McGee on Food and Cooking: An Encyclopedia of Kitchen Science, History and Culture

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From Plato’s views on cooking to electron micrographs of cheese to a description of how eggs form in a chicken’s body to the history of beer and chocolate, this book offers an intoxicating wealth of food information, trivia, and science.

I wish it would have more examples of common mistakes in the kitchen that could be explained by theory. This friend suggested that I hunt down something on the topic that approached things from a scientific perspective, and while looking I stumbled upon McGee. Some chapters look like they'll be exciting, like the chapter on sauce, but it's pretty much a chapter on the chemistry of thickening reagents. The description of what happens when you make mayonnaise definitely helped me avoid getting it wrong for example. A kitchen classic for over 35 years, and hailed by Time magazine as "a minor masterpiece" when it first appeared in 1984, On Food and Cooking is the bible which food lovers and professional chefs worldwide turn to for an understanding of where our foods come from, what exactly they're made of, and how cooking transforms them into something new and delicious.

Any time you want to know what you're actually doing when you're in the kitchen, this will spell it out for you. The 103 third parties who use cookies on this service do so for their purposes of displaying and measuring personalized ads, generating audience insights, and developing and improving products. Now, for its twentieth anniversary, Harold McGee has prepared a new, fully revised and updated edition of On Food and Cooking.

Nearly anything you might want to know about the history, etymology, and process of gastronomy is covered in this volume, but even that is too dry a description to really explain how fun it is. This is definitely a reference book to be laid open on a table and lovingly dipped into by an enquiring mind. Classic book for the cook who wants to know a little bit more about the science of food and cooking. Now completely rewritten for a new generation, reflecting the seismic shifts in science and upsurge in home cooking over the past two decades, this new book will amaze all those who love food.Throughout the book you will come across many descriptions of the evolution of techniques and equipment, the reasons for using certain techniques, the evolution of food technology etc. A read of a page or two from here will nicely explain why, and also you can see what’s happening in front of you and tweak to get the best results. Among the major themes addressed throughout the new edition are: Traditional and modern methods of food production and their influences on food quality The great diversity of methods by which people in different places and times have prepared the same ingredients Tips for selecting the best ingredients and preparing them successfully The particular substances that give foods their flavors, and that give us pleasure Our evolving knowledge of the health benefits and risks of foodsOn Food and Cooking is an invaluable and monumental compendium of basic information about ingredients, cooking methods, and the pleasures of eating. Some of our fellow humans will be repulsed by cheese because of an instinctual reaction to fermented foods.

If you've ever wondered why fish goes off quicker than meat; how to tell stale eggs from fresh ones; why you're supposed to leave pancake batter to rest; how it is that cheese can possibly have so many different permutations of flavour and texture; why chopping onions makes you cry; about the health benefits of chocolate and alcohol; why Jerusalem artichokes make you fart; or even how to avoid poisoning your guests - then this is the book for you. But super interesting to dip into if, for example, you want to know how caramelization works, what the difference is between the fermentation of sake and beer, or how the compositions of cow, human, and whale milk compare. The book is laid out in sections of basic ingredients and explains in layman's terms (mostly) how they're constructed, why they do what they do when treated in a certain way and gives tips that will apply to literally every single meal you cook. McGEE ON FOOD AND COOKING is a masterpiece of gastronomic writing; a rich, addictive blend of chemistry, history and anecdote that no self-respecting foodie or cook can afford to be without.On Food and Cooking is unique, engrossing reading and a major contribution to great culinary literature.