Cook Simple: Effortless cooking every day

by Diana Henry

Diana Henry shows you how to turn everyday ingredients, such as chicken pieces, tuna steaks, or a leg of lamb, into a truly special dinner with the minimum of effort. Her success lies in the authenticity of her recipes.

Diana dedicates a chapter to each of 12 everyday ingredient groups: chicken, chops, sausages, leg of lamb, fish, leaves, summer veg, winter veg, pasta, summer fruit, winter fruit, and flour and eggs. There are more than 120 recipes, from a wide variety of countries, and each takes only minutes to prepare. Spice rubs, marinades, and flavoured butters feature heavily in the book’s many roasts and bakes, but there are lots of other ideas for quick cooking, too.

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

415 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 30, 2007

Reviews

[Christina · Rating 4 out of 5]

After decades of cooking, I now try few new cookbooks. This one was recommended by my foodie daughter, who is herself a superb cook. (The only difference between Jessy and a professional chef is that, when she feeds you, money doesn't change hands.)

The book was recommended based on my own needs: simple preparation, commonly available ingredients, not much time or labor involved, yet superior, somewhat rustic results. Diana Henry's book does deliver that. I have tried several recipes, and, except for the roasted tomatoes, have enjoyed variations of all, although Henry is rather too fond of mint for my taste. Just sayin'.

Particularly helpful is her grouping of produce recipes by season (spring and summer vegetables, autumn and winter fruit, etc), an arrangement that makes it easier to work with the cycle of seasonal scarcity and bounty. Recommended to new parents and all others who can't or won't stand at the counter chopping and prepping for hours.

[Meredith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Recipes I've tried from this book:

Pomegranate & Honey Glazed Chops (left off the radish & cucumber tzatziki) *****
Pork Chops with Plums & Chinese Spices *****
Italian Pork Chops with Fennel Seeds *****
Smothered Pork Chops with Mustard and Thyme Butter***** (did the quicker way by cooking with thyme sprigs and serving with mustard. Leftovers made a great fry-up)
Salsiccia Agridolce *** (could be that I used raisins instead of currants)
Baked Sausages with Chestnuts (have substituted squash for mushrooms, excellent both ways) *****
Merguez Sausages with Roast Peppers & Cucumber Tzatziki (I loved, hubby didn't) ****
Roast Cod with Smoked Bacon *****
No cook puds: Boozy Raisins *****
New England Baked Apples ****
Pears, Raisins and Pine Nuts baked in Moscatel *** (but **** from hubby)

[Cynthia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Funny, a friend was pointing out that Europeans have a more intimate knowledge of liquor than do Americans, and this book seems to prove the point. Many of these recipes involve brandy, muscatel, sherry and other liquors that I definitely do not have lying around the kitchen and do not intend to buy just to cook these dishes.
Having said that,this is an interesting if imperfect book. Her concept is great: That once you have kids, you don't have a lot of time to stand around chopping and fussing in the kitchen. It's easier, she notes, to make something like a leg of lamb that takes a long time to cook, than it is to make something that might be quicker but more labor intensive. That is a spot on observation. Her recipes are good, and the photos are nice but believable, like pictures you would take with a decent camera of your family and friends and a really great roast chicken. And there are definitely several things in here I'm planning to make. Many of her recipes have exotic origins, either in Africa or Scandinavia, even though she's English. So, I like this book but I wouldn't say it's going to be one I use all the time.

[Rabya · Rating 4 out of 5]

Don't read this when you are hungry- you might eat the book. Mouth watering photographs accompany easy, straight forward recipes that use everyday ingredients. Lots of roasting/oven time, and minimal preparation time required. A few recipes I plan to test out: turkish chicken with oranges and warm spices, the flavored butters, pacific lime chicken, and swedish baked beets with onions, sour cream, and dill.

[Rachel H · Rating 4 out of 5]

This cookbook makes me look like a genius. (Albeit a very lazy genius.) Simple, easy recipes that taste complex with a minimum of ingredients. Makes a busy person look like a gourmet cook. Easy. Easy. Easy. Current favorite dishes include: trofie with shrimp, feta, parsley and lemon or zucchini with ricotta, mint and basil. For dessert in summer, the broiled apricots (substitute peaches for more sweetness) with blackberries and marscarpone.

[Daphne Stewart · Rating 5 out of 5]

I borrow many cookbooks from my local library, and enjoy perusing them, marking the "must-trys" with post-it notes, and actually trying out a new recipe or two. This is one that got bookmarked a lot! I tried a couple of recipes before I had to take it back.

Diana Henry is a well-known British chef. Like Darina Allen, another favourite, she uses local ingredients with Mediterranean and Middle Eastern spice combinations, or traditional British food with a twist.

This one's a keeper!

[reading is my hustle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Finally a cookbook that claims "effortless meals everyday" and means it! Not since Martha Stewart's "Every Day Food: Great Food Fast" have I been so inspired.

Simple, easy, and nourishing recipes abound in this gorgeous cookbook:

greek baked chicken in yogurt (best supper dish)

greek roast lamb on rice and spinach

spaghetti with bacon, egg, and smoked cheese

Yummy!

[Danielle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am pretty excited about this book. Very approachable, minimal prepping recipes, but still everyone has a little elegance to it. Strong on Mediterranean influence, most ingredients stock my pantry. I like the lay-out of this too. Beautiful photos, and a few recipes have other variation that accompany them. I wish that it had more vegetable recipes, although the ones it does have are great.

[Courtney · Rating 5 out of 5]

This looks like a really good cookbook - a lot of new recipes, not just the same ones you see all the time. A lot of the recipes are inspired by different countries methods of cooking, including ones you don't see a lot like a couple of Swedish recipes. I can't wait to try some of these out! ^_^

[Kelley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Still some weird stuff - you'd think pure, simple cooking wouldn't be so gourmet and strange. but we did make a pasta with gorgonzola, onions and balsamic vinegar. That one's a keeper.

[Angela · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yum.

[M · Rating 2 out of 5]

She uses some funky ingredients. This is not simple stuff.

[Megan · Rating 1 out of 5]

Downright depressing. It was boring and uninspired, and these features were exacerbated by the gluttony of fantastic cookbooks I've had access to recently.

[km · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some good ideas but not memorable. I appreciate the concept she discusses of less active time, more hands off time, but it's not practical for weeknights for many people who work outside the home.

[Beka · Rating 3 out of 5]

Definitely simple, but nothing that jumped out at me.

[Dean · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really like the simple recipes, but also that she does not dumb this down. I would buy this book.