[.ca] I'm Just Here for the Food: Kitchen User's Manual (ISBN 1584792981)

Like his show, a great starting point:
Alton Brown's Food Network TV show, Good Eats, is one of the most educational shows on cooking that I have seen. He likes to explain how and why things work. I love both the pedantry and the humor of his show (although I have heard others who dislike the child-like approach he takes; not childish! Child-like. There's a big difference.) As my title says, his show is a good starting point. Alton Brown can help you understand how food and cooking work. He provides good solid information and he lays a foundation that gives you the confidence to invent your own food. ("Play with your food!"). But he cannot, in a half hour show that includes comedy sketches, teach you everything. His book, "I'm Just Here for the Food: Food + Heat = Cooking" is much the same. He presents good basic information on cooking methods and techniques in a book with catchy graphics and his typical humor. If you want to learn the WHYs of cooking, this book is a great start. From here, move on to Shirley Corriher's "Cookwise," which gives greater depth a slightly more serious science. I *love* this book. But here are the negatives: 1) Not a cookbook. Don't look for a lot of recipies. 2) Not loose or spiral bound. All cooking books should be, and too few are. 3) Covers all major cooking methods (from boiling to microwaving), but no baking! Baking is my main hobby. Maybe a future book -- "Cookwise" has baking info. Alton Brown singlehandedly changed me from a recipie slave to a creative cook. I've moved on to other food writers, and I've invented my own food, but Alton will always be my kitchen hero.

Nifty!:
This is a fine cook book, a reasonable food science book, and a fun compilation of techniques and ideas. The layout makes following the recipes easy, and the art is fun. If you are a fan of the show, you will like this book. If you are a hard-core foodie, much of the science can be found elsewhere (Cookwise), but not usually in such entertaining style. My only disappointment is that baking is not covered here, but AB seems to imply that is coming in a separate volume. I would mention that this is one of about 150 cook books I own, and while I love it, it would not be the one-cookbook-I-take-to-the-desert-island. Some other reviews have slammed this book for what is *not* there, which is unfair. This is not written to be your only (or even main!) cookbook; it is an additional reference for yummy American foods, rigorously explained. If you need to know how to replace some missing buttermilk, that is what Joy of Cooking or Doubleday are for.

It's a cookbook for geeks and tinkerers...:
It doesn't have a lot of flashy pictures. It doesn't have a traditional layout to the recipies. It also spends a lot of time discussing stuff other than the actual recipies at hand. On the other hand, it is a nice introduction to the whys and hows behind cooking, which is really what helps you be a good cook when it doesn't come in a box or is written down for you on a recipie card. Granted, it may not hold up to some of the seminal tomes on the science of cooking, but it is a heck of a lot easier to come by than some of them, a lot less intimidating than others, and significantly more affordable than yet still others.

For the Anal Chef:
I LOVE THIS BOOK!!!! It comes with clear sheets in which you can insert recipes passed down from your Mother, Grandmother, or others, and you can see both sides. It preserves them, yet allows you to utilize them daily. The blank pages can be moved as needed and I used stick glue to secure additional recipes. Because it's a ring binder, I also print off recipes from cooking.com etc and slap them in there! I also secured any cookware instructions, like seasoning cast iron etc. This is a must have for the anal AB fan!!!!

Disappointed:
Unfortunately, this "book" is basically just a ring-binder with blank pages and pockets for your own recipes. I was expecting an Alton cookbook - with his Good Eats recipes & pictures. I was NOT expecting a ringbinder filled with blank pages, and a few pages with information such as oven temperature conversions. Perhaps I misread the Amazon description. If you're looking for an actual Alton Cookbook, get his "I'm Just Here for the Food: Food + Heat = Cooking" book instead. If you're looking for an overpriced repository for your own handwritten recipes & notes, buy this.