"Part treatise, part miscellany, unfailingly entertaining."
"-The New York Times"
"A small pearl of a book . . . a great tale of the growth of a modern city as seen through the rise and fall of the lowly oyster."
"-Rocky Mountain News"
Award-winning author Mark Kurlansky tells the remarkable story of New York by following the trajectory of one of its most fascinating inhabitants-the oyster.
For centuries New York was famous for this particular shellfish, which until the early 1900s played such a dominant a role in the city's life that the abundant bivalves were Gotham's most celebrated export, a staple food for all classes, and a natural filtration system for the city's congested waterways.
Filled with cultural, historical, and culinary insight-along with historic recipes, maps, drawings, and photos-this dynamic narrative sweeps readers from the seventeenth-century founding of New York to the death of its oyster beds and the rise of America's environmentalist movement, from the oyster cellars of the rough-and-tumble Five Points slums to Manhattan's Gilded Age dining chambers. With "The Big Oyster," Mark Kurlansky serves up history at its most engrossing, entertaining, and delicious.
"Suffused with [Kurlansky's] pleasure in exploring the city across ground that hasn't already been covered with other writers' footprints."
-"Los Angeles Times Book Review"
"Fascinating stuff . . . [Kurlansky] has a keen eye for odd facts and natural detail."
-"The Wall Street Journal"
"Kurlansky packs his breezy book with terrific anecdotes."
-"Entertainment Weekly"
"Magnificent . . . a towering accomplishment."
-"Associated Press
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A comprehensive, easy-to-use guide to everything you need to know about selecting, butchering, preparing, and cooking every kind of meat, including beef, pork, lamb, poultry, and wild game. In SECRETS OF THE BUTCHER, author Arthur Le Caisne takes readers step-by-step through the ever-evolving and artisanal world of meat. Much more than just a book on how to butcher meat, SECRETS OF THE BUTCHER covers every aspect of selecting, preparing, and eating meat. Organized by type of protein--beef, veal, pork, lamb, poultry, and turkey--the book categorizes and describes the origin and characteristics of the best of each type. It explains all of the cuts and how they are best prepared, and offers tips and recipes for each. With full-color illustrations, Le Caisne includes over twenty breeds of each animal from Black Angus cows to Iberico pigs to Rhode Island Red chickens. From understanding the benefit of grass-fed beef to the locavore movement to the color of the cut, choosing meat will never feel daunting again. SECRETS OF THE BUTCHER also includes state-of-the-art information on techniques such as brazing, roasting, and grilling; what types of cooking oil to use and at what temperature; recommended salts, peppers, and other spices for every type of meat; and, of course, how to butcher every type of meat. Fully illustrated throughout with clear and useful four-color illustrations, SECRETS OF THE BUTCHER will be a stand-out package against photographic books in this growing category.

This is a fabulous fungi feast for all seasons and occasions. You can make the most of this versatile ingredient in appetizers, fish, poultry, meat, vegetarian and side dishes. It includes stunning creations from Wild Mushroom Soup, Stuffed Garlic Mushrooms and Creamy Fish and Mushroom Pie to Mushroom Gougere, Wild Mushroom Pizettes, and Duck with Chinese Mushrooms and Ginger. You can discover unusual varieties of mushroom in dishes such as Tortellini Chanterelle Broth and Fresh Tuna Shiitake Teriyaki. This helpful guide shows how to distinguish the characteristics of different edible mushrooms at a glance. It includes advice on storing and preserving mushrooms to enjoy them at their best. There are countless varieties of mushroom known to be edible, and their unique taste and texture makes them immensely versatile for cooking. Mushrooms work well with poultry and meat, and this book showcases these classic combinations with delicious dishes such as Chicken with Wild Mushrooms, Roast Leg of Lamb with a Wild Mushroom Stuffing, and Pepper Steak with Mushrooms.There are also plenty of luxurious options for vegetarians, including Tagliatelle with Wild Mushrooms, Mushroom Curry, and Chinese Mushrooms with Cellophane Noodles. This inspirational little book will provide sumptuous ideas for every taste.

