The Gun Counter

So I've taken a liking to the kitchen of late. I have the basics down. I can cook a nice roast, make a killer steak, etc. But I want to broaden my horizons!

Some of the upscale local supermarkets offer night classes on different topics. I'll be attending some in the near future.

What about the Food Network? Most of the stuff I've seen there (Chopped, Iron Chef, etc.) cater to people much more advanced than me. I find Rachael Ray retarded. I like the recipes/methods on Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives, even though Guy Fieri annoys the shit out of me w. the frosted hair, extraneous jewelry and ridiculous faux-cool-dude attitude.

So, besides local classes, are there any decent shows (sans the faux drama inherent on most Food Network offerings) I should be checking out?

I'm also open to DVD sets, etc.

Alton Brown, anything by him.

Rod wrote:Alton Brown, anything by him.

What he said.

The way I look at it, real cooking is about understanding concepts and techniques more than it is about recipes.

Learn to make gravies and sauces. They'll automatically improve anything you cook.

Get a good selection of herbs and spices with brief "what these are good for" descriptions directly on the jar. Read them and experiment.

Steam your vegetables instead of boiling.

When you're making anything in a pot (e.g. stew, chili, gumbo, bouillabaisse, soup, etc), look at a variety of recipes for the spices, but don't believe the amounts. Add what they call for in the "first dump," then when the stuff is just about done, add salt and pepper to taste (be patient between adjustments), then start adding more of the spices, again to taste. Don't be afraid to let it be bold.

Find a style you like and experiment with it: Cajun, Italian, or whatever.

Learn to sweat aromatics like onions, peppers, celery, etc. in butter, and gently. The smell of it in the house will make the other people there think you really know what you're doing, and you'll take advantage of sort of a bias of expectation.

Go to a used bookstore and get the oldest edition you can find of the Better Homes and Gardens New Cookbook. It has a red and white checkerboard 3-ring binder cover. The older ones have better instruction on technique as opposed to just straight recipes. I've learned a lot from my wife's.

Experiment.

Apparently, I'm cross posting with Chris. What he said as well. Make sure you observe closely while you cook and while you review your mistakes.

ETA: go on youtube and look for "Like the hat alton brown" and you'll find lots of his episodes. Some of them are in two parts, so you'll have to search for the episode itself and part two to get the rest.

I third Alton Brown - Good Eats, the various Cooks Illustrated shows, and Colameco's show are about all I can stand. Many of the socalled "Cooking shows" that are on the food network, are more about the cook, or the lifestyle presented that actually about preparing food.

Something you might want to watch is Pepin's stuff. ALOT of it is on youtube. His Fast food, my way, has got me calling him "that cheating french bastard".. His earlier series, The Complete Pepin' doesn't just go into cooking, but alot of technique - I remember one episode where he showed about a billion ways to cut up a fish. It's also the first time I remember ever seeing how to take apart a chicken being shown on a cooking show.

Believe it or not, another decent show that shows alot of basics(at least to classicly trained cooks - much of it is never seen in the average home kitchen) just started up - Martha Stewart's Cooking School. Yes, she her "medicated Yuppie housewife" personality irks me, but it's still pretty good.

+1 on the "cook and try the results" suggestion.

I obviously need to watch this Alton Brown character.

Can you watch Nigella Lawson where you are? I don't care about the (admittedly delicious and easy) food - it's Nigella Lawson.

No doubt I will be flamed, but I actually think Julia Child's "mastering the art of French cooking" is well worth reading.

The "Ballymaloe cookery course" by Darina Allen (look on Amazon) is an excellent and very complete basic cookbook, with a nice approach of explaining basic recipies and techniques, then the variations on them. If you fancy experimenting with bread, see if you can find "the Ballymaloe bread book" by Tim Allen.

Again, if you can find them, Delia Smith's "cookery course" and "how to cook 1-3" are worthwhile.

For something lighter (in style as well as in weight) the early "naked chef" books by Jamie Oliver (Naked Chef, Return of the Naked Chef, and Happy Days with the Naked Chef) are fun, even if (like me) you find his TV persona tiresome.

I was in the same boat as you about 2 years ago. Wife left me, moved into new apartment, living single for the 1st time in over a decade. If you plan on learning how to COOK, (and not just "make food") I STRONGLY recommend http://www.foodnetwork.com/alton-brown/index.html. The reason is that you will learn cooking METHODS, not just recipes.

You should buy a good set of pots and pans, as the $20 variety box from wal-mart won't serve your needs well, and will lead to frustration. Second, you should REALLY invest in spices. Finally, buy a nice set of knives, a food processor, GLASS pans, oven thermometer, meat thermometer, a deep roasting pan, a crock pot, a rice cooker, and a decent quality electric griddle. Last but not least, get some friends to help you share recipes. The class you are talking about is a good place to meet such folks. (I had a cute lil neighbor from new orleans who loved to share food with me)

Yogimus wrote:Second, you should REALLY invest in spices.

Penzey's Spices. I can drop 3 digits there easy, and I do... every 2 years. The jarred spices are more expensive than the grocery store spices yes, but the bulk-in-bag spices end up much cheaper. Plus their turnover is much better and their spices are higher quality to begin with so the taste is much better.

Then take your most-used spices and put them in something easy to reach and use (Chris and I use this) so that you never need to go hunting for what you need. A dedicated pepper grinder and something easy to use for a salt dispenser (I use a plastic parmesan shaker for the kosher salt) are also necessary.

Our go-to spices for the rack are: smoked spanish paprika, cayenne powder, garlic, mustard powder, ancho powder, oregano, basil, cumin, and thyme (and a couple of others). Paprika, cayenne, and mustard powder are used almost every meal. We have a variety of asian and Indian spices in the cupboard as well.

If you like heat get some dehydrated peppers but get to know them well and pay very close attention to their heat levels. There is such a thing as too much, even for Chris (and tien tsin can get to too much very quickly!).

Oh and if you like sausage (fresh or otherwise) do yourself a favor and get Charcuterie by Michael Ruhlman. The instructions and recipes are really good plus the fresh sausage is ground using a stand mixer attachment (much cheaper than a dedicated grinder). The fresh chorizo and hot italian sausage recipes got Chris through his "no iodine" diet and the weeks after because we could completely control the ingredients. Plus my food aversions and morning sickness were really bad during that period so the quick-cooking loose sausage was a godsend for both of us as he could cook those quickly in an electric skillet even though he felt like shit. As a bonus pork shoulder at large quantities is really cheap and really fun to play with.

Oh, and if you bake beware the cocoa available at Penzey's. It's so rich and fatty that adjusting the recipes is necessary as it takes much less cocoa for the same effect. Makes killer hot chocolate though.

Thats it. Im goin over to your house for breakfast.

MelodyByrne wrote:do yourself a favor and get Charcuterie by Michael Ruhlman.

Is that anything to "Charcuterie and French Pork Cookery" by Jane Grigson? That's supposed to be a classic, but I don't have it yet.

I like Alton Brown, Tyler Florence is good to watch too. He explains as he cooks.