Tyler's Ultimate: Brilliant Simple Food to Make Any Time

by Tyler Florence

As his millions of fans know from watching him on Food Network, Tyler likes to rock the kitchen with big, bold flavors and sophisticated yet accessible fare. Whether you’re dishing up a family favorite like spaghetti and meatballs or pulling out all the stops with a succulent tenderloin steak topped with spicy crab salad, Tyler Florence believes every meal can–and should–be the ultimate dining experience. At last, in Tyler’s Ultimate, he shows us how to get these spectacular results in much less time.

Tyler believes the ultimate meal brings together good food, good friends, and good times–with Tyler’s Ultimate as your guide you can elevate any gathering to a cause for celebration and every family meal to an occasion worth savoring. In his travels around the world for his Food Network show, he’s sampled countless versions of classic dishes, taking an ideal technique from one, a perfect ingredient from another. Here he gives you the best of the best.

Make no mistake: Tyler’s approach here may be simplified and the ingredients list streamlined, but your palate will never feel compromised. These recipes are packed with zesty flavors, yet easy to pull together and always straightforward enough for even novice cooks. Because Tyler believes that the little details separate a good meal from a “wow!” experience, his recipes feature bright, exciting flavors that sing on the tongue yet don’t require fancy equipment or exotic ingredients. Tyler has collected all his most trusted and best-loved recipes for the ultimate collection of go-to meals, including can’t-miss versions of the dishes we all crave most: the ultimate burger, French onion soup, beef stew, macaroni and cheese, and chocolate mousse, plus exciting new discoveries that will find a permanent home in your cooking repertoire.

Filled with recipes for sensational, all-American food, Tyler’s Ultimate is the all-around, everyday great cookbook his fans have been waiting for.

Genres: Cookbooks, Cooking, Nonfiction, Food, Reference, Food and Drink, Celebrity

256 pages, Hardcover

First published September 26, 2006

About the author

Tyler Florence is an American chef and television host of several Food Network shows.
He graduated from the College of Culinary Arts at the Charleston, South Carolina, campus of Johnson & Wales University in 1991. He was later given an honorary doctorate from the university for his culinary success. He is the owner and executive chef of Wayfare Tavern in San Francisco.

Reviews

[Cheryl Schibley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Try the Ultimate Spaghetti and Meatballs on Page 172. Full of beautiful food pics too. Very Good!

[Nathaniel · Rating 1 out of 5]

I had high hopes for this book after seeing Tyler make an absolutely mouth-watering looking fried chicken on his program. When someone bought this off my Amazon wishlist later on, I was hoping that we would at least have that one recipe, plus a whole lot of other good ones. I was wrong. The recipes in this book are awful. Many are flat out inedible (macaroni and cheese topped with onions and peas comes readily to mind), and few have obviously been tested before publication. The directions for most of the recipes haven't even been copy-edited properly. I understand that celebrity chefs are often lazy, but this is the worst example of that I've ever seen. This book was quite obviously written by interns who don't even know how to cook. Adding insult to injury, the fried chicken recipe wasn't even the same one from the show, meaning someone wasted $25 on this pathetic excuse for a cookbook for absolutely no reason whatsoever. It's almost as though Tyler couldn't be bothered to even donate any of his own recipes, forcing some poor college student to recreate them (poorly) from the show. On top of that, the fact that Florence may quite possibly be the most arrogant man on the planet and obviously wrote his own copy about how every recipe in the book is the best ever is just tacky. Why go through that much effort to toot your own horn and not even bother to write out your own recipes?

I gave this book chance after chance, every time trying a new recipe thinking "it can't possibly be as bad as the last one". Every time, this book ruined dinner, guaranteed. I cannot say that for any other cookbook I have ever owned, before or since, and I've been told I'm a fairly good cook. This book is so bad that even a new hardcover in good condition had no resale value. After the third or fourth time that this book produced an utterly inedible meal, I finally said enough was enough and donated it to Goodwill. Tyler Florence has permanently lost my business, and my respect.

[Ariel Celeste · Rating 3 out of 5]

While I generally despise the idea of the celebrity chef, I have used the Delaware County Public Library to explore the world a bit. While Tyler's book has absolutely nothing vegan going on, I did pick up some great tips and learn of new foods that I look forward to experimenting with. Here's a few: Carmelized onions w/ olives, buttered cabbage and carmelized apples; fenugreek in a vinaigarette; and quince paste. YUM!

[Janel Warner]

Everything looks so yummy, easy and not a lot of ingredients. I love his spaghetti and meatballs. I make them about once a month.

[Liquidlasagna · Rating 5 out of 5]

seems like something that would appeal to all those people of the 1970s
that would adore Hong Kong Shrimp Toast

carmelized onion toast

baguette - unsalted butter - onions
anchovies - fresh thyme
kosher salt - black pepper
parmigiano-reggiano - extra-virgin olive oil
nicoise olives

---

people think this is his best cookbook
must be the spaghetti

[Tamra Lagrone · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have made some of the most fabulous meals from this book. And he is the son-in-law of a friend of mine, so I'm pushing this one ;) Great photos, beautiful book - I have it right on my counter!

