Status
Available
Call number
Collections
Publication
HarperCollins Publishers Ltd (1992), Hardcover, 356 pages
Description
When Harold McGee's On Food and Cooking was published in 1984, it proved to be one of the sleepers of the year, eventually going through eight hardcover printings. It was hailed as a minor masterpiece" and reviewers around the world prasied McGee for writing the first book for the home cook that translated into plain English what scientist had discovered about our foods. Like why chefs beat eggs whites in copper bowls and why onions make us cry."
User reviews
LibraryThing member wenestvedt
Not nearly as good as his first book, this one has one "experiment" per chapter and none of them are as satisfying as the more linear, textbook-paced writing of the first one.
LibraryThing member BlankReg
Harold McGee is an excellent and engaging food science writer. I only wish this book were more given over to experimentation and not (as is the case) half of it meandering musings. Still recommended, though.
Physical description
356 p.
ISBN
0004126637 / 9780004126630
Local notes
McGee applies the scientific method to his kitchen activities, examining many common foods and cooking methods. The first group of experimental chapters answers such questions as: Why do lettuces, avocados, and basil leaves turn brown, and how can you retain the green in salads, guacamole, and pesto? In a second group of chapters, Harold muses on the fact that although many of us are eating better and more variously than ever before, we're also more anxious that our eating habits will do us in and he gets at the facts underlying current dietary controversies. Concluding chapters on the enduring appeal of cooked foods show how a scientific perspective can enrich our experiences of cooking, eating, and living.