The Flavor Bible: The Essential Guide to Culinary Creativity, Based on the Wisdom of America's Most Imaginative Chefs

I bought this book for my husband who is an "intuitive" cook, in that he rarely follows recipes - he creates by flavor. I thought he would find this book intriguing, and he did. However, he also found (and implemented) all kinds of new and unusual flavor combos that he had never thought of...this

Show More

book really "thinks outside the box" but also has very practical uses. A book that I thought was interesting trivia, turned out to be an amazing tool for my husband. This book is not recipes (we have enough recipes at our house), rather it is for inspiration. Also I would think a novice cook could learn a great deal about cooking from this book.

Show Less

AWESOME!! Make sure you read chapters 1 and 2 before you delve in to the flavor charts!

When I first heard of this book I thought it would be filled with recipes but this is all about flavor and how to enhance it. Until recently, dishes were based on geography and what was available near you. Now that ingredients are available all over the world they are based on flavor. This book was

Show More

eight years in the making and is meant to inspire greater, more innovative creations. This guide to hundreds of different ingredients along with different seasonings, herbs and spices will allow you to derive the most flavor from the various combinations.

The book is divided into three chapters. The first is a short chapter on how to recognize the language of food. This explains taste and touch (perceived by the mouth), aroma (perceived by the nose) and the "x factor" (perceived by the heart, mind and spirit). The second chapter is also short and is about how to make food taste great by understanding the moment and the ingredients. The moment is comprised of such things as the weather, budget, time, occasion and other resources. The ingredients are based on regionality, season, weight, function and flavor. Chapter 3 makes up the rest of the book and has detailed charts on flavor matchmaking. They are listed in alphabetical order with easy to follow symbols and instructions. Mixed throughout are sample dishes and tips from leading experts from top restaurants.

I am amazed by the details in this book. There are flavor combinations and enhancements I never would have dreamed of. My husband is the cook in the family and loves to collect spices, sauces and seasonings. I'm pretty sure he will also be amazed by the contents of this guide.

Show Less

This has become my absolute favorite book to cook with. I have a plethora of cookbooks with recipes for almost anything but sometimes have trouble finding the exact recipe I want to use. Karen Page and Andrew Dornenburg have talked to well-known and well-respected chefs across the country and

Show More

developed this massive chart (fully 90% of the book) of "flavor matches". With it, I can start with any one ingredient (hmm...I think I'm in the mood to make something with ginger) go to the appropriate page and find a list of other things that go with it. I have sometimes started with one ingredient, found my second off that list, then turned to the list for the second and found my third, and so on. (Did you know that ginger and tomatoes can be turned into a great sauce for chicken?) If you are the type to slavishly follow recipes, this book may be a bit overwhelming. But if, like me, you find yourself starting with a recipe and making changes as you go along, or even combining two completely different recipes to make a third, this book NEEDS to join your collection.

Show Less

Thanks to Anna Balasi from Hachette for sending me this book to review and peruse.
It isn't a cookbook. What it is is a encyclopaedia of food ingredients like chicken or beef with traditional pairings of flavors that suit them and very untraditional ingredients that will enhance and challenge your

Show More

taste buds.

This is not a book for the cooking challenged...nor does it give any type of step by step instructions or directions. but for an experienced cook who is looking for ideas and exciting food flavors...then this is your answer.
Flavors such as basil for our traditional pesto but also basil for syrups and fruits. This is an empowering resource for someone experienced in the kitchen who is looking for new ideas.
The book is set up with ingredients listed alphabetically and appropriate choices and pairings listed with each...the best bolded to allow easier experimentation.

Thank you for this invaluable resource...a beautiful book to add to my cooking library

Show Less

This is insanity, insanely amazing for sure! The Flavor Bible was written as a reference type guide for when you have several ingredients but enhancing their unique flavours for the best culenary experience result is just beyond you. How does it work? Well, you figure out what you are interested in

Show More

working on, for me that means what I have in the fridge that I need to eat, or sometimes what I buy on impulse at our amazing Saturday Market and then blunder because I have no idea how it should even be cooked. After you have your ingredient/s you check out what pairs well with it, and for each ingredient or spice there is a crazy long list that you can drool over and choose from. And probably designed especially for me, there are sometimes parings to avoid and they are also listed, YAY!

There are also sections titled Flavor Affinities where you can plan a trio of yummy delight, or the " understanding [of] what herbs, spices and other seasonings will best bring out the flavor of whatever it is you're cooking" (p. 33). I can't wait to try some of the ones I see listed! More than a cookbook, this is a reference guide that any person who likes their food to taste good would enjoy. The Flavor Bible lists so many options for most ingredients, many times probably saving you the trip out to the store for that unnecessary item, and that extra candy bar (for the road, you know!).

Most of the book is what the authors call, Flavor Matchmaking: The Charts, but there are two other chapters as well. The first chapter is titled: Flavor= Taste + Mouthfeel + Aroma + "the X factor": Learning to Recognize the Language of Food. And really it is a great chapter emphasizing the importance of things such as saltiness, temperature, bitterness, texture, and pungency. I was intregued by "the X Factor" and that is how the food affects us emotionally, mentally and spiritually.

The second chapter is called, Great Cooking= Maximizing Flavor + Pleasure by Tapping Body + Heart+ Mind + Spirit: Communicating Via the Language of Food, seriously that is a great title as well! This Chapter discusses things such as " Understanding the Essence of the Ingredients", the " Understanding the Essence of the Moment" (p. 25)

This really is a great one, in so many ways! I actually think it is "practically perfect in every way" haha, that is no joke though, it is exquisite! Check out this video below and then you will want it even more :)

Show Less

This heavy, almost 400-page tome is a great idea for someone who is already a good cook, but who would like to become a gourmet. It's divided into three sections: Learning the Language of Food, Communicating Via the Language of Food, and The Charts, which focuses on the matchmaking of flavors. It's

Show More

quite detailed. Why there's ten pages on cheese! It's a culinary reference book for the chef at heart.

Show Less

Tired of experimenting with herbs and spices, wondering how to enhance the flavor of your food? Wonder no more. This book will make it all clear. It is a reference work, so, no recipes, it simply lists the culinary combinations of the world's greatest chefs. Who knew that a little lime juice would

Show More

so greatly enhance the taste of watermelon? Or, that adding sugar, not honey, brings out the best taste from my strawberry smoothies? This book is a must-have.

Show Less

Let me start off by giving you the bad:
You are going to want this book for your collection so don't bother with borrowing it from the library.
The library wants their copies back-I know! The nerve!
This is not really a book for beginner's. It doesn't tell you step by step what to do with food.

The

Show More

Good:
It does tell you flavors and tastes that pair with other tastes and I likey that.
If you have a bunch of asparagus about to go bad in the fridge just pick up this book and it will tell you flavours that meld well with it. It is very broad in foods included also.
Sometimes my mind is blank and I have no clue what to do for dinner. Looking through this book could very well inspire me. (I don't eat processed foods so my little foodie heart loves this)

Show Less

This is another great reference book for someone like me. I like to cook but I am not great at following a recipe. The Flavor Bible allows me to have an idea for a meal and flash it out with other flavors that work. Anotehr one to buy!

This is a go to reference for any cook, especially ones that like to play around with flavors. Covers most ingredients and what they pair with and what pairings should be avoided.

useful for the novice or for an experienced cook broadening their repertoire into new cuisines