Roast Chicken and Other Stories
The famed UK book, Roast Chicken and Other Stories by Simon Hopkinson has finally been translated into American! All those on the far-side of the pond can now delve into the delights of heavy cream, cilantro and eggplant with the recipes all written in cups. Wonderful.
The book was voted ‘The most useful cookbook of all time’ by Waitrose Food Illustrated last year, and became an instant bestseller in the UK even pushing Harry Potter off the top of the Amazon bestseller list.
“This is a magical book and its diminutive size belies its incredible value. Hopkinson, the founding chef of London’s Bibendum, aided by food writer Bareham, set out to write something quite personal – a collection of his favourite dishes for his favourite ingredients, from anchovies to veal. Nevertheless, he has such good taste and sense that the result is a little blueprint for British cooking through the year. This volume may not contain every dish you might ever want to cook but the ones it has epitomise the way we love to eat today. What’s more, once you’ve followed Hopkinson’s recipes for salade niçoise or roast potatoes, you’ll never want to do them any other way. Who needs a 500-page doorstopper, when you’ve got the essence of modern British cooking in a volume you could almost fit in your pocket?”
Each chapter takes a look at a single ingredient, a little introduction and on to a few recipes. There is liver, chocolate, anchovy, asparagus, eggs, endive, hake and kidneys and many more. Just flicking through reveals many recipes that appeal. A real understanding of the main ingredient and the anecdotes is inspiring. It’s a small book with none of the usual foodporn photographs; it’s more one to read and get those 200 odd pages splattered time and again.
Roast Chicken and Other Stories is available frpm Amazon.com
