The Vegetable Butcher

November 16, 2015
Mangini, a professional chef with a penchant for vegetables, spent time in restaurants around the country before settling in Columbus, Ohio, to open her own produce stand. In some ways this gig is similar to her previous job as a vegetable butcher at N.Y.C.’s Eataly, where she often showed foodies how to select, clean, and prepare all manner of vegetables. Here, she generously shares that knowledge in book form, giving readers the rundown on more than 50 of the most common vegetables. The book is loaded with photos and is smartly designed. Readers will come away with plenty of new techniques and tips for breaking down artichokes, conquering the fear of prepping nettles (gloves, tongs, and kitchen shears are a must) in order to prepare nettle pesto and ricotta crostini, and prepping beets without looking like you’ve committed murder (gloves are recommended again, along with an apron). Recipes for each vegetable open with the standards—guacamole, tomato sauce, sautéed kale and mustard greens, roasted Brussels sprouts, and so on—but there are inventive riffs as well: mashed maple rutabagas; escarole and mushroom rice bundles with lemon and browned Parmesan and jicama; and grapefruit salad with sweet soy dressing. Readers well-versed in vegetables and their various qualities may find the book a bit of a letdown (there are few revelations), but those faced with a bounty of eggplant or searching for a reference will find plenty of useful information.

December 1, 2015

For cooks flummoxed by fava beans or perplexed by purslane, Mangini (once a "vegetable butcher" at Eataly, an Italian marketplace in New York City) demonstrates the essentials of cutting and preparing more than 50 kinds of vegetables and herbs. Each is covered in its own chapter that offers general information (e.g., storage, selection, varieties, and complementary ingredients), butchery essentials, cooking methods, and recipes. There are hundreds of step-by-step photographs to help readers grasp important techniques, from the matchstick cuts used to prep a jicama and grapefruit salad to a careful cleaning and blanching method needed for nettle pesto and ricotta crostini. Additionally, early chapters provide a solid introduction to knife and cutting board care. VERDICT Blending practical aspects found in such manuals as Jacque Pepin's New Complete Techniques with the varied recipes familiar to titles such as Michael Anthony's V Is for Vegetables, Mangini's debut will augment most vegetable cooking collections.

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