[Riley Sonz · Rating 5 out of 5]

The linguine and clams recipe is my all time favorite so it has to get 5 stars.

[Morgan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this cookbook. Tyler is one of my fav's on the Food Network. He seems to make food more, well, approachable. His meals are always beautiful and "fancy", but it's nothing more than good quality, fresh ingredients prepared in innovative ways. I've made and loved so many receipes in this book. Each time I look through it, I chide myself for not having made more of them. A great find for cooks.

[Catherine Woodman]

In my heavy FoodChannel viewing days I was never a very big fan of his--he does ahve a really nice flair with pulling fairly inexperienced cooks through a meal that they hope to pull off--sometimes bringing the menu down to earth and making it very easy to follow--and the cookbook reflects this talent--I would recommend it for someone who wants to make a few simple things but has no talent in the kitchen.

[Lori Selby · Rating 5 out of 5]

My sister gave this cookbook to my dad for Christmas one year. He must not have tried to make anything from it or he would not have given it to me! I have made several things from it and have not had a failure yet.

The ingredients are all easy to find and the recipes delicious. I've made dishes from it for my dad and he has asked where I got the recipe. I laugh when I tell him they all came from the book he rejected and sent my way!

This cookbook won't let you down.

[allison · Rating 4 out of 5]

This cook book is fantastic. I have a major crush on Tyler. And I love everything that he makes. He keeps things simple yet creative. A lot of his recipes are old school italian cooking with a hint of modern flare. He is a big fan of procuitto and so am I. He also does a lot of sweet/savory dishes which are great for your taste buds.

[Liz · Rating 2 out of 5]

This went back to the library yesterday. We made the crab salad with avocado and the shrimp bisque, and every night Charles and I would have the same conversation:

Me: Do you want the shrimp bisque for dinner?
C: Not really...
Me: Yeah, me either...

The food wasn't bad, per se, but we didn't want to eat it. Ever.

[Ashley · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is full of beautiful pictures, and written in a very approachable way. The only reason I didn't give it a higher rating is that I found that many of the recipes didn't come out as tasty as I would have expected from Tyler. A lot of effort goes into most recipes to impart flavor, and many fell short of the desired result.

[Andrea · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great companion piece to his tv show of the same name. Tyler Florence takes his favorite dishes (mac and cheese, spaghetti with clams, fried chicken, etc) and kicks them up a notch. The pictures alone are worth the money and the recipes look fairly easy- nothing too pretentious here.

[Marianne · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've already covered the fact that I'm a cookbook geek. These recipes LOOK too hard for me! I enjoyed the book, the photography was beautiful and the presentation was impeccable. I just won't use it.

[Missy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought that this one was going to end up as one of my enjoyable-to-skim-but-not-really-going-to-make-anything-from-it cookbooks, and then I hit the dessert section. My post-it note bookmarks are entirely clustered there and they're rather crowded.

[Ryon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another amazing cookbook in the "quick and easy" vein. My favorite recipe in this book is the one-pot ratatouille recipe. When a potluck comes around I invariably get asked to cook it. This book makes you feel like a pro in no time at all!

[Jane · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the our go-to cookbooks in the Hahn household. Never steers us wrong, easy, simple directions and well put together meals that make you look like the pro. Great gift to others who like to cook and are confident in the kitchen.

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.8 but not 4 (because if it were 4 I'd have to go buy it. Got it from the library). I copied several recipes and particularly look foward to making Lemon Curry Chicken and The Ultimate Baked Beans.

[Monique · Rating 3 out of 5]

Many of the noodle recipes I've tired and my family loves them. Now I will say that most of the other recipes are too intricate to make after work. I love Tyler on the Food Network but I have to admit that this was not my favorite cookbook.

[Samantha P · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have made some of the most fabulous meals from this book. And he is the son-in-law of a friend of mine, so I'm pushing this one ;) Great photos, beautiful book - I have it right on my counter!

[Bridget · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful cookbook and the recipes look like they are the ultimate! Still need an autograph for this one. Tyler, please answer my requests! :)

[Cassandra · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this cookbook! The sea scallop recipe is my favorite. I highly recommend this cookbook.

[Trish · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have a humongous crush on Tyler Florence. And I'm not ashamed.

[Agnes · Rating 3 out of 5]

Chocolate Banana Bread & Spicy Cole Slaw

[Mary Hattum · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some of my favorite recipes! Great Pictures! So Soulful.

[Tanya · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love Tyler's recipes - simple goodness if you ask me. Of course you put his cutie pie face on the cover of a book and I'm there ... honestly excellent recipes!

[Beka · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really great recipes with yummy looking pics.

[Angela Haygood · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book the Mac & Cheese is serious!

[Natalie Olsen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Got this for Christmas