The Side Dish Bible: 1001 Perfect Recipes for Every Vegetable, Rice, Grain, and Bean Dish You Will Ever Need

by America's Test Kitchen (editor)

A roadmap to help home cooks round out and enhance any meal, for any occasion with 1001 recipes for every type of side dish imaginable.Every cook struggles over making side dishes, from choosing what goes best with the main course to getting stuck in a rut making the same tired green beans and rice. But this destined-to-be-dog-ear'd compendium of side dishes changes all that; more thorough than any other cookbook, our first complete compilation of side dishes offers 1,001 perfect recipes for tonight and every night, whether you only have a few minutes or need your next dinner-party go-to.Chapters are organized by type of side dish to help you find just what you're looking for. For weeknight inspiration, Basics You Can Count On offers quick-and-easy recipes like Skillet-Roasted Brussels Sprouts you can make in just 10 minutes. Having company? Choose elegant sides from Dinner Party Winners, like a stunning Pommes Anna or Pearl Couscous with Caramelized Fennel and Spinach. Tasked with bringing a side to a potluck? Potluck Favorites offers recipes that everyone will ask for, like Chopped Caprese Salad. Reimagining your holiday table? The Holiday chapter mixes reliable standbys like Creamy Mashed Potatoes and Classic Bread Stuffing, with fresh, seasonal dishes, like Farro Salad with Butternut Squash and Radicchio and Garlic-Scented Mashed Sweet Potatoes with Coconut Milk and Cilantro. A Bread Basket chapter is included as are creative sauces and toppings for taking things up a notch.

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

574 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 5, 2019

About the author

America's Test Kitchen, based in a brand new state-of-the-art 60,000 sq. ft. facility with over 15,000 sq. ft. of test kitchens and studio space, in Boston's Seaport District, is dedicated to finding the very best recipes for home cooks. Over 50 full-time (admittedly obsessive) test cooks spend their days testing recipes 30, 40, up to 100 times, tweaking every variable until they understand how and why recipes work. They also test cookware and supermarket ingredients so viewers can bypass marketing hype and buy the best quality products. As the home of Cook's Illustrated and Cook's Country magazines, and publisher of more than one dozen cookbooks each year, America's Test Kitchen has earned the respect of the publishing industry, the culinary world, and millions of home cooks. America's Test Kitchen the television show launched in 2001, and the company added a second television program, Cook's Country, in 2008.

Discover, learn, and expand your cooking repertoire with Julia Collin Davison, Bridget Lancaster, Jack Bishop, Dan Souza, Lisa McManus, Tucker Shaw, Bryan Roof, and our fabulous team of test cooks!

Learn more at https://www.americastestkitchen.com/.

Reviews

[Sara Wright · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am constantly in a rut when it comes to thinking up sides for dinner. That will no longer be the case, thanks to The Side Dish Bible. Wow. Delicious!

[T · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars.

I normally really love anything America’s Test Kitchen publishes but this one fell a bit flat for me and I’m not quite sure why. There were enough recipes I found to make me want to purchase my own physical copy, but overall, the weakest of their cookbooks I’ve read.

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoying the recipes in this book. Doesn't feel as clinical as when Christopher Kimball was running the show.

[Laura McLoughlin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've now made a handful of recipes and most have turned out well (the one that didn't was probably due to operator error and not the recipe itself). May actually have to purchase this one once I return it to the library.

[Marathon County Public Library · Rating 4 out of 5]

Are you looking for a cookbook packed with ideas on how to use any vegetable or grain you have at the moment? This cookbook is packed full of ideas on how to creatively use whatever you have on hand at any given time, whether it's a vegetable, rice, grain, or bean. It has recipes to suit any dietary needs, so I found plenty of vegan recipes I'm excited to try. Knowing it's a cookbook from America's Test Kitchen, I know the recipes have been thoroughly tested to get the tastiest result, so I'm excited to start cooking!


Sarah M. / Marathon County Public Library

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pictures of recipes? Not all are pictured.
Commentary on recipes? Yes.
Nutrition facts? No.
Recipe Style? Pretty much anything you could consider a side dish.
Any keepers? Yes.

I think the only thing I didn't like was the organization. Instead of finding all your food item X based sides together, they'd be scattered through the book under headings like "crispy sides" and the like. Annoying, but it does not diminish the quantity and quality of recipes you get.

