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3.91 AVERAGE
3.91 AVERAGE
The most fascinating and boring book at the same time.
Fascinating and dull at same time.
Wanted to put down but then a interesting tidbit of history and I was sucked right back into the book
Fascinating and dull at same time.
Wanted to put down but then a interesting tidbit of history and I was sucked right back into the book
informative
reflective
slow-paced
Very good premise and enjoyed discussing content during dinner with my family. Book could use a more focused scope and conclusion. Read 11/27/20 to 12/4/20.
A very cool book that makes you think hard about where all your kitchen utensils come from. How do you cook things over a fire? Why do we use forks? What utensil is common throughout the world?
I'll be thinking of this book for a while every time I cook.
I'll be thinking of this book for a while every time I cook.
Any keen cook will enjoy this book I think -- I did. Each of the chapters deals with a single large topic -- knives, for example, or fire, and gives us an overview of it through the ages and across the world. Inevitably this means there's little in-depth information or deep analysis, but it can be interesting and thought-provoking. I think my favourite chapter was the one on knives, because I'd never really thought before about the fact that French, and by extension European, cooking prescribes different knives for different tasks -- filleting, boning, paring ... whereas in a Chinese kitchen the cleaver does everything, with incredible precision. And in China and Japan, all the cutting is done in the kitchen -- no knives on the table. Not only that, but most cooking is done in a wok, whereas again the French insisted on a complete batterie de cuisine, with single purpose vessels. From this chapter I also finally discovered a plausible reason for the French stricture against cutting salad leaves with a knife -- before the invention of steel, iron knives stained, and imparted a metallic taste to the salad.
Sometimes the rapid pace leaves you hungry for more and better explanations -- I am still baffled by the claim that in India they made ice by simply putting earthenware vessels of water in trenches and covering them with straw. How does that work?? And occasionally she gets carried away by some unrelated enthusiasm -- why does she suddenly start raving about how marvellous Oxo vegetable peelers are in the middle of the chapter on kitchens, for example? But overall I definitely recommend it as an intriguing read for cooks.
Sometimes the rapid pace leaves you hungry for more and better explanations -- I am still baffled by the claim that in India they made ice by simply putting earthenware vessels of water in trenches and covering them with straw. How does that work?? And occasionally she gets carried away by some unrelated enthusiasm -- why does she suddenly start raving about how marvellous Oxo vegetable peelers are in the middle of the chapter on kitchens, for example? But overall I definitely recommend it as an intriguing read for cooks.
informative
lighthearted
medium-paced
Fun, easy read about the cultural history of cooking utensils and methods. As someone who loves cooking and enjoys these sorts of offbeat explorations into the history of everyday stuff, I enjoyed it.
Loved this book. Took me a while to read, as all non-fiction seems to, but that does NOT take away from how awesome it is. So much to learn! Things you'd never even considered. Where else are you going to find out that the modern table knife is a symbol of the passive aggressive nature of civilization as we know it and that its current form is the result of war-driven advancements in metal work?!
Fun!! I loved hearing the history and anecdotes of many kitchen products.
I don't know what I would cut out, but it became tedious at times.