The Elements of Cooking by Michael Ruhlman, a brief review

There’s an abundance of useful information in Michael Ruhlman’s The Elements of Cooking. Not surprisingly, that information has been distilled into a concise, well-organized and easy-to-use reference that cooks of all levels will appreciate and benefit from. Modeled after Strunk and White’s The Elements of Style, The Elements of Cooking seeks to do for the culinary craft what the former tome did for the craft of writing. It is a clearing house for inarguable, salient and scientifically-based information that can be easily and immediately applied in one’s own kitchen.

Elements fulfills its mission to assist and advise cooks in the form of a compendium of chef’s notes. One almost feels as if he’s reading an accomplished culinary student’s class notes. Devotees of Ruhlman will not be disappointed, in spite of the referential nature of Elements. It’s hardly impersonal. Mr. Ruhlman’s sage and impassioned voice comes through loud and clear in nearly every paragraph. Through reading the text, the reader gets the feeling that Ruhlman is speaking directly to him.

Elements is divided into 2 sections. The first section, entitled ‘Notes on Cooking: From Stock to Finesse,’ details a few of the most important and basic kitchen fundamentals. Here Ruhlman, the CIA-trained chef (he refers to himself as a “cook”), begins with an explanation of the importance of stocks. He argues passionately and convincingly that stocks represent the primary difference between home and professional kitchens. He discusses the finer points of stock-making and provides the book’s only recipe – one for veal stock -- which he argues is the most important of all the stocks. He decries the virtual non-existence of other veal stock recipes in American cookbooks – even the most lauded ones -- and wonders why the dearth exists. In this regard, Elements distinguishes itself and, if you subscribe to Ruhlman’s passion, justifies its expense from the outset. The provided recipe is a scarce commodity and it promises to transform one’s kitchen.

Other cornerstones of cooking are covered as well, such as the ubiquity and near infinite variety of sauces, the miraculous versatility of eggs and what comprises a complete set of kitchen tools. The ability to properly salt food and mastering knowledge of temperature (throughout the kitchen) are also discussed in detail and categorized as 2 of the most important abilities a cook has in his repertoire.

The second section of Elements is an alphabetically-organized reference of important information about specific ingredients, kitchen tools and cooking techniques. Here, clearly-worded, usable-on-the-fly capsules are provided about a wide variety of common culinary topics. In many cases, these are the vital and essential details that are often omitted in standard cooking manuals. As such, in a sense, this book becomes a road map for all other cooking volumes, as it successfully illuminates the vague definitions and incomplete technical information they usually provide. The knowledge that is shared in Elements, which was obtained over years spent in important kitchens, is easily absorbed and applied. In fact, Elements’ subtitle, ‘Translating the Chef’s Craft for Every Kitchen,” couldn’t be more accurate. It is the Rosetta Stone.

Amidst the preponderance of shoddy cookbooks on the shelves these days, The Elements of Cooking is a welcome antidote. Instead of piling on with more useless, celebrity-ghost-written recipes or ultra glossy gastro-porn, it genuinely teaches and informs. This volume is not only likely to find its way into the kitchens of many cooks, it’s likely to become a “go to” resource, too. Its distinctive orange cover will certainly help harried chefs locate it on the bookshelf quickly, though it’s not likely to spend much time there. This is a book that will likely live on the counter, collecting the tell-tale dings and stains that come with incessant use. This book will educate, and improve one’s cooking . . . and it’ll probably even be used to settle a few bets.

=R=

The Elements of Cooking: Translating the Chef's Craft for Every Kitchen

By Michael Ruhlman; Introduction by Anthony Bourdain
Scribner, 256 pages
Release Date: November 6, 2007

Thanks for the excellent review, Ronnie. Book on order.

-ramon

I'd flipped through this the other day, and it's certainly good, though honestly, I've got The Professional Chef from CIA on my counter and it's my go to for all this stuff. It's got detailed photos of every step of everything that I could ever do in a kitchen. The recipes are certainly written for the professional kitchen, but it's the most usable reference book I own for the kitchen.

jpschust wrote:I'd flipped through this the other day, and it's certainly good, though honestly, I've got The Professional Chef from CIA on my counter and it's my go to for all this stuff. It's got detailed photos of every step of everything that I could ever do in a kitchen. The recipes are certainly written for the professional kitchen, but it's the most usable reference book I own for the kitchen.

I tend to keep McGee's On Food and Cooking around for situations that come up and I like Jacque Pepin's Complete Techniques too but what I especially like about Elements -- and what I think differentiates it from a lot of other books I own -- is how easy it is to use on the fly.

=R=

I don't plan to use it as a reference but read it as a novel. People make fun of me for this, but you all understand.

-ramon

As Mr. Ramon can tell you, I have written the evil twin of Mr. Ruhlman's warm-hearted book (though it's not in print yet--only online). Please pay us a visit sometime:

www.devilsfooddictionary.com