About this title: From the author of "The Elements of Cooking" comes a groundbreaking book thatexplains the very essential truth of cooking: it is not the recipe itself butrather two unchanging components that make all food come together. b&w photosthroughout.
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Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Scribner
Date Published: 4/7/2009
ISBN-13:9781416566113ISBN:1416566112
Description: Fine. 1416566112 Ships next business day. NEW/UNREAD! ! ! Text is Clean and Unmarked! --Be Sure to Compare Seller Feedback and Ratings before Purchasing--Has a small black line on bottom/exterior edge of pages. May have light shelf wear to cover from storage, if any. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Scribner
Date Published: 2009-04-07
ISBN-13:9781416566113ISBN:1416566112
Description: New. New, unread, unused & in perfect condition with no damaged or missing pages. This is a paperback with same cover and publisher stickers. This book is the same isbn, but is a paperback. Great Copy. Ships Lightning Fast. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Scribner
Date Published: 2009-04-07
ISBN-13:9781416566113ISBN:1416566112
Description: New. This is a paperback with same cover and publisher stickers. This book is the same isbn, but is a paperback. New, unread, unused & in perfect condition with no damaged or missing pages. Great Copy. Ships Lightning Fast. read more
Binding: Hardback
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Date Published: 2009
ISBN-13:9781416566113ISBN:1416566112
Description: New. From the author of "The Elements of Cooking" comes a groundbreaking book thatexplains the very essential truth of cooking: it is not the recipe itself butrather two unchanging components that make all food come together. b&w photosthroughout. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Scribner
Date Published: 2009-04-07
ISBN-13:9781416566113ISBN:1416566112
Description: NEW. Hardcover. From an inventory that is 100% brand-new, 100% direct from the publishers' distribution channel. We carry NO pre-owned, NO remaindered. We pack in CARDBOARD to ensure the pristine quality is maintained. (Bubble-wrap alone is NOT sufficient to protect from USPS equipment. ) Guaranteed brand-NEW, protected with CARDBOARD, your satisfaction is guaranteed. BKLUVID: 9781416566113. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Scribner Book Company
Date Published: 2009
ISBN-13:9781416566113ISBN:1416566112
Description: New. No dust jacket as issued. Glued binding. Paper over boards. With dust jacket. 244 p. Contains: Illustrations. Audience: General/trade. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Scribner Book Company
Date Published: 2009
ISBN-13:9781416566113ISBN:1416566112
Description: Fine. No dust jacket as issued. Glued binding. Paper over boards. With dust jacket. 244 p. Contains: Illustrations. Audience: General/trade. read more
"I was fascinated with this book. Ruhlman can go on at times, but overall it was a well-written exploration of one of the most fundamental concepts in cooking: ratios. Guided by a simple spreadsheet bestowed on him by one of America's premier chefs, Ruhlman explains how ratios connect our breads and donuts, quiches and ice creams. Even sausages and stocks come under close scrutiny.
Even if you aren't moved to start making your own slurries, the information in the book will give you a better understanding of the art and science of cooking."
"I read about this book in the New York Times and it sounds like a cool idea. Actually, I bought it for someone else, but they still haven't read it and I borrowed it back from them. Granted, I like the chart on graph paper he describes that inspired the book more than carry around another cook book, but I love this idea. And to think I've been making biscuits, cookies and pancakes for years and not really thinking about the basis for all of them and what makes them different. Perhaps I will translate this book into a graph to post in the kitchen. A challenge for me with this book is cooking so often with someone allergic to dairy and eggs, which are so central to the ratios. What are good and tasty substitutes? Ah, the vegans dilemma. There are just some times that Earth Balance and olive oil (as much as I love them both) are not equivalent to butter. Ruhlman is a good writer, I should say, and I think I liked his stories about the food as much as the food advice."
"Michael Ruhlman has much valuable information to communicate; the ratio concept is clearly crucial if one wants to fully understand and experiment with baking in particular. However, he is not a very skilled prose stylist. The book is too busy; it continually throws out disorganized and poorly focused extra information. The intention seems to have been to stay nonthreatening by adopting a casual, spontaneous, and personal tone. However, when combined with the more mathematical aspects of the ratio system, this backfires, creating a muddled manuscript apparently written by "an actual scientician!"
A decent editor could have tightened and reorganized this prose to make a substantially clearer book. It's too bad Ruhlman didn't have one.
Observe:
"Ratios is one of the greatest cooking lessons there is." (p. xxiv) "Meaning there's no fat in it." (p.9)
Are you serious? Basic grammatical mistakes like these just make you look like a moron.
"One of the best pies there is, and an easy one and an economical one, is the chicken pot pie (or beef, fish, or vegetable)." (p. 29)
Look how much is going on in this astoundingly poorly constructed sentence. Instant rewrite: "One of the best, easiest, and most economical pies is the pot pie." That isn't even a very compelling sentence after its rewrite!
"Which is why I love cooking. It's all one thing. Which is the ultimate comfort in a life fraught with uncertainty and questions. Which is why I don't fear dying. Which is what I'd put on my headstone if I thought being buried in the ground mattered: 'It's all one thing.' Which is why I love batters." (p.57)
I practically can't even read this. Everything in the entire ungrammatical passage is bizarre, confusing, and self-indulgent.
In short, although the information is good, problems like these make the book almost intolerable to a person with any ear for language."
"I'm very intrigued at the approach this book takes: that understanding the basic ratios in many "core" recipes allows one to improvise freely in the kitchen. This is a bit of a misnomer, though, since in some things the basic techniques are equally important (such as the differences between pound and sponge cakes; the ratios are the same, it's the technique that makes them different). I'll admit, though, at this point I have not yet tried cooking using the reatio system- though I'm looking forward to doing so- and may edit my review after I try a few different ratios."
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