Salt fat acid heat [hardcover], 5 simple ingredients slow cooker and tasty & healthy 3 books collection set

The Salt, Fat, Acid book is really great reading. I am learning things I didn’t know. Haven’t tried any recipes yet but hope to soon!

Highly touted, enjoyable reading for 90% of all chefs ( & wanna be ) cooks ! Excellent price for the principle volume & essentially free additional guides

The main cookbook was wonderful (even if the temps were in Celsius), but the other books are not worth the price. They are the kind of book you get from the discounted bin for a couple of quarters.

Complete new approach for a cookbook. It show the infrastructure all chefs use when cooking.

As the youngest in a large family full of women who are naturally gifted cooks, I didn't get the chance to stand in the kitchen along our family matriarchs and learn from the source. With the kitchen always well manned by the older, competitive members of our family, I had the far easier task of playing and entertaining my cousins. I had no interest being on the end of their harsh criticisms and competing with dishes. Entrees, appetizers, sides and desserts impossibly difficult to make and equally delicious (in my opinion) picked apart by sisters, aunties, parents and then offered to my grandmother for a final say. To paraphrase, "It was the best of times. It was the worst of times." As I grew older, I developed an unhealthy relationship with food compounded by a sore lack of skill and knowledge when preparing homemade meals from market to table. I was overwhelmed by grocery shopping and every cooking attempt resulted in inedible clumps of carbon. Embarrassed and frustrated by my lack of skills I chose instead to frequent restaurants and fast food chains for the next 10yrs...until Covid hit in 2020 and the crutch was taken away. The last 4yrs were spent troubleshooting recipes found on Pinterest and food blogs that were simple and easy for my husband I to follow. Lacking my familys natural gift of improvisation and refined palette, we followed every recipe to the letter, but after some improvement in skill and recommendations from our doctor we made a 2024 resolution: Cook from scratch whenever possible. It's been a fun a educational journey and I wanted to learn more about the science of cooking now that I'm not so intimidated by the art itself. After much googling and youtubing I was frustrated by the lack of truly beginner level content that wasn't just recipes or I could actually grasp. But, targeting ads worked in my favor because Spotify recommend the free audiobook "Salt Fat Acid Heat" and I began listening during my 30min commute to and from work. Samin narrates and her voice is warm, comforting and bright - a wonderful voice to listen to after a long day of work. The chapters are filled with metaphors and personal stories tied to the educational subject matter that helps the reader/listener grasp the new concepts. I was enthralled and amazed by the importance of salt...and so proud I'd already switched to Diamond Kosher for my daily cooking. Each chapter was packed with helpful information and humbly paralleled with the authors first experiences in the kitchen. As I listened to Samin fondly recount her education at Chez Panisse I felt silly for fearing failure so much it prevented me from seeking help sooner. I wish I was as brave and steadfast as her. Reviewing my notes from "Salt", I was intrigued by the science and how a discerning eye used it to achieve the "ZING" of flavors I'd experienced in fine dining restaurants. To start, I wanted to practice on some of the few meals I'd excelled at, soups and stews. Notably, the only dishes of mine approved for extended family dinners in the past. Anxiously, I began by salting and tasting to adjust throughout making a huge batch of my current favorite; a "Greek" Lemony Chickpea Soup containing celery, carrots, garlic, kale, fresh dill, oregano, in a tempered egg and vegetable broth. I hoped the aromatics I'd recently learned about would be amplified, but worried I'd kill my husband with so much salt! More salt than I'd ever used in anything EVER....but instead....I was rewarded with the promised "ZING" of flavor! Everything had been wonderfully improved and not at all "salty" as feared! It's been 5 months since I first listened to "Salt Fat Acid Heat" and started applying the lessons within. Buying produce or ingredients at the store is easier than ever and we, my husband and I, are trying new recipes and even cooking without one on occasion. Of course, not every meal is a great success, but I'm still learning and that's okay! The process of market to table cooking is finally fun at the age of 32 and easier now than ever. Thank you Samin for creating a book for true beginners and making available on Spotify for listening. P.s. I'm purchasing the book and extras because I want to support the Author and selfishly hope she continues to make more educational materials for every level of skill.