One Good Dish

by David Tanis

In this, his first non-menu cookbook, the New York Times food columnist offers 100 utterly delicious recipes that epitomize comfort food, Tanis-style. Individually or in combination, they make perfect little meals that are elemental and accessible, yet totally surprising—and there’s something to learn on every page. Among the chapter titles there’s “Bread Makes a Meal,” which includes such alluring recipes as a ham and Gruyère bread pudding, spaghetti and bread crumbs, breaded eggplant cutlets, and David’s version of egg-in-a-hole. A chapter called “My Kind of Snack” includes quail eggs with flavored salt; speckled sushi rice with toasted nori; polenta pizza with crumbled sage; raw beet tartare; and mackerel rillettes. The recipes in “Vegetables to Envy” range from a South Indian dish of cabbage with black mustard seeds to French grandmother–style vegetables. “Strike While the Iron Is Hot” is all about searing and quick cooking in a cast-iron skillet. Another chapter highlights dishes you can eat from a bowl with a spoon. And so it goes, with one irrepressible chapter after another, one perfect food moment after this is a book with recipes to crave.

Genres: Cookbooks, Food, Cooking, Nonfiction, Reference, Culinary, Foodie

257 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 22, 2013

About the author

David Tanis has worked as a professional chef for over three decades, and is the author of several acclaimed cookbooks, including A Platter of Figs and Other Recipes, which was chosen as one of the 50 best cookbooks ever by the Guardian/Observer (U.K.).

He spent many years as chef with Alice Waters at Chez Panisse restaurant in Berkeley, California; he ran the kitchen of the highly praised Café Escalera in Santa Fe, New Mexico; and he operated a successful private supper club in his 17th century walk-up in Paris.

Passionate about simple, seasonal home cooking—real food—he finds inspiration in the fresh offerings at farmers’ markets as well as in dusty gardens and muddy fields. He is also inspired by his travel and exploration of many regional cuisines of Europe, Asia, and Latin America.

He has written for a number of publications, including the Wall Street Journal, the Guardian/Observer (U.K.), Cooking Light, Bon Appétit, Fine Cooking and Saveur.

He lives in Manhattan and writes the weekly City Kitchen column for the Food section of New York Times.

His latest cookbook is One Good Dish, Artisan 2013

Reviews

[Jess · Rating 3 out of 5]

I gave it three stars due to the wonderful background antidotes that Tanis gives for each recipe. I truly appreciated the education. The introduction has additional advice from Tanis on selecting olive oil, anchovies, olives, bread, etc. It isn't earth shattering advice; but the locations for sourcing the olive oil and anchovies was new to me.
Overall, the recipes are straight forward and simple. I can't rave about it because many of the recipes didn't interest me. The section I most enjoyed was the condiment section. He has some great ideas and I'm already planning on making my own pickled ginger after reading his recipe for it. The photography was lovely and I can say it is worth investigating for the home chef.

[Carol Bakker]

If I rated this I would give it two stars = It was OK. But I'm not rating it, because it's most likely a fantastic cookbook. But not for me. Not for Peoria.

Quail eggs. Seaweed salad. Chrysanthemum Greens with Silken Tofu. Red Beet Salad. (<<--grated raw beets. Um, no thanks, I'm good.)

The pictures were lovely. Reading this on Kindle for PC was vastly better than on the Kindle itself. I don't think Kindle and Cookbook are compatible terms.

I kept reading to the end and was rewarded with three recipes I want to try.

*Mustard from scratch* Friends who grow mustard gave us a large bag of it and I've been wondering how to use mustard seed. Here is an answer.

*Garam Masala* I doubt I'll make this, but it's good to know what goes in this spice blend I use in curries.

*Hibiscus Flower Quencher* I had this at an Egyptian-American wedding this summer and it was quite delightful.

In addition I read with interest *Real Chai Made to Order*. With smugness, really. I've been doing this for years, taught by my friend who grew up in India. But I may try Tanis's additions of fennel and black peppercorns.

[Heidi Wiechert · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked up One Good Dish hoping to find some simple dinner ideas and found it to be hilariously above my sophistication level. I'm certain that high class foodies would love this as it presents the recipes in such a simple, straight forward manner that I even considered if it would be possible to find fresh clams in my area. (The answer is no, in case you were wondering.) Someday, I may make the Cream Filled Dates (cut open a date, put cream inside) or Caipiroska (vodka flavored with sugar coated limes) but today is not that day.

