one that delivers every time but also surprises you. It's made Jamie Oliver a fortune, but shout-outs should also go to those restaurant owning chefs that can also deliver in the cookery book stakes. Rose Grey, Ruth Rogers, Yotam Ottollenghi, Sam and Sam clark, Bill Granger, April Bloomfield and Skye Gyngell I salute you and cover your books in stains





Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Crack potatoes courtesy of Ottolenghi. Harissa and confit garlic roast potatoes

Another recipe from Ottolenghi's Simple, another recommendation from Will Saunders.   I know its the middle of summer but who doesn't love a roastie? These little tinkers are so good that they are like crack, class A calories. The clever bit is the addition of semolina and caraway seeds which adds a new level of crunchiness to add to the delicious warm heat of Harissa. Heres the recipe These make a lovely, spicy change from the traditional Sunday roasties. They’re especially good with spiced roast meat. Serves six to eight. 2 large heads garlic, cloves separated and peeled 130g goose or duck fat 4 sprigs fresh rosemary  6 sprigs fresh thyme  2kg maris piper potatoes, peeled and cut into 5cm chunks 40g ground semolina 2 tsp caraway seeds, toasted and lightly crushed 2 tbsp rose harissa Flaky sea salt Heat the oven to 150C/300F/gas mark 2. Put the garlic, fat and herbs in a small ovenproof pan or saucepan for which you have a lid. Cover and roast for 40 minut
1 comment
Read more

Nigel Slaters deceptively brilliant monkfish

Lisa discovered this recipe in her favourite Nigel book. It is one of those fish, 'but not as we know it Jim' recipes. Not just because Monkfish is the fish that can best impersonate meat but also because of the marinade ingredients that are more often featured with lamb. It's not difficult to do but the flavour is a revelation, which makes it a perfect recipe in my book. This can be cooked on a grill pan or a barbecue. Ingredients 3 bushy sprigs rosemary, leaves finely chopped 4 anchovy fillets 2 large cloves garlic salt and freshly ground black pepper 1 large lemon, juice only 3 tbsp olive oil 800g/1½lb monkfish fillet Method Pull the leaves from the rosemary stalks and chop them finely, then tip them into a bowl large enough to take the fish. Rinse the anchovy fillets and smash them to a rough pulp with the flat edge of your chopping knife. Peel the garlic, crush it flat, then smash it to a purée in the same way. Stir together the herb, anchovy and garlic, adding a grind
1 comment
Read more

Sea Bass on mushroom potatoes with salsa Verde

I felt the overwhelming need to cook something new on Saturday night. I didn't want the tired and tested I wanted to explore new culinary waters. However combined with this desire was an equal and opposing force, driven by being absolutely knackered, that meant it had to be simple too. I returned to one of Jamie's early books, to a recipe that IO had meant to do on countless occasions but never quite got round to. I have done several versions of Sea Bass on a bed of potatoes, some that I have written about on this blog. The one question I would have is about the thickness of the potatoes and the length of time they need to be cooked through ... in my oven I reckon they need about 10 minutes more than the recipe suggests. I would suggest a bit of a trial run if you are going to do it for a dinner party ... however once you have given it a whirl I think this makes for a very easy recipe for a crowd. Here's the recipe. Roasted slashed fillet of sea bass stuffed with herbs, bak
1 comment
Read more