Ideas in Food

November 15, 2010
Though it's not an all-purpose cookbook, this volume by Kamozawa and Talbot, the Ideas in Food bloggers and "Kitchen Alchemy" columnists for Popular Science, could easily be an everyday reference tool and a source of go-to recipes for anyone who spends a lot of time in the kitchen. The authors break down the science behind correctly and deliciously preparing everything from bread, pasta, and eggs (including soft scrambled eggs; hard-boiled eggs, and brown butter hollandaise sauce) to homemade butter and yogurt. Most recipes fall into the "Ideas for Everyone" category, which composes about the first three-quarters of the book; the final section is "Ideas for Professionals," which explores trendy molecular gastronomy topics like liquid nitrogen—used to make popcorn gelato—and carbon dioxide, a necessary tool for making coffee onion rings. Straightforward prose and anecdotes with personality keep this from being a dry food science tome. And accessible recipes for such dishes as a simple roast chicken, green beans almondine, and root beer-braised short ribs mean it never gets too lofty.

November 15, 2010

Readers wondering how chefs create dishes that seem to defy the science of everyday cooking now have a road map to more adventuresome kitchen craft. The science that governs techniques and ingredients frames a series of recipes in this illuminating cookbook, no surprise given that Kamozawa and Talbot, husband-and-wife chefs/consultants, write an online column for Popular Science magazine. At times the science overtakes the narrative, and readers may be tempted to skip to the promising recipes rather than slog through the explication. The authors, however, emphasize throughout how understanding the foundation of the cooking allows for greater experimentation with flavors. VERDICT Divided into the larger home cooking and shorter professional cooking sections, this book is bound to get many readers thinking of new possibilities in their kitchens. Challenging but accessible, it will be useful for cooks of many skill levels.--Peter Hepburn, Univ. of Illinois at Chicago Lib.

Copyright 2010 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from February 15, 2011
Say molecular gastronomy, and chances are that people will think of either Bravos Top Chef or Spanish restaurateur Ferran Adria, chef of El Bulli. Now, six years after Harold McGees ground-breaking scientific investigation, On Food and Cooking, comes a more consumer-friendly and recipe-packed (75) series of essays by husband-and-wife Talbot and Kamozawa. Several features interact to seduce reader-cooks. First is the authors exuberance and passion for the subject. No longer, for instance, will hydrocolloids be items of fear and loathing; theyll be an acceptable ingredient that forms a gel when water is added. Second is the brevity of their 50 essays, whose length rarely exceeds five pages. Third is that the scientific explanation, even though communicated in the vernacular, is immeasurably bolstered by the inclusion of at least one relevant recipe. A bonus for foodies and professionals alike.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2011, American Library Association.)