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There are a few cooking science books that really help with those kitchen "ahas" -- Robert Wolke's books are good, Alton Brown's are helpful, as is Shirley Corriher's "Cookwise."

Also, Cook's Illustrated magazine isn't afraid to do things in an unorthodox way, and that helps to find new/better ways of accomplishing kitchen tasks.

Dominic
the zen kitchen

My experimentation often teaches me more about what doesn't work than what does :-)

The point I was trying to make before, perhaps unclearly, was that good cookbooks will help you to reproduce recipes AND teach you techniques that can help you out later on -- creating a personal inventory of culinary experiences (real or vicarious) through which you can improvise with more success.

Certainly you didn't "invent" the rinsing of the potatoes technique -- almost any good cookbook will instruct you to do that to make decent french fries. You applied that technique to your "oven fries." In fact, Cook's Illustrated uses your exact procedure in their recipe for oven fries (January 2004).

So my real answer is that I don't believe that I've figured anything out on my own -- more that the sum of my reading and experiences leads me in the right direction. But I am nowhere near creative enough to claim anything as mine alone -- I merely ad lib on what has been done before.

Can you stumble on to a technique? Sure -- but more often than not, your brain is recalling something you've seen or read before. Sorry to get all neuro-philosophical on what should have been an easy topic to respond to :-)

Dominic
the zen kitchen

They don't tell me that the recipes mostly haven't been tested these days.

I spend my working hours as a teacher in the public education system and my philosophical roots there are in the realm of an often underutilized system of teaching called "errorless learning." In other words, I don't aim to fail :-) I'd rather do a ton of research and get it right the first time.

I agree that it's not a directly creative way of doing things, but I liken it to how I learned to play jazz (I'm a music teacher) -- I learned the scales, the chords, some of the solos from the masters -- then I started branching out on my own. You can learn jazz without knowing fundamentals, but it's easier when you have that base knowledge.

Anyway, I apologize for running a brain scan on you :-) I trust that you came upon your technique through trial and error -- I would just venture to guess that most people "figure things out" by accessing prior knowledge.

It would be nice if more books suggested other menu items that complement the recipe offered. I often plan the menus for the coming week and my shopping list emanates from that Meal planning is a nice adjunct to any general subject book

I have a habit of planning my meals based on color. Brown meat or a red sauce cries out for something green and a dish with white potatoes or rice is, to me. better served without other white additions.

A green and a yellow vegetable on a plate are more attractive, and better balanced than two green ones. A bit of guidance for the inexperienced would be helpful.

PS: I use Mario's technique for absolutely WONDERFUL fool-proof roasted potatoes (from Molto Italiano):

Cut potatoes into 1-inch cubes, then boil in water for 2 minutes. Drain well and toss with unpeeled garlic cloves ,olive oil, salt, and pepper (and herbs, if you want). Roast at 425F for about 30 minutes. (Do not use peeled garlic cloves -- trust me, they'll just burn. The unpeeled cloves impart great garlic flavor, and you can squeeze out the innards for an extra treat.)

And BTW, speaking of editing cookbooks, that recipe has something that got by the editors... It says to use "1 bunch rosemary, leaves finely chopped" Potato-flavored rosemary, anyone?

BaHa,

I'm not sure if this counts [but, I'll give it my best shot].

-Something I figured out on my own [trial and error and whatnot] was to rise/raise[?] my bread in a covered 8-quart pan and put my pan in a sink full of warm water to help encourage my dough to rise a wee bit faster. Simply plopping dough in a bowl with a wet towel never did the trick for me. Perhaps many folks have success with the towel-covered-bowl method but that just never worked for me [hence, the reason I eventually improvised).:)

this doesnt apply to cookbooks so much as articles and tv shows, whats up with making my mouth water for something simple and then not giving any weights or measures? Yes the recipe is simple but do I roast at a low or high temp ackkkkkkkk! If you're going to tease then at least give me guidlines on how to please!!!

I haven't had a lot of problems with cookbooks leaving out steps...probably just dumb luck...

One thing I'd like to see more cookbooks include is data on calories, fat, carbs, etc. per serving of each recipe. Even if it's not a "diet" cookbook. For example, my copy of The New Better Homes and Garden cookbook has this data for each recipe. It's helpful stuff to know as I'm trying to lose weight through moderation in my diet.