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Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Vol. 1

Product Details

  • Author: Julia Child
  • Publication Date: 2001-10-16
  • Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf
  • Product Group: Book
  • Manufacturer: Alfred A. Knopf
  • Binding: Hardcover, 752 pages
  • Package Dimensions:
    • Dimensions: 1000L x 750W x 170H
    • Weight: 340
  • List Price: $40.00
  • ISBN: 0375413405
  • ASIN: 0375413405

Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Vol. 1

Product Description

Anyone can cook in the French manner anywhere, wrote Mesdames Beck, Bertholle, and Child, with the right instruction. And here is the book that, for forty years, has been teaching Americans how. Mastering the Art of French Cooking is for both seasoned cooks and beginners who love good food and long to reproduce at home the savory delights of the classic cuisine, from the historic Gallic masterpieces to the seemingly artless perfection of a dish of spring-green peas. This beautiful book, with more than one hundred instructive illustrations, is revolutionary in its approach because: It leads the cook infallibly from the buying and handling of raw ingredients, through each essential step of a recipe, to the final creation of a delicate confection. It breaks down the classic cuisine into a logical sequence of themes and variations rather than presenting an endless and diffuse catalogue of recipes; the focus is on key recipes that form the backbone of French cookery and lend themselves to an infinite number of elaborationsbound to increase anyones culinary repertoire. It adapts classical techniques, wherever possible, to modern American conveniences. It shows Americans how to buy products, from any supermarket in the U.S.A., that reproduce the exact taste and texture of the French ingredients: equivalent meat cuts, for example; the right beans for a cassoulet; the appropriate fish and shellfish for a bouillabaisse. It offers suggestions for just the right accompaniment to each dish, including proper wines. Since there has never been a book as instructive and as workable as Mastering the Art of French Cooking, the techniques learned here can be applied to recipes in all other French cookbooks, making them infinitely more usable. In compiling the secrets of famous cordons bleus, the authors have produced a magnificent volume that is sure to find the place of honor in every kitchen in America.

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Customer Reviews

Average Amazon User Rating: 5.0 stars

3 stars Hit or Miss 2010-01-02

Reviewer: Marilyn D. Abrams

I was very excited to purchase this cookbook after watching the movie Julie and Julia - like many of you, I'm sure. The first night, I cooked the Provençal Vegetable Soup, the Cauliflower au Gratin and the Reine de Saba cake. All three recipes turned out beautifully, and I was happy to finally find a cookbook that made french cuisine easy to cook but still sophisticated to taste. The next day, I explored more of the recipes and made the Quiche au Roquefort and the onion soup. The onion soup was delightful, but the Quiche was an utter disaster. The recipe was EXTREMELY complex and difficult to follow due to a few clarity issues, and the end product was so rich it was inedible. Later, since I enjoyed the Reine de Saba cake so much, I tried the Chocolate Spongecake. Although the recipe was simple enough, the resulting cake could not hold its shape at all and could not come out of the pan even though I thoroughly buttered and floured it. So after my short experience, I think you should come into cooking with this book with an open mind, ready for both great success and failure. What can be guaranteed, though, is that when the recipe is a success, the cuisine is mind blowing delicious!

5 stars Julia Child's Timeless Book 2010-01-01

Reviewer: Julie Bates

I bought this book after perusing it at the library. I soon realized that it is priceless in that it explains the why and how as well as the what of cookery. Child's technique of presenting a master recipe then explaining on how simple additions or techniques make it something different allows a relatively inexperienced cook to see how the chemistry of cooking works. This book is nonthreatening and the illustrations are precise and not artsy. Using this book I have prepared dished I never had previously with success. It is volume well worth having and using.

5 stars Recipes are very involved, but great book 2009-12-31

Reviewer: A. Schroeder

After watching the recent movie about Julie Child, I felt compelled to get this book. It is not exactly a quick recipe guide, in fact the recipes are rather involved and challenging. I am enjoying the few items I have made from the book and hope you do to.

5 stars Best Christmas Present! 2009-12-29

Reviewer: JS

I have found that as I have got older, I am loving cooking and baking much more. So when I received this book for Christmas I was eager to try at least one thing within a couple of days. The potatoes gratin dauphinois - so easy and oh my gosh, so delicious!! This book is going to be used well :)

5 stars What a great gift 2009-12-28

Reviewer: olivia

This is a wonderful gift for the "cook in your life" especially when accompanied with the movie "Julia and Julie" that really helps bring it to life. I gave the cookbook and movie as gifts to two special people in my life and they absolutely LOVED it! Thanks Amazon for having the items available, shipping in such a timely manner, and making it a memorable Christmas for many. I look forward to tasting some delicious cuisine very soon. Thank you!