Trying to understand umami
We recently just made our first batch of dashi - the Japanese soup stock made with kombu (dried kelp) - one of the purest sources of umami . So it was fortuitous that one of our readers, Ken, brought our attention to…
2013
An honest-to-goodness foolproof way to poach an egg
We all have little challenges in life that aren't momentous but are a constant irritant - and cooking a perfect poached egg was one of ours. Somehow, despite numerous attempts, research and, yes, even cooking school…
All About Branding
Let's talk for a moment about "branding," a term one hears a great deal of in cookbook publishing these days. Everybody does it: The TV chef who sells a line of cookware, the market gardener who starts a blog, the…
What do 2012's best-selling cookbooks tell us about food trends?
It seems that Spring (finally arriving here in the Northern hemisphere) really starts the new cycle of cookbooks. But before we let go of last year, Cooking by the Numbers - an analysis by Publishers Weekly of just what…
Our five favorite April Fool's Day sites
We'll admit to being a little jealous at some of the great April Fool's Day sites that have gone up today - we applaud both the cleverness and the humor in the companies that have surrendered their sites to whimsy.…
Busting common food myths
Angela Keller, writing for the Daily Meal, took on some common food myths and busted them all. Here's a short list of the kitchen myths she refuted - you can check out all the myths and the full details in Busting the…
Holidays & Celebrations Recipes
Thomas Keller loves Peeps!
Thomas Keller is certainly one of the top 5 most respected chefs in the world, so it wasn't surprising that NPR visited him to talk about his favorite Easter recipes, as reported in Homemade Peeps, And More Easter…
March 2013 cookbook roundup
Every month Susie Chang reviews new cookbook releases and notes trends. And she may also occasionally throw in a review of a "not-quite cookbook." We're arranging for similar roundups like Susie's for books published in…
Interview with Deborah Madison
We recently sat down with Deborah Madison, winner of too many IACP, Julia Child, and James Beard awards for her vegetarian cookbooks to list. She has just added a new one: Vegetable Literacy. This book uses a unique…
Teeny-weeny tiny print!
As I might have mentioned a while back, I'm in the middle of developing this cookbook-rating app, which means that I've been going through the backlist and re-examining cookbooks from about the last 12 years (as well as…
Do TV chefs have to be sexy to succeed?
Both the Guardian in the U.K. and the Braiser in the U.S. have recently weighed in on the question: Do TV chefs have to be sex symbols to be successful? It's a good question - and may explain why the most talented chefs…
Weird British foods we must try
How could we resist an article called "18 Weird and Wonderful British Foods You Need to Try"? Given our global membership we're all for creating a community of food, so pointing out this article provides a public…