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<\/p>\nIt goes without saying that we\u2019re a little food crazy, and considering you\u2019re reading this article, you must be too. If you\u2019re into your cooking, food and general consumable products then you\u2019ll surely have a cookbook or two. But, if you seriously fancy yourself as an avid food lover, then these are some of the books you should have sitting on your bookshelf.<\/p>\n
She was one of the first cookbook writers to demystify French cuisine and bring it to an American audience. Her recipes were extensive, but easy to follow and truly did show us that with a bit (ok, a lot!) of butter, cream and salt, anything was possible. Julia inspired many home cooks, most notably Julie Powell, who endeavoured to cook her way through Child’s iconic book.<\/p>\n
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People may roll their eyes when we wax lyrical about Nigella, but those people clearly need to go back and read How to Eat again. The book was a revelation for home cooks, as Lawson is not a chef, nor does she pretend to be. She\u2019s simply a working mother, who couldn\u2019t find the kind of cookbooks that she wanted to cook from. How to Eat truly is a wonder, with recipes for each and every event in your life. Need to know what to feed babies? How to throw a casual mid-week dinner for 6? There wasn\u2019t anything she couldn\u2019t help you with. That, coupled with recipes that work every single time, means that Nigella deserves a place on everyone\u2019s bookshelf.<\/p>\n
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If anyone truly taught us to chill out when it came to cooking, it was Jamie and his first book \u2018The Naked Chef\u2019. With a pinch of that and a handful of this, he showed cooks everywhere that as long as it tastes good, then you\u2019re doing ok. His style was a breath of fresh in the late 90s, as he was blokey and authentic and that came through in his cooking. Jamie\u2019s follow up books have gone on to be massive bestsellers too, but if we had to pick one, it would have to be the catalyst for his empire, The Naked Chef, the one that set the overall tone for his cooking.<\/p>\n
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Not necessarily a huge name in South Africa, Marcella Hazan was credited with changing the face of Italian cookery in the United States. She reminded Americans understanding of Italian food and showed them there was more to life than luminescent red sauces and giant-sized meatballs. Her recipe for a classic tomato sauce is something of a wonder, as it contains about four ingredients, is ridiculously easy and is astoundingly delicious.<\/p>\n
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Before nose-to-tail cookery was cool, Fergus had already named his book that. Through the stellar food at his East-London eatery, Henderson began to change the way that London diners ate. But with his first book, he became something of a household name. He showed us that not only were lamb brains cheap and easy to prepare, but they are delicious and a responsible ingredient to use. His cooking is about so much more than just offal and scary cuts, he\u2019s also taught many amateur cooks make a mean salad or two.<\/p>\n
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Marco Pierre White was the original hot-headed bad boy in cooking, complete with a chiselled jawline and a hair-trigger temper. His book, White Heat, was iconic straight away as one of the first books released from a Michelin-starred restaurant chef. It gave home cooks a glimpse into the work and detail that goes into restaurant food. The recipes might never have been anything you would have attempted to cook but they were exquisite and inspiring nonetheless.<\/p>\n
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The original Wikipedia of food, the Larousse Gastronomique is a necessary addition to any avid cook\u2019s bookshelf. If you needed to know anything from every kind of mushroom known to man to the difference between a ragout and a ragu, the Larousse would have the answer for you. Basically, an extensive culinary encyclopaedia that was updated every year or so, it was a literal wealth of knowledge for food lovers.<\/p>\n
Similar to White Heat in that it took us behind the kitchen doors of a restaurant, The French Laundry cookbook is a celebration of Keller\u2019s ode to Californian cuisine. In a time where American cooking wasn\u2019t being appreciated the way it is today, The French Laundry reminded everyone why they\u2019re a powerhouse culinary nation. Maybe this isn\u2019t the book you cooked from for a dinner party, but it\u2019s full of technique and very clear explanations, teaching you a lot about cooking.<\/p>\n No one was ever going to attempt to make The Fat Duck\u2019s snail porridge, but the delicious bright parsley risotto from ‘Heston at Home’ was an utter joy to cook and eat. What Heston did with his \u2018At Home\u2019 was take the specific techniques used at The Fat Duck and use them in a simpler, easier-to-understand manner. If you ever wanted to know how to make some seriously good pantry-items such as mushroom ketchup and a hearty stock, then this book is a must-have. Old Hugh really is a British national treasure, with his focus on honest, unfussy, yet wholesome comforting food. He\u2019s published a massive number of books, but that doesn\u2019t make them any less brilliant. He champions good-quality, local and ethically sourced ingredients and very simply explains how to cook with them. Any of his books are a real source of knowledge and deliciousness but we especially love River Cottage Every Day.<\/p>\n![\"books](\"https:\/\/test10.co.za\/C\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/larousse-300x400x2.jpg\")
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\nFrench Laundry \u2013 Thomas Keller<\/h4>\n
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\nHeston at Home \u2013 Heston Blumenthal<\/h4>\n
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River Cottage (and Handbooks) – Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall<\/h4>\n