Book: 

In The Green Kitchen – Techniques to Learn by Heart.

Point of View: 

In The Green Kitchen was inspired by the demonstration kitchen that was a part of the first Slow Food Nation event in San Francisco that Alice Waters co-organized. 

People would be attending from far and wide to taste and learn and Alice and her co-organizers “decided to include a demonstration kitchen to show what all good cooks have in common: a set of basic techniques that are universal to all cuisines.” 

The book includes chapters on 27 basic techniques like making a pounded sauce – think pesto – and also has chapters on kitchen equipment and stocking a Green Pantry.

Favorite Recipes:

• Grand Aioli. Technique – Whisking Mayonnaise demonstrated by Jerome Waag from Chez Panisse.
• One Pot Roast Chicken with Vegetables. Technique – Roasting a Chicken demonstrated by Thomas Keller from The French Laundry.
• Nectarine & Berry Cobbler; Technique – Baking Fruit demonstrated by Clair Ptak from Violet Cakes.
• Technique – Seasoning for Flavor demonstrated by Amaryll Schwertner from Boulettes Larder.

Is It For You?

Yes, if you are interested in learning fundamental techniques that are the basis of great cooking and want to try some new and creative recipes that will help you master those skills.

Get it from Amazon here: In The Green Kitchen

Or direct from the Chez Panisse shop HERE, the library, or your local bookseller.

Author:

Alice Waters of Chez Panisse.

Publisher: 

Clarkson Potter, Publishers, New York.

Recipe Count:

50 plus.

Other Key Features:

If you just browse this book don’t skip reading the “A Green Kitchen Manifesto” – a succinct and powerful set of rules to focus your cooking on what really matters. Another gem is the Chapter on “Seasoning for Flavor” which is a focus of our blog here at FlavorPantry.

Contributors

Darina Allen * Dan Barber * Lidia Bastianich * Rick Bayless * Paul Bertolli * David Chang * Traci Des Jardins * Angelo Garro * Joyce Goldstein * Thomas Keller * Niloufer Ichaporia King * Peggy Knickerbocker * Anna Lappé & Bryant Terry * Deborah Madison * Clodagh McKenna * Jean-Pierre Moullé * Joan Nathan * Scott Peacock * Cal Peternell * Gilbert Pilgram * Clair Ptak * Oliver Rowe * Amaryll Schwertner * Fanny Singer * David Tanis * Poppy Tooker * Charlie Trotter * Jerôme Waag * Beth Wells

Favorite Quotes:

On Cooking:

“All the great cooks I know are sensualists who take great pleasure in the beauty, smell, taste, and feel of the ingredients. They cook with their hands.”

On Spices:

“Salt is the key to bringing out the flavor of most foods.”

“The flavors of spices are fleeting. I keep small quantities on hand and replenish them often.”

”I usually have chile flakes and chile powder (including marash red pepper and cayenne), saffron, bay leaves, nutmeg, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and vanilla beans.”

“Because seeds such as cumin, fennel, and coriander taste better freshly ground, buy them whole.”

Photography:

Hirsheimer & Hamilton.