The Food Encyclopedia: Over 8,000 Ingredients, Tools, Techniques and People - Hardcover

Rolland, Jacques L.; Sherman, Carol

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0778801500 ISBN 13: 9780778801504

Publisher: Robert Rose, 2006

Synopsis

The most comprehensive and authoritative food encyclopedia available.

Cooking can be a wondrous adventure, especially with a thorough understanding of the history and origins of food, a grasp of the cultures and environments involved, and an appreciation for those who over the years have played key roles in its development.

The Food Encyclopedia has 8,000 entries, with cross-reference on foods, wines, beverages, cooking methods and techniques, and biographies of prominent people. It is the most comprehensive food reference in the marketplace today, featuring 500 stunning illustrations and photographs alongside its extensive coverage.

In the entry on arugula, for example, we read that it is an assertive salad green, eruca sativa, has a peppery taste somewhere between nasturtium and watercress, and is used frequently in Mediterranean dishes. The ancient Romans used both the leaves and the seeds of arugula. Thomas Jefferson, in detailed written instructions to his gardener at Monticello, listed arugula as essential for his kitchen garden.

Included are more than 150 biographies of prominent individuals -- chefs, authors and inventors -- who have contributed to food and its lore. Chefs include Julia Child, Paul Bocuse, Alice Waters and Michael Stadtlander. Among the notable authors are Elizabeth David, M.F.K. Fisher and Irma S. Rombauer. The inventors include Carl Sontheimer the developer of the Cuisinart food processor.

Becoming more familiar with words and terms, and finding out the background behind a food or an ingredient, ensures a well-prepared dish and adds to the pleasure of serving it. For any cook, this authoritative and fascinating book is an outstanding reference and cookbook companion.

About this title

About the Author:

Jacques L. Rolland has a degree in culinary art and hotel management, and is also a certified sommelier. Representing the third generation of hoteliers and restaurateurs in his family, he owns and operates a glorious hotel in Oregon's wine country.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.:

Introduction

"Tell me what you eat and I will tell you what you are:"
- Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin, The Physiology of Taste (La Physiologie du goût), 1825

Although all animals eat, only humans discuss and write about this most basic need. Our survival and ability to thrive depend upon the nutrients food provides, and what we eat, not to mention how it is prepared, appreciated and remembered, is as deep and complex as any work of art. To learn about ourselves as consumers of food is to be in touch with the deepest aspects of our humanity.

Ever since Eve ate the apple in the Garden of Eden, our taste buds have influenced the course of world events. "The fate of nations depends upon the way they eat," concluded the French gourmand and epicurean Brillat-Savarin. Thoughts about the way we eat permeate culture, from literature, religion, philosophy and anthropology to science and medicine. In fact, food is such a fundamental part of our lives, we're likely to take it for granted, which would be a terrible mistake. The journey from our ancestors' discovery of fire to the fine art of gastronomy is the story of the human race, an eventful romp, loaded with lively anecdotes and startling information. Often it makes great bedtime reading.

Whether you're looking for an entertaining read or the answer to a specific culinary question, The Food Encyclopedia offers a unique vantage point from which to expand your knowledge of food and your appreciation of cooking. Food words, such as the names of fruits and vegetables, recipe titles and cooking techniques or terminology, rarely come about by chance. Insight into their historical origins is not only interesting -- it makes the adventure of cooking all the more enjoyable. You likely recognize restaurant as a place to eat. But do you know its fascinating history? For the answer, turn to page 544.

Based on many years of research from a wide range of sources and containing more than 8,000 definitions of key food and beverage terms, techniques and biographies of prominent food people, including famous chefs, authors and inventors, as well as a wealth of historical background, this treasury of food lore is much more than an excellent resource. It's a book to browse through, one that will take both the interested amateur and the professional cook on a delightful journey through the world of food.

How To Use This Book

This book has been organized with two main objectives in mind. Firstly, we encourage browsing. Culinary literature can be very entertaining, and we hope we've opened the door to an enjoyable journey through the world of food. The book should be a good read and fun to browse through. Secondly, we've worked hard to make this an excellent reference work, the first you'll turn to when you have a question about food. The answers to specific questions are easy to find and wherever possible will open the door to further exploration.

Here's some handy information to help you look up your favorite words.

ALPHABETICAL ORDER.All entries are in alphabetical order. When entries contain more than one word -- for example, à la carte -- they are treated as a single word (àlacarte). Thus, akala comes before à la carte. CROSS-REFERENCINGis indicated in bold when the word is unusual and the reader wants to learn more about it, such as génoise, which is mentioned under cake. It also has its own listing. For more information about génoise, go to G. BOLD is also used for easy access to words within an entry when the reader has been referred to it. ITALICS are used to indicate foreign phrases, genus names, and book and magazine titles. MORE INFORMATION. Many entries end with a list of other entries to see for additional information about similar foods. For instance, under cheese, you'll find a comprehensive list of all the different cheeses listed throughout the book from ADMIRALS to YARG. MULTIPLE MEANINGS. When a word has multiple meanings, the first entry is the most common usage followed by the other meaning(s). MULTIPLE NAMES AND SPELLINGS (for example, ajowan -- also ajwain) are in bold. Because many food terms have multiple names, they are listed under the most common usage and cross-referenced. For instance, Queensland nut will refer you to the more common usage macadamia nut. SUBTOPICS are cross-referenced with listings of a larger scope -- for example, brown rice will send you over to rice for a comprehensive look at this ancient grain. VARIETIES. When a main entry such as apples has many different varieties, they are grouped together in a breakout box for easy reference.

Contributors

Jacques L. Rolland has a degree in culinary art and hotel management and is a certified sommelier. His appreciation and knowledge of food has been honed from the many cultures he has experienced. He is the author of The Cook's Essential Kitchen Dictionary.

Carol Sherman is an author and award-winning editor with a special interest in food and health. She has edited many bestselling cookbooks and food-reference books including The Food Substitutions Bible, winner of a 2006 International Association of Culinary Professionals (IACP) cookbook award. She was the managing editor of the travel magazine Destinations and founding editor of Thomson newspaper's Healthfile. She is the co-author of Highlights: An Illustrated History of Cannabis and Yoga in a Muskoka Chair.

Christina Anson Mine is the managing editor of Canadian Living and Homemakers magazines. She received a degree in Spanish from Washington's Georgetown University and spent her third year studying in Spain. After graduation, she lived for a year in Kyoto, Japan. Much of her professional life has been spent as a magazine editor, focused on food, nutrition, health and fitness as well as copy editing a variety of cookbooks and reference works for Robert Rose Inc. Her love of food was born during her childhood in Massachusetts and developed into a passion once she began to travel internationally.

Jo Calvert is a writer and senior editor at Canadian Living magazine specializing in gardening and crafts. One of her great pleasures is baking apple pies with fruit picked from the trees she planted herself. Jo dedicates her work in this book to Moira Gillette, who loved to cook unusual dishes for the usual crowd.

Judith Finlayson is a journalist and author who began her career writing feature food articles, reviewing restaurants and developing recipes for magazines. Her work has been published widely in Canadian newspapers and magazines and she is the author of ten books, six of which are bestselling cookbooks.

Stephanie Ortenzi is a Toronto writer who took a 15-year hiatus from editorial work to become a professional chef. She has cooked at a number of Distinguished Restaurants of North America (DIRONA) and returned to writing full-time in 2004. Her work has been published in business, news and lifestyle magazines.

About this edition

• Publisher: Robert Rose
• Publication date: 2006
• ISBN 10: 0778801500
• ISBN 13: 9780778801504
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 701