Fish Without a Doubt: The Cook's Essential Companion
Author: Rick Moonen
Comprehensive. Friendly. Indispensable. With more than 250 simple and delicious recipes.
No doubt about it, fish is a cook's dream. Fast. Low in fat, versatile, and healthful, it's even brain food. No other fish cookbook contains such a comprehensive selection of approachable, contemporary recipes. It's written by a pair of experts: a nationally known three-star seafood chef whose true passion is teaching home cooks, and an award-winning writer and sought-after food authority. Arranged for the cook's complete convenience, Fish without a Doubt encompasses chapters on all the techniques of fish cookery—from poaching to grilling to sautéing—as well as on all the most popular seafood dishes—from appetizers, to soups and salads, to burgers and pasta.
The recipes range from updated versions of classics (Trout Almondine, Linguine with Clams, Jumbo Lump Crab Cakes) to the latest favorites (Steamed Black Bass with Sizzling Ginger,Tuna Burgers with Cucumber Relish, Thai-Style Mussels). It includes slews of quickies for weeknight specials (Broiled Fillets with Butter and Herbs) and centerpieces for splashier occasions (A Big Poached Char). Featuring only seafood that is not overfished, Fish without a Doubt provides the latest information for the eco-conscious cook about our last wild frontier.
The New York Times - Sam Sifton
Fish is hard to cook well. Moonen, a celebrated American chef, aims to simplify the process, to remove the home cook's natural fear, and he mostly succeeds
Publishers Weekly
Moonen is a fish guy, having served as chef-owner of two seafood temples in New York City. In this new book, he shares his expertise-from how to shop for fish to how to clean it and how to cook it. The cleaning, scaling and filleting pages are particularly good, with clear instructions and excellent photos that leave little room for doubt. Moonen, with coauthor Finamore (Tasty), covers everything from American classics like Manhattan Clam Chowder to modern dishes such as Creamy Fennel Soup with Salmon and Citrus Ragu. What separates this book from others is its focus on sustainability. Moonen is a founding member of Seafood Choices Alliance and an early advocate for chefs making responsible choices when it comes to seafood. The first chapter contains a list of each fish in the book, the best way to cook it and the state of its population. There are no endangered fish on the list (or in the book), because, as Moonen explains in his introduction, "I'm holding off for the time when I can feel confident that these populations are strong again." For a chef whose current venture is a 16,000-square-foot restaurant in Las Vegas, this kind of restraint might seem surprising, but given the dramatic collapse of seafood populations, Moonen is a welcome and essential voice in the home chef's kitchen. (May 21)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.Christine Bulson - Library Journal
Moonen, a chef originally from New York, has traveled west and now owns RM Seafood in Las Vegas. He is committed to buying and serving seafood that comes from abundant populations under sound management. In his first cookbook, he only uses fish that are sustainable; there are no recipes for monkfish, skate, red snapper, pompano, or Patagonian toothfish (aka Chilean sea bass). The 250 recipes here are written for the home kitchen, are relatively simple, and employ clear instructions. Included are the usual (e.g., grilled salmon steaks, clam fritters) and the unique (e.g., citrus roast lobster and whole fish roasted in salt). The chapters are arranged first by technique-poaching, broiling, grilling, etc.-followed by recipes for appetizers, soups, salads, pastas, and fish cakes that use a great variety of fish and shellfish. The last two chapters are for sauces, spice mixes, and nonfish side dishes. This will be a requested item because it may be the first environmentally correct fish cookbook. Recommended for all cookery collections.
Cook with Jamie: My Guide to Making You a Better Cook
Author: Jamie Oliver
Jamie Oliver believes this should have been his first book: a crash course in the "basics of food, shopping, and cooking with great ingredients. " Treating the reader as he would one of the students in his inspirational "Fifteen" restaurants, where he transforms ordinary youths into great chefs, Oliver explains it all" from the best equipment, to shopping tips, right down to how to recognize and prepare different cuts of meat (essential knowledge, in Oliver's book)! Each chapter covers an essential food category, the building blocks on which to build a respectable repertoire as a burgeoning chef, and is prefaced by a mini-introduction to the category, including tips for getting started. In the chapter on salads, for example, Oliver explains not only the best leaves, vegetables and herbs, but also how to make basic dressings; in the fish chapter, he details different types of fish, and how to be more discerning at the market. Oliver has created a truly important book for anyone, at any stage in life, who just wants to cook better and have fun in the process. As he says, "if you're going to eat three times a day for the rest of your life, you might as well learn to cook properly and enjoy it! More than 175 recipes.
Publishers Weekly
The seemingly inexhaustible Oliver (The Naked Chef, Happy Days with the Naked Chef, etc.) returns with what may be his best book yet. Aiming to educate readers on cooking basics, Oliver offers more than 175 recipes, which emphasize flavor and freshness over labor-intensive preparation. With a conversational style that favors general guidelines over strict instructions-recipes often call for a "knob of butter," a "handful of shelled peas" or "a big handful of freshly grated Parmesan"-Oliver's friendly and enthusiastic approach handily deflates new-cook anxiety. Loaded with photos that cover common skills like cleaning and preparing fresh lobster, discerning degrees of doneness in meat and crafting homemade pasta, Oliver's patient explanations leave little room for confusion. His dishes, many of which are updated versions of classics, are impressive and accessible. A simple baked potato is made savory by stuffing it with bacon, anchovies and sage, and a basic risotto becomes extraordinary with the addition of apples, walnuts and Gorgonzola. Empathizing with those strapped for time, he offers four takes on that trusty fallback, chicken breasts, all of which can be prepared in a single baking dish. Loaded with everyday dishes ranging from fried calamari and onion gratin to shortbread cookies, this volume doesn't set any new culinary standards, but it will certainly make an impact on determined newcomers still intimidated by the prospect of preparing a three-course dinner. Profits will be donated to Oliver's Fifteen Foundation, which teaches underprivileged kids worldwide how to cook. (Oct.)
Copyright 2007 Reed Business Information
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