The Take-out Menu Cookbook: How to Cook in the Foods You Love to Order Out

by Carla Snyder, Meredith Deeds

You've got a serious hankerin' for Kung Pao Chicken, but Wang's House of Noodles is 35 minutes away, it's overpriced, and well, it just plain stinks. Come to think of it, you haven't found great, let alone decent, ethnic take-out for a while. What to do? How about cook it yourself? All you need is to open up The Take-Out Menu Cookbook and step confidently into the kitchen. . . .This first-of-its-kind cookbook features the top 200 take-out and carry-away dishes from the 12 most popular ethnic French, Italian, Spanish, German, Chinese, Thai, Mexican, Middle Eastern/Moroccan, Indian, Eastern European/Jewish, Greek, and Japanese. Why buy a Chinese cookbook when all you want is authentic-tasting but healthier-than-take-out Kung Pao Shrimp, Spicy Potstickers, and Mu Shu Pork? By focusing on the most popular dishes from each cuisine, Meredith Deeds and Carla Snyder provide starving chefs with the tools at their disposal to create authentic, healthy, and delicious meals that will make staying home worthwhile! Even highly experienced cooks can be rattled by sushi or derailed by dim sum. But with the help of the authors, who have more than 20 years of experience as cooking instructors between them, there's no need to worry! With their guidance, the unfamiliar territory of ethnic cuisine is easily maneuvered.

Genres: Cookbooks

336 pages, Hardcover

First published October 22, 2007

Reviews

[Margaret Gerberding · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you love take-out food, but hate the cost, this is the book for you! Making your own saves money, and you know what is in your food. This book is divided into types of cuisine, so it is easy to find what you are looking for.

[Camilacabello71 · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is like a great way to enjoy takeout favorites without the wait or high prices. Plus, making it yourself means you can tweak the flavors just how you like visit here.

[Allison · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is full of the kind of recipes that I've eaten and loved before but never actually tried to make. Now I've made my own pierogi's, which took forever to make, but the recipe did say 2 hours start to finish, and that was pretty accurate. They warned me! And because many recipes have a "make ahead" box, I knew that I could make a full batch and freeze half, so we'll enjoy them again sometime. Have also made the dal, which was probably the best dal recipe I've had before, and I've tried quite a few. Didn't actually make my own garam masala for it, but maybe next time. And made the Gazpacho, which was delicious on a hot summer day with some cheddar cheese panini's. The recipes all start with a little information the the food, which is fun and interesting. Lots of vegetarian recipes, and I don't see strange ingredients, which is often a problem with around the world recipes. The only thing it's lacking is pictures, but that's very forgivable because it's all take-out food and therefore mostly familiar foods. We're making samosas and mango lassi next, just waiting for the mango to ripen.

[Elaine · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was hoping this would include easier ways to make take-out food, but most of the recipes in this book are way over my head. So, I was disappointed. I may try a few just to see how hard they really are.

[Pattie Tierney · Rating 2 out of 5]

So far this book is leaving me cold. There are no pictures to speak of, it's cheaply printed, and unattractively laid out making it less than fun to peruse. There may be some great recipes here, but at this point I'm not interested in trying any of them.

[Tina · Rating 3 out of 5]

The recipes are ok, but I would have preferred better illustrations. It's a great starter for cultural recipes if you just want to mimic what you get to go, but you need to dig deeper into the cooking section of your book store or library if you want a richer, authentic experience.

[Jeri]

Some good recipes, but I never got around to get the long list of ingredients I would need to cook Mandarin Kung Pao...Pei Wei always seems like an easier choice.

[Charity Bradford]

I'll let you know what I decide to cook.

[Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best chipotle salsa recipe EVER. We loved the chicken Parmesan (with homemade marinara), the red rice recipe and the Romesco Sauce.