I'm Just Here for the Food: Food + Heat = Cooking

Rating:
Summary: QUIRKY, FUN, AND INFORMATIVE
Review: I never used to watch Alton Brown on the Food Network. I had always found him a little too "out there". It was my fault. I just wasn't getting where he was coming from. But at some point, I think during one of his Thanksgiving shows, a light bulb popped on and I thought, "Ahhh...now I see!" Brown isn't your typical Food TV chef. Like Rachael Ray, Brown was more a food fan, than chef, a man who came from a background of directing TV commercials and music videos. And it is that background behind the camera that makes him so endearing on camera...the quirkiness, the slightly left of nutty as Brown explains the kinds of things you don't normally see on cooking shows or in cook books.

And so it goes with this book. More than just presenting recipes Brown, in his witty, off-beat style educates on cooking and cooking techniques. Brown explores the science of cooking (and don't let the word science intimidate you). You will also learn what to and what not to boil, microwave, bake, roast, and broil. There are even a few handy inventions such as making a heat blower out of a pipe and a hair dryer to get those coals in your grill hotter quicker, longer, and better.

Rather than laying out his cookbook in standard fashion with types of foods, Browns book is sectioned off by cooking method Such as grilling, Roasting, boiling, and frying. That's because Brown believes that how you cook is everybit as important as what you cook. This may be the most unique cookbook you will ever find. Informative and entertaining. A true joy to read.

Rating:
Summary: The Best
Review: As 'Good Eats' success began to blossom, Alton decided to try his hand at a book. As fans began to wait in anticipation of 'I'm Just Here For The Food: Food + Heat = Cooking,' it was assumed that this book would be a take off from his show 'Good Eats'. However, it is not, but does show you what Alton enjoys most of cooking - the science, the understanding of what goes on in the kitchen.
The book's chapters are divided into cooking processes, such as grilling, braising, microwaving and more. In each chapter, he explains the type of heat, what method is best for applying this heat and some recipes as examples. By understanding the heating process, and thus, the science behind cooking, the more in control of each meal or recipe you will be. He explains scientific terms in a manner in which a layman can understand. He also explains those unspoken rules to cooking that most cookbooks do not explain, either from the assumption that you went to culinary school too, or because the writer did not know these rules either. His usual humor and wit is ever present in this book.
In fact, you feel like Alton is actually reading the book to you! He uses his own terms for things, such as 'software' (food), 'hardware' (pots, pans, and utensils) and 'application' (cooking process). He even has funny diagrams and photographs in case you wanted an extra chuckle. Also included in this book is an explanation of ingredients, such as the varieties of butter: unsalted, clarified, whipped, buttermilk and margarine. So, if you were at all confused, you will no longer be. At the end of the book, he includes recommended reading, so we can be just as smart as he is, plus places to purchase our food and supplies! And not only was this a great book, it received a James Beard Award in 2003 for the Best Reference Book!
I read the book and I thought, this doesn't sound too bad but I found myself miserable. I just was frustrated after a week....it was very regimented. I did benefit by eliminating my coffee habit with the help of a wonderful coffee substitute called soyfe e (www.soyc offee.co m) Its made from soybeans which is a godsend for those trouble with hot flashes like myself. Another book I bought was the South Beach Diet book. I read that book and found the plan to be made up of things I would eat and the items were normal grocery store items so no hunting at the health food stores or buying online.

So, you just have to buy it now, because! Seriously, if you want to understand more about what is going on in your kitchen, and how to enjoy your cooking, buy this book!


Rating:
Summary: Not how, but why
Review: True to his unique style, Alton Brown offers a cook book much like his show: Quirky, but extremely informative, humor! This book is arranged not by WHAT you cook (like desserts, entrees, meat, etc.) but rather by HOW you cook it (boiling, grilling, baking, frying, etc.) By combining humor, science, and REALLY good eats, he educates the reader, making them a much better cook. I recommend buying the book to all incipient chefs, if only for the "Chip Chops", instructions on brining, and "Miller Thyme Trout".

Rating:
Summary: Best turkey I ever made!
Review: Let me start by saying I love "Good Eats." It's one of the best cooking shows out there, and believe me, I watch them all. I've also met Alton Brown and he is as funny and charming in person as he is on the show. This past Thanksgiving, I used his brining method and made the best turkey ever! The relatives wanted to take pictures of the bird, it was that georgeous! It was also tender and juicy and tasted so good. I've been trained by professional chefs (used to be a private club manager and banquet manager) so I know good recipes when I read them. Alton does a great job of presenting a recipe to the average cook in such a way that they can turn out a great product and know HOW they did it. That means, of course, that not only can they can do it again, but they can put their own spin on it. Alton--I love your hair, too!

Rating:
Summary: Not your "average" cookbook
Review: Picked this up at an autograph signing and def a keeper, Alton lists the same receipes used on his Good Eats tv show along with his advice and many quips

Rating:
Summary: Best cookbook I have ever read
Review: I have been an avid cook in my part time for years, and this book lives up to the standards that AB has set in his excellent seires Good Eats.
Great recipes, and I have tried about half so far, and great info on why and how to do things for best results.
For a chef who started as a TV producer, some of his recipes rival Emeril's and Julia's!!!!

Rating:
Summary: Great text book
Review: This is more of a text book than a recipe book. I curled up and read through this in a couple days. I just glanced at the recipes on my first go through. There are lots of colorful illustration to help make the point and interesting tips/info on the sides. This book actually made me feel wanting more on each topic. It's a good overview though. I just picked up Cookwise by Shirley Corriher. (actually just figured out Shirley is a regular guest on Good Eats when I looked at the book jacket)

If you watch Alton's show on the Food Network after you read this book, the TV show will reinforce the book's content. If you're interested in learning to cook, not just "follow direction," reading Alton's books and watching his show provides lots of info.

I'd also recommend his "Gear" book.

Rating:
Summary: Theory and Practice
Review: Alton Brown's "Good Eats" TV show is consistantly in the top 5 of Food Network's ratings, and for good reason. Brown packages the theory of cooking (Food + Heat = Cooking) in easy-to-understand parcels, delivered with quirky humor and historical background. The theories are then shown applied to simple recipes using everyday ingredients. Along the way, Brown will give sound advice about making the most of a kitchen experience, from stripping down the excess gadgetry in your kitchen to suggestions of how to apply what you've learned to other foods.

This cookbook is no exception. What's especially nice is that the printed form allows for re-reading, so you can really understand how brining works, or why you should prepare your salad greens as soon as you get home from the store, or why you want to use wet methods of cooking with cheaper cuts of meat. This book is about 2/3rd science, and 1/3rd recipes... and that's GOOD.

What really makes Brown's approach to food education strong is that in teaching you the "how" and "why" of cooking, you can then begin to apply these theories to your own foods. It's one thing to read a bunch of recipes about, say, souffles. It's another thing to understand HOW a souffle is made in the first place. Once you understand that, it's easy to begin to experiment and come up with your own souffles.

Brown may seem a bit quirky or even nuerotic with his advice at times... such as building your own adobe oven out of terra cotta planters or attaching a hair dryer to a kettle grill. However, what's important about these gadgetries is that they perfectly illustrate the principles he's working with. Even if you don't start carrying a cooler with you to the market, you at least understand why you might want to. And understanding the science of cooking is the beginning of "Good Eats."