Rating: 
Summary: Excellent selection for novices to Thai/Vietnamese cooking
Review: My husband and I love Thai food but are novice cooks and live in a remote location. The recipes are useable and somewhat adaptable. Each dish we've tried as had richness of flavor without any one flavor being overwhelming. A feature we especially like is that recipes for curry paste are included. You do not have to rely on the grocer's limited supply of ingredients to enjoy Thai food! It is also a "good read."
Rating:
Summary: Excellent instructions, clear and concise and well-written.
Review: The recipes are extremely easy to follow. I have been very impressed with the results to many of the dishes. I am Vietnamese and feel that the dishes are authentic with a twist. The only critical comment that I have is that I wish there were more pictures and photographs of the dishes. This cookbook rates as one of the best cookbooks that we have. By the way, we own 3 Vietnamese and Thai cookbooks and they are definitely sub-par compared to Mai Pham's book.
Rating:
Summary: Nouvelle Vietnamese recipes
Review: The recipes are neither authentic Vietnamese's nor Thai's but they are good recipes that are cookable and nutritious. I admire Mai Pham for her intelligent in creating new versions of cooking great Vietnamese food. Although the recipes are not calling for ingredients found in old style recipes but the outcome/result of the dishes are comparable to the old style and most of all they are healthier and more fit for our new lifestyle, for example -- she uses mayonaise instead of pork fat to make Shrimp paste, that is very brilliant! My grandmother, who was a well known cook in my hometown would not come up with this.
Without the alternative ingredients (mayo in place of pork fat), my friends and I who only consume seafood and vegetable now will never have a chance to taste this dish again. I am thankfull for having the alternative in creating healthier authentic Vietnamese and Thai dishes.The authentic recipes are always valuable and the alternative, nouvelle recipes are great!
Rating: 
Summary: Fairly straightforward and honest book on Vietnamese cooking
Review: This book does a pretty good job of describing and detailing easy to make Vietnamese dishes. Most recipes were well-written with helpful ideas on variations and modifications. The side stories were a welcome look into the author's background and tied the recipes loosely to the culture that inspired them. The book definitely is on the light side but is a pleasant read and a good guide for Vietnamese cuisine.
Rating:
Summary: Beautiful book, easy to read, great recipes...it's GREAT!
Review: This book is a bargain, especially at 20% off. The author obviously has a true love of cooking and put together a book that is not only attractive and well-organized, but also very charming. We have tried a couple of recipes and both were wonderful; my husband said they were quite authentic. It's a real winner
Rating:
Summary: Cooking in Memphis
Review: This book strikes a balance between recipes that are Americanized versions of Thai food and those with ingredients impossible to find. It, and another cookbook by the same author, are the best that I've seen for this type of food. I highly recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: Cooking in Memphis
Review: This book was great! However, I wish there was more pictures
of the dishes. I am not familiar with some dishes, so picures will be helpful.
Rating:
Summary: I wish there was more pictures
Review: This book was great! However, I wish there was more pictures
of the dishes. I am not familiar with some dishes, so picures will be helpful.
Rating:
Summary: Good for technique, but not for proportions.
Review: This is a useful introduction to real Vietnamese and Thai Cooking, but should not be your only guide. Although the narrative and hints (e.g., dry out the noodles 20 minutes before making pad thai) are useful, I find the recipes are often off-flavored. Too strong, too mild, too sweet, too salty, too sour, etc.
Rating:
Summary: The best I've seen
Review: This is my favorite Thai cookbook, and I have about 6. I even went to Bangkok to take a cooking class, and still came back cooking some of the stuff in this book. The recipes are easy and authentic, and I've never been disappointed with the results from the recipes that I've used (more of the thai than vietnamese). Like all of the good asian cookbooks, it has a section on ingredients with pictures to help you find them in your asian grocer. I will say that these ingredients are often essential (always are when you are cooking SE Asian food)- do your best to find these at a market or an online supplier if you want a really authentic taste. The strengths of the book include the sauces (VERY easy and quick), the vietnamese spring rolls, the curries, the "Gooey Ginger chicken" and some of the other stir fry dishes. The weakness: The Phad Thai is good- but not very authentic and much more labor intensive than how the Thai actually make it. I know some people just want to make Phad Thai, so in that case- look elsewhere. Otherwise, a lot of fun. Highly recommended.
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