Yuki Gomi's Sushi at Home is a beautifully designed cookbook that will show, for the first time, how easy it is to make sushi at home Do you love buying sushi for lunch, enjoy eating at Japanese restaurants for dinner, but think sushi is too difficult to make at home? Well, think again! In Sushi at Home, Japanese chef and sushi teacher Yuki Gomi shows you just how easy - and inexpensive - making delicious and beautiful looking sushi can be. Learn: - Everything you need to know about how to buy and prepare fish, from salmon to scallops, from tuna to mackerel. - The joys of cling film and the technique of rolling step-by-step and why a hairdryer is essential for making the all-important perfect sushi rice. - Clever alternatives to traditional sushi styles (handball sushi; vegetarian sushi; soba sushi). - Fresh twists on classic recipes (miso soup with clams; prawn salad with tahini mustard dressing). Sushi at Home is all you need to master the art of making light, delicious and healthy sushi in your own kitchen. Yuki Gomi is a Japanese chef who has taught thousands of people how to make their own sushi. After studying at Le Cordon Bleu in Chicago, she trained under a master noodle chef, before moving to London and beginning to teach Japanese home cooking classes. Sushi at Home is her first book. www.yukiskitchen.com

A comprehensive, deeply personal, and visually stunning guide to growing and cooking vegetables from Britain's foremost food writer, with more than 400 recipes and extensive gardening notes.
In the tradition of "Roast Chicken and Other Stories" comes "Tender," a passionate guide to savoring the best the garden has to offer. An instant classic when it was first published in the UK, "Tender" is a cookbook, a primer on produce, and above all, a beloved author's homage to his favorite vegetables. Slater's inspired and inspiring writing makes this a book to sit with and savor as much as one to prop open in the kitchen. The chapters explore 29 vegetables and offer enticing, comforting recipes such as Potato Cakes with Chard and Taleggio, a Tart of asparagus and Tarragon, and Grilled Lamb with Eggplant and Za'atar. With wit, enthusiasm, and a charming lack of pretension, Slater champions vegetables--through hands-on nurturing in the garden and straightforward preparations in the kitchen--with this truly essential book for every kitchen library.

One taste and you'll say, "This can't be tofu!" But it is....

Nutritionists, doctors, and food authorities everywhere are telling us to eat more tofu. It's an excellent source of high-quality protein and calcium. It contains no cholesterol and is very low in calories and saturated fat. So why don't we eat more tofu? Because for too long tofu has been used as a substitute for other ingredients. Why turn tofu into a beef substitute in a burger, or pass it off as "cheese" in lasagna, when it is delicious on its own?

Now, in This Can't Be Tofu!, award-winning and bestselling author of Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone Deborah Madison shows how to make tofu taste great and be the star attraction in 75 stir-fries, sautés, and other dishes. Pan-Seared Tofu with Garlic, Ginger, and Chives, Vietnamese Spring Rolls, Curried Tofu Triangles with Peas, and Pineapple and Tofu Fried Rice are just some of the innovative recipes in this inspired collection.

This is a wonderful collection of 30 recipes featuring the spicy sensation of mustard. It explains how the clever use of mustard transforms soups, sauces, curries and casseroles. It includes recipes for many types of mustard around the world including French, German, Wholegrain, English and American mustard. It is a concise introduction describes the range of mustards available, and explains how to make your own mustard and the best way to cook with it. There are spicy recipes for tasty appetizers and vegetarian meals, warming meat and poultry dishes, piquant fish and seafood, as well as pickles and chutneys and home-made mustards. It is beautifully illustrated with over 75 photographs. A nutritional breakdown for each recipe is included. Mustard is an essential ingredient for the discerning cook. Whether you are partial to the piquancy of Dijon mustard, prefer the mild mellowness of wholegrain, or feel you really crave the fierce heat of an English mustard, this simple yellow-brown paste has a valued place in the kitchen cupboard, as well as on the dinner table. Recipes in this delightful book give you the opportunity of using mustard to the extent it deserves. Creamy soups are given a delicious tang, vegetables take on a new dimension with a spicy mustard sauce, and main course dishes, such as Venison Casserole with Horseradish and Mustard Dumplings, taste wonderful thanks to this popular and indispensable condiment. The book also provides a chapter on how to make your own mustards, pickles and chutneys to have with a special meal or to give away as gifts. Each recipe is beautifully photographed, with clear instructions that will ensure a great result every time, making this little cookbook the perfect introduction to cooking with mustard.