[Debby · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love Americas Test Kitchen. I have an all access paid subscription, and I've made dozens of their recipes. I decided to buy this book, because Amazon was having a sale in the kindle format. I hate to say it, but there just weren't that many recipes that I was inspired to make-- or there were plenty of recipes I knew how to make. I decided to return the cookbook. I think this is a great cookbook for beginner cooks. I'm not vegan and I don't really eat plant based recipes. I still love ATK, but if I'm not inspired to make recipes in a cookbook, why bother keeping it?

[Julie H. Ernstein · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have frequently longed for a cookbook focused on side dishes, and America's Test Kitchen has delivered the goods in the form of The Side Dish Bible: 1001 Perfect Recipes for Every Vegetable, Rice, Grain, and Bean Dish You'll Ever Need (2019). Weighing in at 560+ pages, The Side Dish Bible . . . is a generously illustrated and well-produced (you'd need a well-stitched binding to ensure a cookbook of this girth holds up) volume with chapters focusing on the basics, roasting vegetables, potatoes, fries and crispy sides, rice and grains, beans and lentils, salads and slaws, dinner party faves, potluck winners, casseroles, grilling, slow/pressure cooker meals, near meals, holiday classics, beads, and helpful references. Oh, and as one would hope, it's got a lovely index. With a $35 price tag, I strongly suspect that its per pound cost is likely quite reasonable.

I tabbed quite a lot to put into rotation: spice-roasted butternut squash; hasselback tomatoes; stewed zucchini (with kalamata olives, what's not to love?!); patatas brava;, herbed rice and pasta pilaf with pomegranate and walnut (b/c pomegranates are so beautiful at the holidays and tasty at any time); curried rice salad; bulgur with chickpeas, spinach, and za'atar; refried beans (yay--no lard!); Greek spinach and chickpeas; edamame salad; Texas caviar; spiced red lentils; asparagus salad with oranges, feta, and hazelnuts (for which I am going to sub in walnuts); broccoli salad with creamy avocado dressing; creamy cucumber salad with radishes, lemon, and mint; peach caprese salad; southwestern radish and apple slaw; eggplant pecorino; pommes Anna; butternut squash polenta; orzo with lemon, basil, and feta for a crowd; broccoli salad with raisins and walnuts; orzo salad with broccoli and radicchio; caramelized onion and potato gratin; zucchini and orzo tian; slow-cooker southern braised collard greens; slow-cooker butternut squash risotto; zucchini and feta fritters (this one's in the "Almost a Meal" chapter, as you can imagine); baked orzo with eggplant and tomatoes; potato galette; foccacia with caramelized red onion, pancetta, and oregano; and garlic and herb breadsticks.

Beyond these terrific items, what I most appreciated were the variations and alternative versions of dishes provided and the many dipping sauces, salad dressings, and ways of zhuzhing up mayo (e.g., lemon-chive dipping sauce, sriracha dipping sauce, chipotle-maple mayo, red pepper mayo, basil mayo, etc.). Bottom line: Yum!

[Zoey · Rating 4 out of 5]

1001 recipes for side dishes—all with a brief introduction about “why this recipe works.” I have to admit that at times, I feel intimidated by the way that America’s Test Kitchen describes the mishaps that may befall a cook who does not prepare the dish in the way they have determined to be most proper. However, I respect the thoroughness involved—since America’s Test Kitchen has done all of the experimenting, I can trust that this recipe is likely to yield a dish with the desired characteristics. Recipes range from Texas caviar to succotash to Mujaddara, but the focus here is on “classic” American cuisine, with a smattering of globally “inspired” dishes.

[Andrea · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an amazing recipe book from America's Test Kitchen! I check out cookbooks from the library and flip though them to see how many things I might actually be interested in making, how difficult the recipes might be, and if the ingredients are something I might use regularly or are something odd (for me). Every turn of the page revealed another dish my brain wants me to try! These are simple dishes that could transform a mundane meal into something amazing! I am definitely going to be purchasing a copy for my home library!

[Krysti Kois · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book has everything you need for any side dish. There are recipes for pressure cookers, slow cookers and everything between with easily explained reasons for why they chose what they did. Interesting enough ingredients without having to go to a specialty store. Simple recipes for week night dinners as well as fancy holiday hosting. Very well done book.

[Kathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent compendium of side dishes’ recipes, organized in a smart and intuitive fashion. This “America’s Test Kitchen” tome feels quite different from when Christopher Kimball was its editor and publisher: shortcuts are not only allowed but are celebrated as best-in-class. Two examples are the use of frozen hash browns and store-bought pizza dough to save time.

Highly recommended to nestle on your shelf with other encyclopedic cookbooks.

[Sherri · Rating 4 out of 5]

This hefty volume seems not for the faint of heart. As with all America's Test Kitchen recipes you know you're getting tried and true recipes. Are there photos for all; no, but then again I don't know if you need one in this volume for each and every alternative dish.

Vegetables, legumes, and more to make your taste buds salivate. Just be sure to reinforce your cookbook shelf for this weighty compendium.

[Amaryca · Rating 4 out of 5]

It has more recipes than you’ll ever need! I liked they showed multiple variations on one recipe. Had a lot of good basics in it. Also, I liked that it showed a good variety of the different ways you can get certain ingredients. For example, it showed recipes of how to cook fresh artichokes, canned or jarred, and frozen. It was nice seeing the best ways to cook the different forms veggies comes in.

[Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm a tad biased as I love to cook and have had a lot of luck with recipes in the America's Test Kitchen cookbooks that I own. I will pretty much buy any of their books sight unseen. Also I tend to read cookbooks before diving in to try anything. Having said all that, this was has an amazing mix of side dishes to choose from for all occasions.

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great Resource

Wonderful collection of recipes to use as accompaniments although many could be adapted for main dishes. I borrowed this book from the library but have it on my wishlist of books I’d like to own. I’m not a fan of Kindle cookbooks but think it’s a great way to find out if a book would be helpful to own.

[Miss Clark · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars

It provides a multitude of options for almost any side dish you could want. It also has a handy dandy guide for vegetable cooking times.

Favourite recipes:

Pasta Salad with Roasted Fennel, Red Onions, and Sun-Dried Tomatoes
Pasta Salad with Pesto
Slow-Cooker Refried Beans
All-Purpose Gravy
Southern-Style Cornbread
Challah

[Amberwench · Rating 5 out of 5]

A cook book that lives up to the title! Multiple ways to prepare a delightful assortment of veggies, from the super simple to the slightly fancy. If you want to own only one cookbook for sides, this is it. Very few of the recipes involve meat (mostly toppings like crumbled bacon), and those that do can have the meat easily removed.

[Anna · Rating 5 out of 5]

5

A lot of these recipes can be adapted to be the main meal and are infinitely better than some of the vegetarian or pescatarian recipes I’ve seen online or in other cookbooks. Plus you get a bit of the science behind the recipe which I think is nice for when you’re ready to make variations of your own.

[Dray · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great book. Truly a vegetarians dream. I will be cooking dishes from this for a long time. Test Kitchen always does a good job but this is their best book, i think, ever. (desserts was good) but this is better.

[Rachelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Side Dish Bible... a WIDE range of vegetables and a variety of preparation methods are included. I loved the why this recipe works to explain how the ingredients and combination of cooking. Very easy to understand recipes and some new to me recipes.

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's the kind of book you might want to own, the encyclopedic volume is too overwhelming to just browse. But nonetheless it's America's Test Kitchen so the recipes seem pretty solid.

[Elleah🦄 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Stinks

[Debbie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was excited to see this book - hoping for side dish inspiration to jazz up meals. I was actually overwhelmed instead of inspired.

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book! I checked this out at my library and it was so good I had to buy it! So many good looking, simple recipes.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't think you can beat America's Test Kitchen for quality of cook books, and this is no exception. It is almost daunting in size, but filled with lots of tasty options.

[Jacqueline · Rating 5 out of 5]

The only cookbook you will ever need for side dishes...... Truly great book with great recipes, explanations, etc. Lovely book

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yup. I want to buy this cookbook too for my shelves. Simple recipes - good (but small) photos - but that's understandable as there are a thousand recipes!!

[Kristi · Rating 4 out of 5]

So many good recipes! They went on forever!

[Mary Louise Sanchez · Rating 4 out of 5]

A cookbook to inspire you with different side dishes you can prepare.