How to Read a French Fry or Remembrance of Things Paris

How to Read a French Fry: And Other Stories of Intriguing Kitchen Science

Author: Russ Parsons

In a book widely hailed for its entertaining prose and provocative research, the award-winning Los Angeles Times food journalist Russ Parsons examines the science behind ordinary cooking processes. Along the way he dispenses hundreds of tips and the reasons behind them, from why you should always begin cooking beans in cold water, to why you should salt meat before sautéing it, to why it's a waste of time to cook a Vidalia onion. Filled with sharp-witted observations ("Frying has become synonymous with minimum-wage labor, yet hardly anyone will try it at home"), intriguing food trivia (fruit deprived of water just before harvest has superior flavor to fruit that is irrigated up to the last moment ), and recipes (from Oven-Steamed Salmon with Cucumber Salad to Ultimate Strawberry Shortcake), How to Read a French Fry contains all the ingredients you need to become a better cook.

Publishers Weekly

In this unique book, Los Angeles Times food editor Parsons combines complex science (rendered accessible to lay readers), workable cooking techniques, and excellent recipes. Each chapter addresses a specific culinary-scientific process (e.g., deep-frying, the secret post-harvest life of fruits and vegetables), provides a list of rules to follow therein, then offers a range of recipes that use the technique in question. In a chapter titled "From a Pebble to a Pillow," for example, Parsons explains the various ways in which grains, beans and other starches cook. He clears up myths about cooking beans and explains what makes an apple "mealy" (it's the pectin). The chapter ties up with some guidelines for preparing starch-thickened sauces, pasta, etc. Recipes include Smoky Cream of Corn Soup, a flour-thickened concoction, and a Gratin of Sweet Potatoes and Bourbon. The recipes are never gimmicky but are genuinely appealing, for instance Smoked Tuna Salad in Tomatoes and Lavender Fig Tart, and they are evidence of how a handful of techniques can turn out diverse results. Scientific information is handled in a light tone with plenty of examples. With his analyses of frying, roasting, and other processes, Parsons proves that the unexamined dish is far less rewarding than the meal we understand. Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

Library Journal

Award-winning journalist and Los Angeles Times food editor Parsons offers this delightful book that is one part kitchen science, one part cookbook. Ever wonder why onions make people cry, or why some potatoes are better for boiling rather than baking? The author answers these questions and discusses other basic issues like cooking processes (e.g., frying, emulsifying, and roasting). Using the premise that an understanding of the basics enables people to become better cooks, the book uses science to explain process. It then demonstrates with more than 100 recipes, ranging from macaroni and cheese with green onions and ham to apricot-almond clafoutis. While the author's conversational tone simplifies complex scientific processes, it sometimes makes it difficult to glean information; thankfully, each section contains lists of cooking tips and advice for quick reference. Recommended for public and academic libraries. Pauline Baughman, Multnomah Cty. Lib., Portland, OR Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

Booknews

Parsons (the food editor of the ) has written a book that explains in detail the science behind food and its cooking. We learn about such things as gluten, water, and cellulose, what they do and why, and how to make the essential elements work for us in the kitchen. Many recipes are included, which are undoubtedly tasty, though they refer to scientific details we've never bothered to wonder about. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

What People Are Saying

Mark Bittman
Russ Parsons not only unravels some of the intrigue of the kitchen but, in entertainment fashion, shows us why this understanding matters. The great recipes are a bonus and make How to Read a French Fry invaluable.
— (Mark Bittman, New York Times columnist and author of How to Cook Everything)

Paula Wolfert
Mouthwatering recipes, fascinating information and charming commentary.
— (Paula Wolfert, author of Mediterranean Grains and Greens)

Thomas Keller
Russ Parsons knows that the best cooking comes from a genuine understanding of basic techniques, and he illuminates them here with lively writing and smart recipes. This is an unlikely creation: a kitchen-science book that makes you hungry, and it's also a cookbook that teaches, from an authority on food and cooking.
— (Thomas Keller, chef and owner of the French Laundry and author of The French Laundry Cookbook)

Deborah Madison
With passion and enthusiasm, Russ Parsons explains the science behind kitchen common sense, then illustrates it with recipes. His book makes me feel smarter and more in control. As if that's not enough, the recipes are some of the most appealing ever.
— (Deborah Madison, author of Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone)

Interesting book: Inside Delta Force or Guests of the Ayatollah

Remembrance of Things Paris: Sixty Years of Writing from Gourmet

Author: Gourmet Magazin

For sixty years the best food writers have been sending dispatches from Paris to Gourmet. At once unique and universal, these essays by Joseph Wechsberg, Naomi Barry, and Diane Johnson, among others, present tantalizing glimpses of culinary life in the world capital of love and food.
From unforgettable vignettes of resourceful chefs feeding hungry Parisians after World War II to the birth and rise of nouvelle cuisine–it’s all here: the old-time bourgeois dinners, the tastemakers, the hero-chefs, and, of course, Paris in all its charm, arrogance, and splendid refinement.

Table of Contents:

	Introduction
	Paris in the Twenties	3
	After the War	11
	Chicken Demi-Deuil	18
	Cuisine Parisienne	23
	Paris One Step at a Time	33
	The Old Flower Market	39
	All that Glitters	43
	Haute Couture	49
	Sold!	59
	Bibliotheque du Gourmet	65
	A Night at Les Halles	71
	Les Halles: A Last Look	78
	La Vie Moderne	87
	Cold Comfort	93
	The President of Pastry	98
	Paris's Haute Chocolaterie	101
	La Vie en Rose	119
	Home Away from Home	125
	Bistros	133
	Allard	139
	Le Bistrot de Paris	144
	La Tour d'Argent	151
	Prunier	154
	Lucas-Carton	159
	A Secret Club	167
	Maxim's	171
	Maxim's	177
	When Michelin Comes Knocking	191
	La Grande Cuisine Francaise	194
	Jacques Maniere's Human Factor	198
	Young Chefs of Paris	202
	When I Was Green	217
	A Memory of Alice B. Toklas	227
	Noel a Paris	234
	A Little Black Magic	244
	An Insincere Cassoulet	246
	She Did Not Look Like an Actress to Me	259
	The Christening	269
	High and Dry	286
	Parisian Police	290
	A Nose	295
	The Seventh Art	298
	The Most Intimate Room	302
	Grand Masters	313
	The New Face of Paris	327
	The Three Musketeers	333
	It's What's For Dinner	340
	Notes on Contributors	343