The Best Recipe

by Cook's Illustrated

Have You Ever Wondered Why a Recipe tells you to scald milk or to use cocoa instead of baking chocolate? Do you really need to flour chicken cutlets before sauteing them or to chill pie dough before rolling it out? The editors and test cooks at Cook's Illustrated wanted to know the answers to these questions and hundreds like them. We test variations on a recipe 10, 20, 30, or even 80 times to evaluate baking temperatures, mixing methods, ingredient choices, and cooking techniques. The result? The 700 recipes in this comprehensive cookbook, which covers everything from roast chicken to meatloaf to creme caramel and oatmeal cookies. You will learn basic techniques, such as how to make chicken stock, pie dough, and vinaigrette, as well as find out why chicken shouldn't be basted during cooking, why bringing is the secret to the best Thanksgiving turkey, and why low oven temperatures are best for most roasted meats. The Best Recipe not only contains the best recipes for your favorite home-cooked foods, it also explains how and why these recipes work so that you will become a better cook.

Genres: Cookbooks, Cooking, Food, Reference, Nonfiction

573 pages, Hardcover

First published September 10, 1999

Reviews

[Manik Sukoco · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'll be honest. I've never really been one who likes these huge, mega-recipe cookbooks as I've always preferred smaller, more specialized books. This one did come as a surprise as a friend loaned it to me who just raved about it. The recipes are culled from the pages of Cooks Illustrated Magazine which I am not overly familiar with. With a 1000 pages and 1000 recipes, you're sure to find a LOT that you can use.
One thing important to note is that these recipes are not simply thrown into the book. Cooks Illustrated tests these recipes in their kitchens many times, evaluating all facets of the recipe from ingredients and preparation to cook times and equipment. More than just recipes, the book acts as a guide to everyday kitchen techniques, many designed for the novice but certainly still valuable to more experienced cooks. There's also great advice on buying cookware and utensils, as often your recipes are only as good as the equipment you use to make them.
Everything from simple casserole dishes and crockpot favorites to more elegant recipes can be found within its pages. The recipes are VERY step-by-step, obviously written for the beginner in mind and will ensure a great meal everytime. Add to that the editors have put in a generous helping of over 800 illustrations perfectly complement the well-written and well-tested recipes.
Simply put it's the best of its kind anywhere! Highest recommendation.

[Tonya · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you only have (or want) one cookbook or are just getting started as a cook, a great reference.

[Liz · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love having well-tested recipes on hand. But mostly these are too complicated for me to tackle regularly.

[Rebecca Siedschlag · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reviewed in the United States on September 23, 2016

OMGoodness, I LOVE this book! It has all the recipes I've been looking for in past magazine subscriptions. I love that the cooks explain why recipes work and how each ingredient has an impact on the outcome. It's helped me to really understand how certain ingredients interact with other ingredients. So far, every recipe I've made has turned perfectly, and I REALLY LOVE that!!! This book has become my "go to" recipe book now.

Can't beat the price! My order arrived quickly, before the delivery due date, and it arrived in great condition. Thank you so much!

[Caherine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Is very good 👍

[Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a gift from a friend, who said she thought I'd appreciate the extensive treatises (e.g., on exactly *why* one would use two egg yolks and three whole eggs in a recipe, as opposed, say, to three egg yolks and two whole eggs). She was right.

It has been an invaluable resource - this year in particular, it seems, due to our weekly share of vegetables we've been getting from the wonderful Astoria CSA. Some of the guys that come in the weekly share are unfamiliar guests, and we need help figuring out what we can do with them. For example, we'd never cooked fennel before. If it weren't for this book, how would we ever have thought of making Linguine with Braised Fennel and Kale Sauce - extra perfect, of course, because we received kale as part of that week's share as well? Delicious. As a result, we've all become much more adventurous and confident in the world of the kitchen. Talk about a gift that keeps on giving!

[Valerie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one of my most-used cookbooks. There are so many recipes that I come back to again, such as sautéed chicken breasts with tomato-basil sauce and capers, chunky guacamole, and sautéed pork tenderloin medallions with cream, apples and sage (although I don't use the sage).

This book also includes explanations of how many of the recipes were developed as well as product reviews (of both food and kitchen tools) that I find have helped me to become a better home chef.

