Book Information: Knives Cooks Love

cover 2503 Book Information: Knives Cooks LoveKnives Cooks Love

How to Buy, Sharpen, and Use Your Most Important Kitchen Tool

by Sur La Table, Sarah Jay

Price: $25.00
ISBN-13: 978-0-7407-7002-9
ISBN-10: 0-7407-7002-0
Format: Hardcover
Size: 7 1/2 X 10 1/2 in.
Page Count: 192 pages

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Knives Cooks Love Reviews

cover 2503 Knives Cooks Love Reviews“The book informs the reader re: knife care, proper sharpening and honing, various ways to hold knives and clean them, and progresses through all sorts of knife cuts. It shows pictures of cutting vegetables like carrots and onions, sifts through the quagmire of how-to slice mangoes and avocados, and shows you step by step how to butterfly a chicken.” ––Talk of Tomatoes http://www.talkoftomatoes.com/2009/06/14/cookbooks-to-read/

“In just under 200 pages this book delivers straightforward information such as various materials from which knives are made. Anchored in a bit (just a bit) of history and covering the knife-making centers of Germany, Japan, France, Italy, England, and the US. This book also helps cooks select knives by function and design. This is a book for everyone who hasn’t been to culinary school.” ––Gourmet Food, Suite 101, by Jacqueline Church http://gourmetfood.suite101.com/article.cfm/buying_kitchen_cutlery_just_got_easier

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Praise for Knives Cooks Love

“Readers will appreciate the smart, clean design and recipes for showing off your newly honed skills.” —The Associated Press

“The most important thing in a kitchen is your knife. You need to choose it well, treat it well, and use it well. Knives Cooks Love prepares you for all that and more. By nature, every cook is eager to learn, and this book provides everything you ever wanted to know about knives. Filled with culinary history, techniques, and supporting recipes, this book covers it all.” —Ming Tsai, host and executive producer of Simply Ming and chef-owner of Blue Ginger

“I like a clunky heavy European-style knife, like a Wüsthof. I have big hands. It’s uncomfortable for me to work with a really narrow blade.” —David Waltuck, chef-owner of Chanterelle, New York City

“Indulge in every chef’s obsession of finding the perfect knife. Knives Cooks Love contains great advice on technique, how to keep knives sharp, which knife to use for what, and a lot of personal insight from the professionals who use them every day. This book answers the question that I am most frequently asked: What knife should I buy?” —Nancy Oakes, chef-owner of Boulevard Restaurant, author of Boulevard, The Cookbook

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Knives Cooks Love: How to Buy, Sharpen, and Use Your Most Important Kitchen Tool

cover 2503 Knives Cooks Love: How to Buy, Sharpen, and Use Your Most Important Kitchen ToolA knife that is beautifully crafted, incredibly sharp, perfectly balanced, and feels like an extension of your hand is one of cooking’s greatest pleasures. Using the right knife for the right task makes cooking at home more fun, and the results often look like they came from the kitchen of a five-star restaurant.  The latest in Sur La Table’s cookbook series, Knives Cooks Love: Selection. Care. Techniques. Recipes. (Andrews McMeel Publishing; October 22, 2008; $25.00 hardcover), focuses on this most versatile tool in the kitchen and provides tantalizing recipes allowing you to practice and perfect techniques. Consider this Knives 101—lessons on everything you need to know to make your experiences behind the blade more straightforward, efficient, and enjoyable.

From chef’s knives and santoku knives to paring knives, bread knives, boning knives, fillet knives, tomato knives, cheese knives, steak knives, meat and vegetable cleavers, and even shears and sharpeners, Knives Cooks Love helps chefs of all levels find the right knives for their needs. It also features step-by-step instructions for trimming, paring, slicing, dicing, pitting, chopping, mincing, scoring, coring, and butterflying a variety of meats, vegetables, and other foods.

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About Sur La Table and Sarah Jay

About Sur La Table

Seattle-based Sur La Table has kept its finger on the pulse of America’s cooks since opening its doors in 1972 at Seattle’s historic Pike Place Market. Since then, chefs and home cooks with a taste for adventure have flocked to the culinary mecca. A destination for iconic chefs like Julia Child, Jacques Pepin, Martha Stewart, and Mario Batali, Sur La Table entices aficionados and curious beginners alike with its amazing selection of cookware and tools. With a successful catalog, Web site, cooking class program, and stores from coast to coast, Sur La Table continues to share Sarah Jay its passion for the traditions and tastes of the world with people who love to cook and entertain. For more about Sur La Table, see surlatable.com.sjay About Sur La Table and Sarah Jay

About Sarah Jay

Sarah Jay was the executive editor of Fine Cooking magazine before becoming a freelance food writer and editor. She is now a contributing editor to the magazine. A former newspaper reporter, Sarah has published articles in numerous publications, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, and Saveur magazine. She received a master’s degree in journalism from Columbia University and is a graduate of Brown University. Sarah’s passion is Spanish food, and she maintains a small side business importing paella pans and other products from Spain. She lives in New York City with her husband, two daughters, and a drawer full of very sharp knives.

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Spicy Steamed Mussels with Fennel and Tomatoes

mussels Spicy Steamed Mussels with Fennel and TomatoesFrom Knives Cooks Love, by Sur La Table and Sarah Jay

This punchy rendition of mussels in white wine offers a quick course on several cuts: slicing, dicing, mincing, and chiffonading. Serve the mussels with crusty bread for dipping into the peppery tomato broth, or ladle the mussels and broth over hot linguine. When buying mussels, ask the fishmonger for a bag from the refrigerator in back, which are often fresher than those in the front display.

Serves 2 to 3 as a main course

1 small fennel bulb
1 small yellow onion
1 carrot
3 cloves garlic
2 small tomatoes
10 to 12 large fresh basil leaves
1 teaspoon black peppercorns
1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3/4 cup dry white wine
2 pounds mussels, scrubbed and debearded (discard any that do not close)

Trim the stalks from the fennel and cut a thin slice off the bottom; then core and cut the fennel into 1/4-inch crosswise slices (see page 119). Put the fennel into a large bowl. Cut the onion crosswise into ¼-inch semicircles (see page 95) and add to the bowl. Peel the carrot and cut into 1/4-inch dice (see page 109) and add to the bowl. Peel and mince the garlic (see page 100) and add to the bowl.

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Mango-Cucumber Salsa

salsa 250 Mango Cucumber SalsaFrom Knives Cooks Love, by Sur La Table and Sarah Jay

There’s lots of dicing and mincing to do here, but once that’s out of the way, you just toss everything together and you’re done. This makes a fresh, colorful condiment for grilled or sautéed pork chops, chicken breasts, or fish fillets.

Makes about 2 cups

2 small, ripe mangoes
1/2 seedless cucumber (about 6 inches), peeled
1/4 red bell pepper
2 tablespoons minced fresh cilantro (see page 132), plus a stem for garnish
1 green onion, white and light green parts only, sliced thinly
1 jalapeño, seeded and minced
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice, plus more as needed
Pinch of sugar
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Peel and pit the mango and cut the flesh into ¼-inch dice (see pages 144 and 145). Cut the cucumber into ¼-inch dice (see page 109). Cut the bell pepper into ¼-inch dice (see page 116).

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