I did enjoy Tanis' educational blurbs before each dish. They gave cultural details of the backgrounds and flavors incorporated in whatever recipe he was presenting. Also, it is fun to experience someone discussing a subject that they find engrossing and, for Tanis, that is clearly food. I saved my favorite quotation from the text:

Freshly dug new potatoes are a real turn-on. A cheap thrill perhaps, but a thrill nonetheless.pg 56

Ah, well. I wish that I was more adventurous in the kitchen because, if I was, this book would have been so easy to love.

[Annie · Rating 2 out of 5]

read Tamar Adler instead

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

First and foremost, and experienced cook may not appreciate this book as it is quite simple. However, in the same breath, I would say that an experienced cook should appreciate this book.

The recipes are simple yet flavorful, focus on a few good ingredients, and are fairly fast to prepare.

A good cookbook doesn't need to be full of recipes that contain more than 15 ingredients, take hours to prepare, and items that need to be shipped from specialty markets across the continent.

My point is that the book is exactly what it represents itself to be. I am a fairly experienced cook, definitely not a professional, but I do know my way around the kitchen.

The way this book really shined for me was in using it to cook with my children - ranging from 7 - 13. The ingredients were simple, the instructions were simple, and the end product was something they thought tasted good.

In an age of processed, microwaved, instant 'food' product, teaching my kids how to cook simple meals that taste good is important so that they learn for themselves that they can make something tasty and fast that doesn't come from a drive through or requires a 'start' button.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a beautiful book, with incredible photographs that make even garlic toast look luscious. The recipes are clear, and most use everyday ingredients. Anyone could make these, from a novice to a seasoned cook.

That being said, I'm not sure who this book is aimed at. The recipes aren't particularly family-friendly or quick, and I found the author's tone to be kind of stuffy. While anyone can appreciate good food, some of his notes on tea, etc were kind of out of place and fussy. Also, I find it hard to take desert ideas seriously from someone who admits they're not crazy about chocolate. What?!? While I realize that's my personal preference (I'm sure there are tons of people out there who don't care much for chocolate - but I don't cook for any of them). So, this book isn't particularly useful to me, other than for inspiration.

No nutritional information, though I wasn't expecting it in a book like this.

[Eleanor · Rating 1 out of 5]

I just...I don’t know what to say about this book. I am a relatively confident home cook. I know my way around the kitchen and I thrive on the challenge of cooking for a special occasion, holiday or dinner party. But this book makes me feel like an a**hole. A solid 80% of these recipes are so bouvier they come across as patronizing. There is literally a recipe for watered down wine. What. The. Frack.

[Hannah Moutran · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved cooking from One Good Dish: the pleasures of a simple meal. First up for me was grilled cheese in a waffle iron, a sandwich so simple I hesitate to even call it a recipe. It’s an idea—read the name, you pretty much know how to make it. That amazes me. David Tanis is so confident, he can use a page to tell you to try just making a grilled cheese in your waffle iron. Starting right there, this book was a reassuring presence in my kitchen. You will make simple meals. They will be delicious. The most time intensive dish I made was the Swiss chard al Forno, which took two saucepans, one skillet, and one baking dish. Turned out amazing and I would make it again in a heartbeat. Totally unsurprising, this amazingly talented recipe writer is a graduate of the kitchen at Chez Panisse, in addition to writing the City Kitchen column for the The New York Times. My trust in David Tanis grew with each recipe that I made. Which is great, because it means that I felt comfortable trying new things.

Spaghetti with Bread Crumbs and Pepper (p. 20), Waffle Iron Grilled Cheese (p.27), Cheese in a Jar (p. 54), Mackerel Rillettes (p. 80), Olive Relish (p. 107), Rice Porridge (p. 122), Winter Minestrone (p. 144), Swiss chard al Forno (p. 175), Griddled Polenta Scrapple (p. 187), Crispy Potato Galette (p. 203), Golden Coconut Cookies (p. 219), Real Chai Made to Order (p. 248).

Would make again: Spaghetti with Bread Crumbs and Pepper, Waffle Iron Grilled Cheese, Winter Minestrone, Swiss chard al Forno, Griddled Polenta Scrapple.

