On Food and Cooking
Encyclopedia
On Food And Cooking: The Science And Lore Of The Kitchen is a book by Harold McGee
, published by Scribner
in the United States
in 1984 and revised extensively for a 2004 second edition. It is published by Hodder & Stoughton
in Britain
under the title McGee on Food and Cooking: An Encyclopedia of Kitchen Science, History and Culture.
The book provides a reference to the scientific understanding and preparation of food
. It has been described by Alton Brown
as "the Rosetta stone
of the culinary world", Daniel Boulud
has called the book a "must for every cook who possesses an inquiring mind", while Heston Blumenthal
has stated it is "the book that has had the greatest single impact on my cooking".
The work is separated into sections that focus on the ingredients, providing the structure for the author to speculate on the history of foodstuffs and cookery, and the molecular characteristics of food flavours, while the text is illustrated by charts, graphs, pictures, and sidebar boxes with quotes from sources such as Brillat-Savarin
and Plutarch
. The book advises on how to cook many things (e.g., for pasta use abundant water, avoid hard water, add salt and a little oil to water, use slightly acidic water, with reasons and the science behind everything, OFac 2nd ed. p576) and includes a few historical recipe
s (e.g., Fish or Meat Jelly, by Taillevent in 1375, OFaC 2nd ed. p584), but no modern recipes as such.
Harold McGee
Harold McGee is an American author who writes about the chemistry, technique and history of food and cooking and has written two seminal books on kitchen science. His first book, On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen was initially published in 1984. A greatly revised second...
, published by Scribner
Charles Scribner's Sons
Charles Scribner's Sons, or simply Scribner, is an American publisher based in New York City, known for publishing a number of American authors including Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Kurt Vonnegut, Stephen King, Robert A. Heinlein, Thomas Wolfe, George Santayana, John Clellon...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in 1984 and revised extensively for a 2004 second edition. It is published by Hodder & Stoughton
Hodder & Stoughton
Hodder & Stoughton is a British publishing house, now an imprint of Hachette.-History:The firm has its origins in the 1840s, with Matthew Hodder's employment, aged fourteen, with Messrs Jackson and Walford, the official publisher for the Congregational Union...
in Britain
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
under the title McGee on Food and Cooking: An Encyclopedia of Kitchen Science, History and Culture.
The book provides a reference to the scientific understanding and preparation of food
Food
Food is any substance consumed to provide nutritional support for the body. It is usually of plant or animal origin, and contains essential nutrients, such as carbohydrates, fats, proteins, vitamins, or minerals...
. It has been described by Alton Brown
Alton Brown
Alton Crawford Brown is an American television personality, author, actor, and cinematographer. He is the creator and host of the Food Network television show Good Eats and the mini-series Feasting on Asphalt and Feasting on Waves, and he is the host and main commentator on Iron Chef America...
as "the Rosetta stone
Rosetta Stone
The Rosetta Stone is an ancient Egyptian granodiorite stele inscribed with a decree issued at Memphis in 196 BC on behalf of King Ptolemy V. The decree appears in three scripts: the upper text is Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs, the middle portion Demotic script, and the lowest Ancient Greek...
of the culinary world", Daniel Boulud
Daniel Boulud
Daniel Boulud is a French chef and restaurateur with restaurants in New York City, Palm Beach, Miami, Montreal, Beijing, and Singapore...
has called the book a "must for every cook who possesses an inquiring mind", while Heston Blumenthal
Heston Blumenthal
Heston Marc Blumenthal OBE is an English chef and owner of The Fat Duck, a three-Michelin-starred restaurant in Bray, Berkshire voted Best Restaurant in the UK by The Good Food Guide 2007 and 2009, and voted best restaurant in the world by Restaurant magazine in 2005...
has stated it is "the book that has had the greatest single impact on my cooking".
The work is separated into sections that focus on the ingredients, providing the structure for the author to speculate on the history of foodstuffs and cookery, and the molecular characteristics of food flavours, while the text is illustrated by charts, graphs, pictures, and sidebar boxes with quotes from sources such as Brillat-Savarin
Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin
Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin was a French lawyer and politician, and gained fame as an epicure and gastronome: "Grimod and Brillat-Savarin...
and Plutarch
Plutarch
Plutarch then named, on his becoming a Roman citizen, Lucius Mestrius Plutarchus , c. 46 – 120 AD, was a Greek historian, biographer, essayist, and Middle Platonist known primarily for his Parallel Lives and Moralia...
. The book advises on how to cook many things (e.g., for pasta use abundant water, avoid hard water, add salt and a little oil to water, use slightly acidic water, with reasons and the science behind everything, OFac 2nd ed. p576) and includes a few historical recipe
Recipe
A recipe is a set of instructions that describe how to prepare or make something, especially a culinary dish.-Components:Modern culinary recipes normally consist of several components*The name of the dish...
s (e.g., Fish or Meat Jelly, by Taillevent in 1375, OFaC 2nd ed. p584), but no modern recipes as such.
External links
- On Food and Cooking on McGee's site "Curious Cook"