Searing Inspiration

October 1, 2018
In this exuberant outing, Volland (Mastering Sauces) instructs home cooks on how to create easy dishes with flavorful sauces cooked in the same pan as the entrees. She focuses on techniques, such as searing and deglazing, and starts with three fundamentals: mise en place, temperature recommendations, and sauce making. Throughout, she offers invaluable tips on everything from avoiding nonstick pans and trimming chicken to basting steaks and deciding whether to flambé. Fish and seafood dishes such as classic sole meunière and “campground” trout with sweet onions and bacon drippings are appetizing and straightforward, as are such poultry entrees as chicken piccata and chicken with garlic, greens, and salty cheese. Volland also shares tempting meat choices such as steak with a simple red wine and herb sauce, and pork chops with sour cream and sauerkraut sauce. Vegetables and eggs are also well represented in crispy tofu with peanut and red curry sauce; charred broccoli with chili, garlic, and lemon oil; and basted eggs with asparagus brown butter sauce and shaved Parmesan. All dishes include searing instructions in addition to recipes for sauces and sides. Insightful and enticing, this collection provides home cooks with a new repertoire of choices to create novel dishes and enhance old favorites.

In this handy guide, Volland (Mastering Sauces) outlines the three fundamentals of sauce making: maximize flavor, manipulate texture, and season confidently, with a focus on "techniques, not just recipes" and practical strategy ("always heat the empty skillet first and then add the oil"). Advice on temperature recommendations and tools and equipment is offered along with Volland's fondness for glass pie plates and oval platters. Recipes include "this sauce also goes well with" notes to aid in flexibility. Featured meals span pan fried oysters with bloody Caesar sauce, chicken "con queso," and steak with simple red wine and herb sauce. Other standouts are kielbasa with ketchup and curry sauce, bangers with onion and brown ale gravy, and seared eggplant with walnut and roasted red pepper puree. Tables list entrée suggestions, pan aromatics, and deglazing liquids. VERDICT Public libraries should have a variety of current titles on this topic. Cooks will appreciate the simplicity of the style and gain confidence with these accessible recipes.--Barbara Kundanis, Longmont P.L., CO