Kitchen Capable: Everything a New Cook Needs to Make Great Food

by Stefan Ng

This breakthrough book teaches you every foundational skill you need to become a great home cook, so you can build your intuition in the kitchen and make epic meals for life. A series of lessons carefully walk you through topics like using kitchen equipment properly, understanding your ingredients and mastering key techniques, to help you build your knowledge from the ground up. Stefan Ng shares educational cooking videos on his popular account Shaunson Explains; in this incredible book, he lays out a comprehensive, a-z guide of his most important teachings plus more.

You’ll first learn to stock your kitchen with guides on the best knives, pots and pans. Then you’ll get familiar with ingredients, with deep dives on the many onion and mushroom varieties, and which are best for different dishes. Most importantly, you’ll practice key cooking concepts like sautéing, caramelizing and more, then perfect each new skill set with a foundational recipe. Learn what deglazing is and why it’s important, then whip up a basic pan sauce to see the technique in action! You’ll also cook your way through delicious, nuanced recipes that reinforce every lesson learned. Make Salmon with Creamy Dill Sauce, BBQ Chimichurri Steak or a Spicy Cucumber Salad. This book will help you foster a deeper understanding of food and elevate your cooking for life.

Genres: Cookbooks, Cooking

192 pages, Hardcover

Published November 19, 2024

Reviews

[Martha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Go to book for the new home cook or a food hobbyist. And anyone who needs to be reminded of the proper method in technique or exact meaning of cooking terms. Very basic yet very rewarding. Also offers recipes that are essential to the newest generations of home cooks. Gives opinions on the most necessary equipment for following the lessons of this little book. It was a helpful reminder for me of the best use for different oils in cooking and baking. A small guide with enormous ideas for perparing and dining at home.

[Nathan Brungart · Rating 5 out of 5]

I would say if you are just starting out and need to build a pantry, this is a great book to build a pantry and set of cooking tools. The recipes in the book are a handful of solid staples for any beginning cook.

[Daniel]

I don't recall ordering this book from the library so I'm not sure how I ended up with it. Regardless here's a brief bulletpoint review.

If you've cooked for a long time, you most likely have figured out 80% of the content in this book.
It might help you level up a tiny bit but might be a bit boring.

If you have never learned to cook or attempted to cook, this book will feel like a great instruction manual. The book is very practical and covers tools, process and includes practice recipes. If you don't have a father, mother, grandpa, grandpa or friend to teach you to cook, this book could help.

[Unapologetic_Bookaholic · Rating 5 out of 5]

This will help me out quite a bit. I'm a. basic home cook. I love learning about the different butters and vinegar. Also, having a handy guide for the smoke point of oil. A must have for beginners and home cooks alike.

[Mary Shimp · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book for beginner cooks. Wish I had had access to this book at the start of my marriage 49 years ago. Well worth your time reading!