[.ca] Jamie's Kitchen: A Cooking Course for Everyone (ISBN 1401300227)

Skeptical but Surprised:
When I got the cookbook as a Christmas present I was a little skeptical. Okay maybe alot skeptical. The recipes looked a little too vague; not enough precise measurements; "add a glass of wine" (big glass? small glass? 'what's up with that?')Quite frankly, it made me nervous. Cookbooks aren't supposed to be like that. But I gave the recipes a whirl and lo and behold, they turned out! The recipes were different yet familar. A nice twist on things (sorry, no pun intended). Jamie creates recipes with layers of flavor and texture; recipes with color and style. And what is more, they were relatively simple to make. I've received rave reviews from friends and family. But the real surprise and joy was that Jamie's approximate portions and measurements allowed me to become more of my own chef, so to speak. I guess I always felt compelled to stick to the rigidity of a receipe. What I discovered is that I was more or less forced to I play with the amounts and I did not feel that I was somehow making a mistake when doing so. It was okay to toy with this ingredient or that. This gave me confidence to explore variations. In short, it made cooking even more fun. This is how I think the great chefs really cook: they have a game plan but they have intuition, gut instinct. When you watch the great chefs on TV rarely do you see them haul out a measuring spoon or a cup. They go by eye, by experience and by gut. And I think this is what Jamie Oliver's book has done for the reader. Buy it, experiment with it, have fun with it.

jamie's kitchen:
I have over 300 cookbooks and this is a welcome addition. I love his simplicity and refusal to give in to specific measurements. I think the recipes are simple and easy to use. I recommend this book to a beginner as well as an experienced chef.

Vibrant Cookbook:
Jamie's Kitchen is a big, beautiful, vibrant cookbook with some very interesting recipes. I have not yet seen any of his other cookbooks, but I found the approach this one took rather refreshing. Unless absolutely necessary, measurements in this one are more general (i.e. handful of breadcrumbs), which gives the chef a little more freedom. He also adds a couple of suggestions at the end of each recipe where the chef can tweak it a bit and get something a bit different. He includes some step by step instructions for things, such as making pasta. The recipes in this book are, for the most part, an undertaking, simply not something you are going to whip together for your family of four after a long day at work or with the kids. The recipes here are more weekend entertaining--but they are lovely and imaginative.

Delicious food and a great looking book:
This book is not only beautiful, it really has great recipes. I've cooked the roast duck, and the pot roasted shoulder of lamb, and the baked chocolate pudding -- and all of them turned out brilliantly, and looked just like the pictures which I can't say for very many of the cookbooks I own. I like the way the recipes are divided by technique -- that's why it works well as a cooking course. But it also just has great recipes so it's good even for people who really know how to cook. .

learning to like it:
I love watching Jamie's shows so was really excited to have his recipes at my fingertips, AND (as a new cook) learn some basic culinary skills. However, after flipping through the book I have dog-eared fewer recipes that I expected. Not that the recipes don't sound delicious (they do, of course) but I can't get some of the key ingredients (due to living in Asia) and/or the recipes aren't as healthy as I expected (too buttery/fatty/creamy). Many of them I'd have to label as special occasion meals rather than something I can just whip up and not feel guilty. On the upside: this book has helpful summaries (which photos) of cooking techniques such as how to bone a chicken, correctly stirfy, etc. Good for a beginner like me. Also explains the differences b/w methods such as stewing, braising, etc. Again, all these terms were familiar to me but not quite straight. Photos are amazing; directions easy to follow. So far I made steamed eggplant with an Asian style dressing and it was surprisingly delicious; and the marinated veggies were lovely too. Things like "celeriac and truffle oil soup" are beyond my reach (literally) but I can see myself altering many of the recipes as best I can to suit my diet and location, which I'm sure Jamie wouldn't object to. If you love the show and don't have any rigid diet restrictions,it's a good book with plenty of variety. In the end, I'm sure I'll end up bumping this rating up to a 4 but having only scanned the book and made a couple things, 3 for now.