Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

Sous vide cooking, once the province of the elite chefs of the world, is quickly becoming a reality for many home cooks thanks to both the introduction of sous vide appliances and to the resourcefulness of foodie geeks who have devised methods of simulating sous vide cooking in vessels ranging from crockpots to beer coolers. However, having pieced together or purchased a sous vide device, the final obstacle for many a home cook is locating reliable recipes for what is, in essence, an entirely new method of cooking. Sure, it is possible to cobble together a ragged list of recipes and loose formulations of times and temperatures through much Googling and forum reading, but nowhere is there as comprehensive a starting point as can be found here. That said, here are some of the pros and cons of this cookbook as I see it: Pros -First and foremost in many people's minds is food safety. The author literally "wrote the webpage" on food safety for sous vide cooking, and all of that information has been distilled into this book. -A comprehensive chart of cooking times and temperatures for most cuts of beef, pork, lamb, chicken, duck, venison, fish, and shellfish, plus times for eggs, vegetables, beans, and fruit. -An introductory chapter that walks through cooking several different types of food, along with the reasoning behind the methods. -Recipes that help one think out of the standard sous vide box, including custard/ice cream bases, chocolate and caramel sauces, and even yogurt Con -Home cooks experienced with sous vide cooking will likely not find anything new techniquewise. Most of the meats are cooked very simply, with little more than salt and pepper, followed by recipes for various sauces to add once the meat is done. While the sauces are decent, saucing to me is the easiest step, and I can turn to any one of my cookbooks for ideas in that regard. All told, I'm very happy with this cookbook. It has already served as a great lauching pad for exploring this new-fangled (in terms of technology) yet backward-looking (in terms of time-most recipes take advance planning) method of cooking.