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Some of the buzz among today's cooking enthusiasts concerns classic recipes or modern departures from them. Arguments arise among cooks over what are "mother" sauces in France; people point to the latest coffee-table cookbook for its "classic" recipes.
But if you're interested in anything like that, why not go to the source, Escoffier? Recipes in the "Gee See" (or "Zhay Say," depending on your native tongue) organized much of this subject in the first place. Escoffier's Guide Culinaire has always been available for those who are interested. ISBN 0831754788 is the reissue of Cracknell and Kaufmann's English translation of the 1921 Flammarion edition in French. Including unvarnished comments from its original time and place: "It may be of interest to note that the authentic type of Indian curry is not suitable for European tastes, but the flavor of the above sauce is generally acceptable." Such opinions (far more numerous in, for instance, the popular 1961 Crown "Larousse Gastronomique"), honestly included in the reprint rather than being edited out to flatter modern "tastes" in turn, add to the historical interest of this edition.
The Guide Culinaire, the French national professional cookbook, is where the "classic" recipes were organized and popularized by Georges Auguste Escoffier. It is what the Nouvelle Cuisine of the 1970s rebelled against and what the neo-traditionalists rediscover. It begins with Recipe #1 which is a brown stock, ends with #5012 for a wine punch. It is the direct source of an Internet signature file I used on and off since the 1980s (mostly "off," in recent years):
"Foundation or Basic sauces -- Espagnole (brown sauce), Veloutý, Býchamel, tomato." [Recipes 16-26, by the way.]
(Cooks may argue with each other about what are "mother" sauces. But they mayn't argue with Escoffier.)
But if you're interested in anything like that, why not go to the source, Escoffier? Recipes in the "Gee See" (or "Zhay Say," depending on your native tongue) organized much of this subject in the first place. Escoffier's Guide Culinaire has always been available for those who are interested. ISBN 0831754788 is the reissue of Cracknell and Kaufmann's English translation of the 1921 Flammarion edition in French. Including unvarnished comments from its original time and place: "It may be of interest to note that the authentic type of Indian curry is not suitable for European tastes, but the flavor of the above sauce is generally acceptable." Such opinions (far more numerous in, for instance, the popular 1961 Crown "Larousse Gastronomique"), honestly included in the reprint rather than being edited out to flatter modern "tastes" in turn, add to the historical interest of this edition.
The Guide Culinaire, the French national professional cookbook, is where the "classic" recipes were organized and popularized by Georges Auguste Escoffier. It is what the Nouvelle Cuisine of the 1970s rebelled against and what the neo-traditionalists rediscover. It begins with Recipe #1 which is a brown stock, ends with #5012 for a wine punch. It is the direct source of an Internet signature file I used on and off since the 1980s (mostly "off," in recent years):
"Foundation or Basic sauces -- Espagnole (brown sauce), Veloutý, Býchamel, tomato." [Recipes 16-26, by the way.]
(Cooks may argue with each other about what are "mother" sauces. But they mayn't argue with Escoffier.)
reviewed by ronmiller on November 18, 2006 12:24 AM