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Simple to Spectacular: How to Take One Basic Recipe to Four Levels of Sophistication

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Simple to Spectacular: How to Take One Basic Recipe to Four Levels of Sophistication (Hardcover)

by Jean-Georges Vongerichten (Author), Mark Bittman (Author)

4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (16 customer reviews)

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Product Details

Hardcover: 432 pages
Publisher: Broadway; 1 edition (Oct 10 2000)
Language: English, German, French, Italian, Spanish, Danish, Hindi, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Welsh
ISBN-10: 0767903609
ISBN-13: 978-0767903608
Product Dimensions: 25.6 x 20.6 x 3.2 cm
Shipping Weight: 1.6 Kg

Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (16 customer reviews)

Amazon.ca Sales Rank: #91,176 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Product Description

From Amazon.com

What happens when a world-class chef--Jean Georges Vongerichten, to be exact--writes a cookbook with a culinary minimalist, the New York Times food columnist Mark Bittman? The answer is Simple to Spectacular, a book that presents more than 250 recipes in a unique way. Here's the drill: a few-ingredient "core" recipe is offered, followed by formulas for four increasingly sophisticated (though not necessarily more taxing) variations. Chicken Breasts in Foil with Rosemary and Olive Oil, for example, yields to recipes for the breasts with tomatoes, olives, and Parmesan; with mushrooms, shallots, and sherry; Thai style; and, finally, with foie gras and porcini mushroom. In hands other than the authors', the dishes could be banal or overwrought. Vongerichten and Bittman triumph, however, presenting richly imagined yet straightforward fare whose preparation almost all cooks can manage.

Dish categories range from soups, salads, and entrees to seasonings, sauces, and desserts. In a number of cases, a particular ingredient, such as pasta, or a technique, such as vegetable roasting, is explored (the authors offer recipes for making plain pasta flavored with curry, for example). The sauce section is particularly useful and provides interesting theme-and-variation recipes for vinaigrettes and mayonnaises. Desserts, including Roasted Almond Ice Cream, Butter-Poached Pears with Praline, and Chocolate Tart in a Chocolate Crust, should please all sweet lovers. With 80 color photos, useful tips, and notes on food and equipment, Simple to Spectacular offers an original premise that will stimulate thought as well as great cooking. --Arthur Boehm

From Publishers Weekly

Following their James Beard Award- winning collaboration, Jean-Georges: Cooking at Home with a Four-Star Chef, Vongerichten and New York Times food columnist Bittman (The Minimalist) team up again, this time ingeniously leading home cooks from simple to spectacular dishes. "A mastery of basic recipes and an idea of how to vary them leads to almost limitless options," writes Bittman. They emphasize time-saving techniques and offer an intriguing range of flavor possibilities. An excellent section on seasonings and sauces introduces innovative flavor-enhancers such as Citrus Salt, Mint-Licorice Spice Mix and Lobster Oil Mayonnaise. The authors expertly marry an updated French culinary sensibility with Asian-inspired influences, gradually transforming one basic recipe into four increasingly sophisticated dishes by adding luxury ingredients (e.g., truffles, caviar) or unusual seasonings (like harissa or pistachio oil), or by incorporating more advanced techniques (such as making beurre noisette). Among the mouthwatering permutations on French-bistro basics, One-Hour Chicken Stock morphs into Rich Chicken Soup with Chestnuts and Mushrooms; Best Scrambled Eggs is elevated to Oeufs au Caviar; and Tuna Tartare takes a fancy turn as Tuna Spring Roll with Soybean Coulis. Clean, pared-down prose, helpful "Keys to Success" sidebars and clear recipe instructions ably guide both novice and seasoned cooks. With a masterful understanding of today's global pantry, the authors have produced a modern classic. (Oct.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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	78% buy the item featured on this page: Simple to Spectacular: How to Take One Basic Recipe to Four Levels of Sophistication 4.7 out of 5 stars (16) CDN$ 41.55
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Customer Reviews

16 Reviews

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(0)
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Average Customer Review

4.7 out of 5 stars (16 customer reviews)

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Most helpful customer reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars A Very Useable and Educational Book, Nov 23 2007

By	bachef (Alberta, Canada) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

I was initially a bit hesitant when purchasing this book as it seemed to be pretty basic but after flipping through it found some inspiration on a higher level. The recipes are still easy to create from the simple to more sublime, no matter which level is chosen.

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5.0 out of 5 stars Good ideas for beginners and more advanced cooks, Jul 11 2004

By A Customer

I cook a fair bit (many different cuisines). I am on the lookout for simple, tasty recipes ---I have two kids 2 and 5, so I no longer have time to try the fancier recipes of this book.

However, the simpler recipes alone are worth the price of the book. They give some insight into how a famous chef might cook for himself when pressed for time. For example, I've baked salmon hundreds of times over the years but the recipe in this book (the one with crushed capers) has enough minor twists I would never dream of myself---cooking at 350 degrees, with the skin side up, for example--- that lead to much better flavor.

The chicken with sherry vinegar is another example---credited to famous chef Paul Bocuse, but requires only half an hour, and uses no fancy ingredients. Several subtle touches lift it from the ordinary and show that chicken can sometimes be the best of all meats. All my family members, including the 2 year old, wiped their plates clean by soaking up the juices with bread!

The frenchtoast with bananas is another good and quick recipe.

To sum up, this is not an encyclopedic cookbook. It shows you how to do a few things well. It was a useful addition to my kitchen shelf. It might also be a good first cookbook for the starter cook who desires a few top-class results with minimal effort.

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5.0 out of 5 stars I never had hope for cooking until this book., Mar 17 2004

By A Customer

As someone who has subsisted largely on frozen dinners and prepared salads for most of my life, I'm shocked at the way this book has made really, really good food accessible and exciting. I'm obsessed with this book. You can go from zero to smoked salmon crepes, oeufs au caviar, braised hailbut and asparagus with mushrooms and cream sauce in a week. The book's recipes are simple, mostly quick to prepare, mostly easy to execute and very adaptable. The authors encourage you to substitute, and provide good bases from which you can improvise. It's inspiring, a book you can grow with.

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Most recent customer reviews

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