Over 100 delicious recipes featuring America's favorite! Try Corn Chowder, Corn Souffle, Apple Cornbread or Caramel Corn and many more! Includes corn trivia.

The history, legends, and cookery of America's favorite snack food Whether in movie theaters or sports arenas, at fairs or theme parks, around campfires or family hearths, Americans consume more popcorn by volume than any other snack. To the world, popcorn seems as American as baseball and apple pie. Within American food lore, popcorn holds a special place, for it was purportedly shared by Native Americans at the first Thanksgiving. In Popped Culture, Andrew F. Smith tests such legends against archaeological, agricultural, culinary, and social findings. While debunking many myths, he discovers a flavorful story of the curious kernel's introduction and ever-increasing consumption in North America. Unlike other culinary fads of the nineteenth century, popcorn has never lost favor with the American public. Smith gauges the reasons for its unflagging popularity: the invention of wire over the fire poppers, commercial promotion by shrewd producers, the fascination of children with the kernel's magical pop, and affordability. To explain popcorn's twentieth-century success, he examines its fortuitous association with new technology--radio, movies, television, microwaves--and recounts the brand-name triumphs of American manufacturers and packagers. His familiarity with the history of the snack allows him to form expectations about popcorn's future in the United States and abroad. Smith concludes his account with more than 160 surprising historical recipes for popcorn cookery, including the intriguing use of the snack in custard, hash, ice cream, omelets, and soup.

What is a roast? Much more than a hunk of meat cooked in a certain way. A roast may conjure up images of vast joints of beef turning on spits in front of huge fires, of venison poached from under the gamekeeper s nose, of medieval boards groaning under the weight of peacocks, swans and sucking pigs, of Christmas geese and turkeys, and of convivial Sunday lunch. In short, a roast is an idea of plenty, of feasting, and of occasion.

Acclaimed cook and food historian Laura Mason presents delicious beef, lamb, pork and chicken roasts, plus traditional recipes for turkey, goose, duck, game birds, rabbit and hare, and venison too. All the best accompaniments and vegetable dishes are included, from essential Yorkshire puddings and roast potatoes to sauces and stuffings.

Everything you need to know about sourcing, preparing and roasting quality meat is explained and most importantly, the best part of any roast is often the leftovers, and there are mouth-watering ideas for soups, sandwiches, salads and pics.

All the secrets to cook authentic family-style and takeaway favourite curries at home from Mowgli founder and curry evangelist Nisha Katona. 'Nisha's book is brilliant - stunning recipes' -- Tom Kerridge Beautiful, tasty, delicious food that I could eat every day. - Simon Rimmer Nisha's food is good for the soul - bowls of comfort and platefuls of joy. Her recipes are simple and utterly delicious -- Lorraine Kelly 'This is simply one of the best books on Indian food I've come across' -- ***** Reader review 'By far the best cookery book I've ever bought' -- ***** Reader review 'Every recipe has been a hit!' -- ***** Reader review *********************************************************************************************** Mowgli founder and 'curry evangelist' Nisha Katona shares all the secrets from her Indian family kitchen, passed down through the generations, so you can cook your favourite curries at home. Introducing her concept of the 'spice tree' - a simple infographic formula to show you which spices and ingredients go best together - Nisha will demonstrate how to get that authentic curry flavour every time. Discover new and inventive recipes that showcase the perfect flavour pairings of the Indian kitchen, including: *Steamed Bengali Trout *Salmon and Cauliflower Curry *Mackerel with Nigella and Tomato *Goan Fish Curry *Butter Chicken *Quail Masala *Railway Goat Curry *Spiced Ginger Lamb Raan *Green Dahl with Rhubarb and Ginger *Puy Lentils with Cardamom and Garam Masala *Peanut and Potato Powa With stunning photography, easy to follow recipes and accessible explanations of flavour pairings, this will change the way you approach Indian cuisine!

If you know anyone who likes chocolate or perhaps you care to try some yourself, this book has it all. Rogers begins her prose by telling us about the history of chocolate, or how this New World taste travelled around the globe. From its origins as an early colonial commodity to chocolate bars for US soldiers during Operation Desert Storm, Rogers takes you and your taste buds through an array of aromatic delights. From Old-Fashioned Steamed Chocolate Pudding to Chocolate Covered Peanut Butter Balls (they melt in your mouth), everyone who has ever appreciated chocolate must have this book.

