James McNair Cooks Southeast Asian

Rating:
Summary: James McNair scores again...
Review: After I got my wife hooked on Thai food she bought me a cookbook that was loosely translated from Chinese. Didn't work too well. I picked up James McNair's Southeast Asian book and love it. Like all of the other McNair volumes I own, I can start off with an easier recipe and work up to harder ones as my particular skills and confidences increase. You can't go wrong with this or any of McNair's books!

Rating:
Summary: Great recipes, gorgeous photos
Review: The day I received this cookbook I was so inspired I went out and bought all of the ingredients for and then prepared the "Thai Curry" recipe. It was excellent. I've made several other recipes from this book since and have yet to be disappointed. My family has become big fans of Asian food primarily because of my love of this book.

Be prepared to find what many inexperienced cooks may find as exotic ingredients. We're lucky to live by a huge Asian grocery store, so finding things like jasmine extract, kilfer lime leaves, fresh lemongrass, and other interesting-sounding bottled or dried flavorings was not difficult, but could potentially be.

I appreciate the sumptuous photos supplied with each recipe. Obviously there was a hefty budget for food stylists and photo shoots, but it really helps when you're trying to envision the finished product and the presentation.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent recipes!
Review: We don't go out for Southeast Asian food since starting our cooking adventure through James McNair's beautifully laid out book. This book is a pleasure to peruse as the layout and photography are beautiful. But most importantly, the recipes are right on! I've made the pork with garlic sauce, various thai currys, and the lemongrass chicken and all have turned out restaurant quality - if you are in Thailand, much better than restaurant quality if you have the misfortune as myself to be currently living in the midwest. My next attempt will be the shrimp and pineapple yellow curry - I'm sure that it will also be fantastic.