Standout Star Recipe: Griddled Polenta Scrapple. Oh my goodness, this was so good. Cook the polenta, mix with cooked sausage, rosemary, parmesan cheese, spread in a pie pan and refrigerate. When ready to eat, it is so easy to pull out and gently pan fry. Perfect for making ahead and so crazy delicious.

Pics on my blog: https://mykitchenscratch.com/2020/11/...

[erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this for my cookbook book club and it was ok. I didn’t really like the background stories be they seemed repetitive at some points... “or you can eat this as a midnight snack!” was mentioned far too many times.

This is mostly just a note so I can remember what I made and what we had for dinner.

Real garlic toast - will prob do this from now on
Moroccan carrots - delicious
Red beet salad- also delicious esp loved the cornichons
Tunisian meatballs - so delicious so many spices
Fragrant sea scallops cakes - really yummy sauce went with
Crispy potato galette - maybe cooked a little too long and didn’t look as pretty but was realllllly yummy. Read, butter butter butter.
Espresso hazelnut bark - super good
Candies grapefruit peel - surprisingly good but had to slow dry in oven basically all day to get the moisture out

[Dray · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although not a vegetarian cookbook I was pleasantly surprised by the number of vegetarian recipes. Innovative and fresh, the recipes are enticing and look delicious. i am going to be cooking my way through a number of them.

[Christine · Rating 3 out of 5]

too "foodie" with strange ingredients that are not easy to come by in my neck of the woods. Not what I am looking for at all.

[Lizzie S · Rating 3 out of 5]

Flipped through this fairly quickly and found some recipes I'd definitely like to try, including garlic soup and fish stew.

[Bethany]

This is full of fun ideas, especially for vegetables, but isn’t terribly practical for the everyday cook trying to get dinner on the table.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

a range of mostly simple dishes - that use minimal ingredients with a range of culinary influences

[Darren · Rating 5 out of 5]

To paraphrase this book's title, if you only will buy "One Good Book" in the coming months…

Here is a rich indulgence of simplicity, authenticity and enjoyment. A basic concept: 100 different, enjoyable "utopian" recipes that can either stand alone or be combined into a larger meal. Attempting to make an ultimate dish whilst not necessarily requiring the skills of a Michelin-starred chef with a budget to match, this is something that anybody who loves good food cannot fail to enjoy.

Some of the recipes sound simple, such as "Real Garlic Toast" whilst others are perhaps a lot more esoteric like "Speckled Sushi Rice With Nori" and a few have you doing a double-take with a name like "Cheese in a Jar". If you like great, quality food photography this is certainly a book for you too with the photographer carefully letting the food be the star rather than some artistic interpretation. That said, many of these pictures could be framed and hung on a wall!

The recipes themselves are fairly well written, clear to understand and draw you in, aided by a brief introduction and dispersal of a hint, tip or pearl of wisdom. Sadly our "usual niggles" about the lack of an estimated preparation and cooking time along with the sole use of U.S. imperial measures are relevant here, slightly taking off the gloss for this book but in no way is this a deal-breaker. One hopes that the promised index for this book is comprehensive and navigable as this is essential yet this was missing in this pre-release review copy so no opinion can be given over this often critical, yet under-appreciated feature.

This is by no means your usual run-of-the-mill recipe book and this adds to the charm. It is neither egocentric, hyped up or jarring - it is just a pleasurable culinary experience that has many great recipes and has the ability of giving you quite a few wonderful surprises along the way. If you are in doubt, visit a bookstore, hold it in your hand and notice its glue-like tendencies and your reluctance to return it back to the shelf...

[lisa · Rating 1 out of 5]

The first recipe listed in this book is James Cagney Egg in a Hole, which I have never ever heard of in my life. I googled it thinking it was something that was a common thing, but could only find it referenced in mention of this book. Tanis never explains the reason for this ridiculous name, and I cannot figure out the reason for naming your basic, everyday eggs and toast after the Angels With Dirty Faces actor. Did he eat eggs and toast a lot? Was eggs and toast referenced in any of his movies? The only thing that comes to mind is the grapefruit he smashes in Virginia Mayo's face in White Heat, but even that doesn't make much sense. (Maybe the egg smashed into the center of the toast?) Anyway, I quickly lost interest in the rest of this book, especially when I saw how much cream some of the recipes were calling for.