Most of us think of cooking with gingerbread spice when the leaves begin to fall and on through the holiday season. Yet ginger, cinnamon, allspice and nutmeg can be so flavorful when used in recipes throughout the year! For Our Favorite Gingerbread Recipes, we searched through our recipe boxes and found 62 of our favorites that you'll want to add to your menus all year 'round. Treat your family to scrumptious Gingerbread Pancakes for a special weekend breakfast. And who can resist My Mom's Muffin Doughnuts? Take a break anytime with Spiced Apple Cider and a Gingerbread Crispy Rice Treats. When suppertime comes around, serve family & friends Marinated Flank Steak along with Candied Pecan Carrots. An Old-Fashioned Gingerbread Torte is sure to be a special treat! Take a look at the variety of recipes to use gingerbread spice, any time of the year. Be creative and enjoy!

The long-awaited companion to The Green Chile Bible, this vibrant collection of rich red chilli recipes celebrates the blending of historic Spanish, Indian, and western frontier traditions in southwestern cookery, and explores some of the best European and Asian contributions to the latest Southwest 'fusion' style. The Red Chile Bible caters to the desires of every chilli cook -- from the passion for finding new ways to cook with chilli to the ambition to achieve the ultimate classic salsa. It covers the gamut of Southwest styles from the traditional to contemporary, from down-home rustic to unashamedly elegant, from comfortably mellow to fiery hot. Reflecting the modern cook's commitment to natural flavours and healthy foods, The Red Chile Bible emphasises fresh ingredients and dishes 'made from scratch' but the authors have also suggested shortcuts and substitute ingredients to save preparation time, without sacrificing quality or flavour. Providing important practical help for the novice chilli cook, the authors give complete information on the major southwestern and Mexican red chillies, along with tips on buying, storing, and handling fresh, dried, crushed, and powdered red chillies. A glossary and a list of sources are included.

The Middle East and the Prairie West meet--deliciously--in this cookbook of over 100 recipes developed by Canada's foremost expert in Arab cuisine.
Habeeb Salloum spent his childhood on the Saskatchewan prairies, the son of Syrian homesteaders who thrived during the depression and drought of the 1930s by growing the dryland crops of their homeland. In this cookbook, Salloum returns not only to his childhood home, but to the historical sustainer of life on the prairies--the bison.

It's pumpkin time again! More than 175 recipes for soups, breads, muffins, pies, cakes, cheesecakes, cookies and ice cream. Pumpkin trivia, carving tips and more!

Written with A.D. Livingston's signature wit and wisdom, his Big Book of Meat is a down-to-earth guide to making sausage, jerky, and home-smoked and dry-cured meats easily and inexpensively in your own kitchen! This book explains how to: Choose the right equipment to make sausage and pork, venison, beef, chicken and fish. Create deli-style cold cuts. Dry and store jerky. Salt-cure country hams and other meats. Build a modern walk-in smokehouse. Adapt today's materials to yesterday's traditional methods. Choose woods and fuels for smoking. And so much more! As A.D. once said, 'You can smoke a better fish than you can buy, and you can cure a better ham without the use of any chemicals except ordinary salt and good hard-wood smoke.' All country cooks and sportsmen in particular will treasure this cookbook.

Steven Jenkins is our foremost cheese authority--in the words of The New York Times, "a Broadway impresario whose hit is food." Now, after years of importing cheeses, scouring the cheese-producing areas of the world, and setting up cheese counters at gourmet food shops, he's decided to write it all down. Full of passion, knowledge, and an expert's considered opinions the cheese primer tells you everything you need to know about the hundreds of cheeses that have, in the last few years, become available in this country. Region-by-region, he covers all the major cheeses from France, Italy, Switzerland--the top tier of cheese-producing countries--plus the best of Britain, Ireland, Spain, the United States, Austria, Germany, and other countries. Along the way he tells how to pick out a healthy Pont l'Eveque; why to reconsider the noble Fontina for more than just cooking; how to avoid those factory-made chevres; why to seek out the sublime Vacherin Mont d'Or; and how to start exploring--Bleu de Bresse, Cabrales, Crottin de Chavignol, and so on. A complete primer, it includes information on the best ways to store and serve cheese, including which wines to serve alongside them; how to orchestrate a proper cheese course; and the unimportable cheeses to look up when abroad.