The Food Lab: Better Home Cooking Through Science
The encyclopedia of thesnce behind preparing great food.
Category: Books
Knife: Texas Steakhouse Meals at Home
Where’s the Beef? Tesar brings it with how to pick steaks, cook steaks, and eat steaks.
Writers: John Tesar and Jordan Mackay
Photographs: Kevin Marple
Publisher: Flatiron Books, NY 2017
Where’s the beef? From steaks to burgers, cuts, grading, cooking, sauces, and sides, John Tesar knows his stuff. And if you don’t like to read, it will have you drooling just looking at the pictures.
Meathead: The Science of Great Barbecue and Grilling
Best reference book on out-door cooking including techniques, science, equipment & tool evaluations, and recipes.
Writers: Craig “Meathead” Goldwyn and Greg Blonder, Ph.D.
Photographs: Craig “Meathead” Goldwyn
Publisher: A Rux Martin Book, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Boston/New York, 2016
Rating: 10
Founder of the best website dedicated to barbecue and grilling, amazingribs.com, Meathead approaches outdoor cooking with passion and science. He focuses on understanding why cooked meat tastes so wonderful and how anyone can produce it. He explains the science behind the magic in a way that is easy to understand while debunking common myths like letting meat come to room temperature before cooking. From smoke to meat to equipment to cooking techniques, this is my go to reference about anything having to do with outdoor cooking. It also includes some really good recipes.
Franklin Barbecue: A Meat-Smoking Manifesto
From meager beginnings to barbecue rick star, Aaron Franklin shares his passions, techniques, and recipes.
Writers: Aaron Franklin & Jordan Mackay
Photographs: Wyatt McSpadden
Publisher: 10 Speed Press, Berkeley, 2015
Rating: 10
Aaron Franklin and his wife, Stacy, opened up a small barbecue trailer in Austin, Texas, in 2009. Now one of the most well know barbecue restaurants in the country, where people stand in line outside for hours just to get a plate of food, Aaron shares his story along with his techniques and recipes. An enjoyable read, a wonderful how-to guide, simple recipes. This is what barbecue is about.