Sushi Made Easy
Author: Kumfoo Wong
Preparing sushi is more than mere cooking--it's an art, a creative act of beautifully presenting colors, textures, subtle tastes, and unmatched sensations. Every page here shares that refined philosophy, so it not only shows you how to make a feast for your friends, it is a feast for the eyes. Even the small line drawings accompanying the luscious photography--which show in detail how to create each perfect piece of sushi--seem infused with the elegant feel of Japanese culture. Immerse yourself in the lifestyle as you learn how to wrap, make, and arrange delicacies such as nigiri-sushi out of fish (yellowtail, salmon, tuna, surf clam, flounder, or prawn) and vinegared rice; thick futomaki, hosomaki (omelette), and fish and vegetable rolls; a battleship wrap stuffed with roe; inside-out rolls; a California hand roll with ripe avocado and crab; and soups. With advice on setting an eye-catching table to complete the wonderful atmosphere.
Publishers Weekly
Preparing sushi is intimidating to most Americans, not least because it requires meticulous attention to presentation, as well as an intricate and subtle understanding of textures and tastes. In Sushi Made Easy, Michele Gomes and Noel Cottrell demystify one of the urbanite's favorite foods, outlining the necessary utensils, equipment (yes, readers should get one of those cool bamboo rolling mats) and main ingredients, and explaining how to cook the sticky rice exactly right and how to buy and cut the fish. They guide the reader through the process of preparing nigiri-sushi (fish served over balls of rice), then explain how to make sushi rolls, inside-out rolls (rice outside the seaweed), hand rolls, California hand rolls, rolled sweet omelets and clear soups, concluding with the all-important setting of the table. Fittingly, the book is a beautiful aesthetic experience; sensuous, tactile color photographs appear on almost every page. ( June) Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.
Read also Farmhouse Ales or New Enchanted Broccoli Forest
Pressure Cooker Gourmet: 225 Recipes for Great-Tasting, Long-Simmered Flavors in Just Minutes
Author: Victoria Wis
Victoria Wise explains how to use the modern pressure cooker and what it particularly excels at, and presents outstanding dishes.
Publishers Weekly
As Wise notes in a thorough introduction that covers general methods, the pressure cooker is a time-saver; she then offers a nice range of recipes, from a relatively simple Trout la Vapeur with Toasted Almonds and Parsley Sauce to a more complex Salmon Terrine with Asparagus Tip and Spinach Root Garnish that is packed into a loaf pan and steamed. However, Wise (who was the first chef at Chez Panisse) often undermines that savings in time. For example, a recipe for beef broth calls for roasting the bones for 30 minutes before cooking the broth. Other recipes simply would be almost as quick when prepared using normal stovetop methods, like a Spring Spinach and Scallion Soup that takes six to seven minutes to come to pressure, then sits for eight minutes as the pressure escapes. The pressure cooker works best for braised dishes such as Chicken Marengo with Porcini-Topped Fried Bread Rounds and Rabbit with Fennel Seed, Parsnip, and Prunes in Brandy Cream, but perhaps is not the optimal choice for delicate vegetables such as Asparagus with Shallot, Lemon, and Olive Oil Dressing. While the writing in their headers tends to be awkward (Chilled Potato Soup Mexican-style with Cantaloupe and Toasted Almonds begins: "It was the gazpacho in Grenada that showed, in the right setting at the right time, cold soup is an oxymoron of a notion but a lilt in the day's repasts"), the recipes themselves are clear and simple. (Jan.) Forecast: This is a good effort, especially in the context of a small field, but not the equal of earlier pressure-cooker books like Pressure Cooking for Everyone, by Rick Rodgers and Arlene Ward, and other titles from Lorna Sass.
Library Journal
Wise is the author and coauthor of numerous other cookbooks, including The Well-Filled Microwave Cookbook. Here she provides dozens of recipes for today's "100% Safe" pressure cookers, from streamlined versions of pot roast to more contemporary, elegant dishes such as Pheasant Braised with Walnuts and Shallots. There are stews of all sorts, or course, but there are also quick (no-stir) risottos, vegetable dishes ranging from Baby Artichokes and Two Sauces to an easy Ratatouille, preserves like Green Tomato Chutney, and even desserts. A good companion to Lorna Sass's now-classic Cooking Under Pressure and its follow-up, The Pressured Cook, this is recommended for most collections. Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.
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