There are basic as well as more complex recipes in this book, but all are well-described and explained. When I want to know the best method for roasting a turkey, cooking a prime rib or making creme brulée, this is the book that I reach for. Highly recommended.

[Al · Rating 5 out of 5]

A cookbook for nerds, the writers cook a classic dish a variety of ways, blind taste test them, and then arrive at 'the best recipe.' They also explain WHY a certain method works better--like why chicken gains moisture from brining, or why blade cuts of beef need to be cooked for long periods of time at low temperatures for the tastiest results. A great resource for beginning or intermediate cooks, but if you already know what you're doing in the kitchen, then not so much. One caveat: The ORIGINAL 'Best Recipe' is actually superior to the 'New Best Recipe.' Get the original secondhand if you can.

[Gader · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is quite frankly the BEST cookbook. They scientifically create the best recipes based on trial and error. On top of that, they explain the reasoning behind the final recipe and let you know what other methods they tried and why these methods were not the best. There are also helpful hints about certain methods, like how to easily de-pit an avacado, and also give recommendations on the best appliances and cooking tools.

[Randalynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

I never thought to review a cookbook, but since I rave about this one so much, it has made it to my book list. I have read nearly every recipe and the analytical part of my brain loves to know the science behind the ingredients and the methods involved in creating great food. I have learned a lot, but have become a little more snobby about fresh foods, using great ingredients, and cooking from scratch. This cookbook really helped fan the flame of my love for cooking.

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

We can argue all day about the merits of the recipes, it's the writing about them that's fascinating! Before I picked up this book, I had no idea that such basic foodstuffs like biscuits and sugar cookies could have such fascinating kitchen chemistry behind them. From the every day to the complex, if you've every wanted to know about why the ingredients in your kitchen work like they do, this is the book.

[Dr.Kiang · Rating 5 out of 5]

I put this under nerdy-stuff because this cookbook demonstrates the empirical work that goes into making the "Best Recipe." The basic, perfected recipies after many hundreds of tests. Then breaking down the recipe to tell you why it works. It's great for people learning to cook because, prior to getting to the actual recipies, the logic of the progression of the ingredients is explained.

[Monika · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is such a great cookbook. I find myself going back here again and again, for everything from soups to sauces to simple salads... these really are the best recipes.

One caveat: I've found that some of the baking recipes could use some work, as they definitely aren't the best. However, the cooking recipes are handsdown the gold standard.

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is an excellent all-around cooking/baking cookbook. It has a little of everything and it's all absolutely great! The write-ups before the recipes let you learn about their experimentation and science processes for how they got to the best version of the recipe. I highly recommend this as a solid general go-to cookbook.

[Tricia · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a solid workhorse of a cookbook. All the recipes work and the instructions are clear. Great for beginners. This is a great cornerstone book for a kitchen library as it has a basic recipe and technique for just about everything.

[Benjamin · Rating 4 out of 5]

They're not kidding, these recipes are all delicious. Be warned, though, that thse are all pretty involved meals. Not something that I would want to do during the week, but a great way to impress company.

[Ashley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cooks Illustrated has compiled what I call my cooking bible. They have exhaustively tested each recipe to find the very best tried and true recipes. I love it and use it all the time. If you only buy one cookbook this should be the one!

[Daniel · Rating 5 out of 5]

For Christine and me, this is the bible for cooking. Great articles preceding every recipe explaining what they tried and how they improved it, simplified it, made it more reliable. Impartial equipment reviews and food tastings. Always the first cookbook we turn to.

[Ash · Rating 4 out of 5]

This cookbook not only has great recipes, but explains the process by which they arrived at them. An excellent resource for your kitchen.

[Rebekka Istrail · Rating 5 out of 5]

My favorite cookbook.

[Christopher Prosser · Rating 5 out of 5]

cookbooks

[Marlee · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was ok, gave to someone who could use it better.

[Catherine Woodman · Rating 4 out of 5]

My home school has absconded this cookbook out of my kitchen as their favorite cookbook for the kids--and I really do love Christopher Kimball and America's Test Kitchen

[Smill-Happyloveb · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very appetizing and very rich in the palate.