[Andrea · Rating 3 out of 5]

Worth it just for the pictures. And some tasty recipes that use a refreshingly small number of ingredients. I made the garlic soup last night and was surprised by how good it was since it's basically just garlic, water, sage, salt, and pepper. I think, perhaps, that the pictures make these dishes look more delicious than they really are though. A+ for presentation, maybe a B for taste on some I'm guessing, but I haven't actually tried anything other than the soup, so I'm just guessing based on ingredients.

[Naomi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read my full review: http://bit.ly/19hDi9g

My opinion: First off, this book had BEAUTIFUL PICTURES! On that note, the book contained relatively simple recipes, but I would only eat a handful due to personal preference. Most had easily obtainable ingredients, such as mussels, anchovies, but probably not the most popular foods. Most recipes pretty ethnic (Middle Eastern or Asian). I would encourage a look at book sample at library, Amazon sample or brick/mortar bookstore.

[Robert Hudder · Rating 2 out of 5]

Good solid dishes. I would recommend this for new cooks and people who aren't creative but want to have a few simple but good dishes for everyday. I am not buying this book because many of the recipes are mainly a collection of good ingredients cooked well. There is a fair breadth of different cultures represented. I have a lot of these recipes elsewhere and kind of cook this way already (look in the fridge and pantry, pop things together and see what happens)

[Steph Myers · Rating 4 out of 5]

My husband accidentally spilled olive oil on the library book (this one), so we own this now. It has turned out to be one of my favorite cookbooks. the Gruyere and Ham Bread Pudding is the BEST and so simple. In fact, this book keeps ingredients and technique to a minimum, but the results are wonderful. Even if you think you can't cook . . . this book will show you how easy it is to create something simple and elegant. And . . . great photography.

[Lisa Hope]

I have read, but not made anything, from Tanis's new collection. I am eager to give several dishes a try. Based on visual impact, perfect amount of chat, level of appeal in the recipes and understandability of the instructions, I would off hand say One Good Dish is another 5 star cookbook for Tanis but I am reserving rating until I have sampled some of the dishes. The proof of the pudding...

[Tim · Rating 4 out of 5]

beautiful, extremely simple food. reminds me of ottolenghi books, but even simpler. most recipes have 4-6 ingredients, including salt and oil. some great pieces in here - long-cooked kale, charred endives with anchovy butter, polentina soup, and others.

[Ariadna73 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful book about super-healthy and super-delicious food. My favorites are the breaded eggplants (already ate like a ton!) and the garbanzos: as the author says, after trying thdm, the only thing you want is more; and the sameapplies to this wonderful and beautiful book.

[Ellen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this cookbook so much that not only did I download it I also bought a hard copy. Made the cold Chinese chicken. Great blend of flavors. Also made the green African sauce and Middle East red sauce. So many great and original combinations in all the recipes. Can't wait to try them all.

[Mrs. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good, simple dishes, gorgeous photography,and Tanis's writing style make this a pleasant and inspiring book. If you're an experienced cook you won't see anything new here, but you may get inspired to search for the best ingredients and make your food presentation better!

[Jessica Haider · Rating 4 out of 5]

This cookbook has beautiful photographs of the recipes! The recipes themselves are relatively simple yet unique and creative with lots of Asian and Middle Eastern influences. I haven't tried cooking anything from the book yet, but I hope that I can sometime soon!

[Mary · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have all Tanis' cookbooks and this was largely a disappointment. It's small on flavor and originality. Almost every dish in the book, I already have on my cookbook shelves. Didn't make me feel inspired or desire to go out and cook anything in it.

[Margaret · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting cookbook with a number of very delicious looking things to cook.

Garnered a few tips, which always makes reading a cookbook worthwhile.

Though the book is worth spending time with it just for the beautiful photographs.

[Agostina · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lo mejor del libro son las fotos, si bien las recetas son interesantes y relativamente sencillas; no son justamente lo que buscaba para nutrir mi menú semanal o de eventos. En todo el libro habré sacado 5 ideas. No obstante, es un buen compilado de recetas de varias nacionalidades.

[Beka · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great pictures of some simple, tasty recipes.