Amazon.co.uk Review
This will set pans clashing by the millions. Delia Smith's eagerly awaited
How to Cook Book Three concludes her exploration of cooking techniques and ingredients in the reliable manner that has made her the queen of domestic cookery instructors. Compared with the knockabout music-hall antics of some of her fellow presenters, she has all the charisma of an Open University lecturer--but this sobriety, of course, is one of the reasons for her success. She remains resolutely in the kitchen, never distracted from her ongoing project of helping readers and viewers prepare interesting and wholesome food.
An exhaustive introductory chapter on equipping a kitchen (rule: don't skimp, but don't buy anything on impulse that you don't really need) is followed by a more personal one on Gadgets That Work (and a few that don't--step forward slow cookers and sandwich toasters). The recipe chapters encompass some wonderful traditional dishes as Delia investigates the cooking of pulses, preserves, patés and starters, while including less familiar flavours from the Far East. In writing this final volume she has taken advantage of the Internet to get closer to the community of her viewers and readers, gathering their opinions on what they would like to see covered. The two chapters that have emerged from this research, on low-fat cooking and entertaining, form the highlights of a book which, like its predecessors, is self-recommending and--it goes without saying--beautifully illustrated. --Robin Davidson
Review
What is there to say? Guaranteed idiot-proof recipes from the Queen of TV cooking. Invite people round for a "Delia" and you're ensured a successful dinner party and friends who will want to come again and again. But just because the title lends itself to beginners, the more confident cook ignores the book at their peril. Fresh slants on recipes such as brulees, sorbets, beef stews and cheesecakes remove their dated image and bring them to the forefront of food fashion. Traditional recipes are re-examined and explained with clear instructions thus ensuring perfect lemon meringue pies, potted crabs and smoked collars of bacon. For those with a more exotic taste, pulses are examined and recipes such as hummus, Mexican chicken chilli with yellow tomato salsa, spiced lamb curry with chickpeas and sesame blancmange are included. Covering the latest cooking gadgets, Delia explains the pros and cons of expensive investments such as bread-making machines, ice-cream makers and food processors, offering recipes which would once have taken hours but now take minutes to produce. Also covered, after consultation with her fans via her website, is a section on "Waist Watchers" - ideal for those with a guilty conscience... Gloriously illustrated and engagingly written, this is ideal as either the final addition to her "How to Cook" trilogy or as an introduction to her inimitable style. Budding chef or veteran gourmet, this book should appeal to all and brings an updated twist to today's cuisine.
