The Making of a Cook

by Madeleine Kamman

Combines five hundred recipes collected from diverse Western cultures with lessons on the preparation and selection of food

Genres: Cookbooks, Cooking, Nonfiction, France, Food

559 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1971

About the author

Madeleine Kamman was a French chef and restaurateur, cookery teacher and author of seven cookbooks, who spent most of her working life in America bringing the rigors of French technique to American ingredients and audiences.

Reviews

[Morgan Perkins · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a gem of a book. I highly recommend the original 1971 edition over the “New Making of a Cook” which was adapted in the late 90’s to fit in with the low fat diet culture. This book has traditional recipes in it and you can bounce around to the ones you are looking for, but I highly recommend reading it cover to cover first. This is because the book is written in such a way that it starts with basic concepts and building blocks and much of the later content uses those early building blocks. Also, the author just has a wonderful, colorful writing style and I found myself chuckling along with her. It is useful to have a basic foundation in the kitchen, as instructions assume you understand certain terms and techniques. Stylistically, think about the length and brevity of an older cookbook rather than the novel-esque recipes we tend to see today. A lot of the recipes are a bit dated (do other home cooks have a backlog of veal knuckles lying around?), but you will learn so much from reading them and the book as a whole.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is great if you're wanting to learn more about the chemical processes that occur while cooking. It also speaks to the history and origins of classic French recipes.

Written to be read cover to cover as opposed to treated as a typical "cookbook".

[Zac · Rating 4 out of 5]

This books jokes are SO awful they are awesome. So terrible, they are magnificient!