Getting Caught Up In Modernist Cuisine Fever
I went to the world premiere party for the book last night at Tom Douglas' Palace Ballroom, where a capacity crowd snacked on pastrami cooked sous vide, apple and pear chips and a high-concept version of Mexican street food known as elote. It was made with freeze-dried corn, butter powder and lime.
The man behind Modernist Cuisine, Nathan Myhrvold, walked the audience through the beautifully photographed, ground-breaking book. "Is this for the home cook? Well, I'm a home cook," he said, while the crowd laughed. "But probably not."
Most of the more than 3,000 recipes covered in this exhaustive book are do-able, but 10 to 20 percent are probably out of reach of even the most accomplished home cook who doesn't have the state-of-the-art equipment Myhrvold and his team used during the three years spent researching and writing this book. (The team includes Al Dente contributor Rebekah Denn, who wrote about a meal she ate at "The Lab" in a story for The Washington Post.)
During Myhrvold's entertaining power point, he did share a few nuggets that I can see incorporating in my kitchen. The most dramatic was a technique he called hyper-aerating wine, which involves putting it in a blender. Yes! What a great idea. Take that wine snobs!
He also talked fondly about pressure cookers and their many uses, including making a brilliant caramelized root vegetable soup in a matter of minutes, using a bit of baking soda to encourage the browning of the veggies. (After getting a tip from a friend, I'm very close to pushing the buy button on an electric Cuisinart pressure cooker.)
This is so much more than just a cookbook, though. It takes a microscopic view of how food is cooking, showing muscles in meat, cutting pans, ovens and grills in half to give readers an up close look at exactly how food cooks. You know, the "Art and Science" of food.
Despite all the big brains in the room, the presentation wasn't nearly as daunting as I had expected. While the author -- a former big cheese at Microsoft and a French-trained chef -- made a point of telling the audience he choose to self-publish the book so he wouldn't have to dumb down the material, the subject matter obviously has universal appeal.
As much as I'd like a copy, I don't think I'll be buying anytime soon. It's just not in my budget, even at the discounted Amazon price of $467.62. Still, I'm happy to have been there when Modernist Cuisine was launched. I truly do feel like I was witnessing history being made.
-- Leslie Kelly
Tracy Schneider on February 26, 2011 at 09:21 PM
I can't wait to get my hands on someone else's copy of this book!
Timberland UK on November 22, 2011 at 07:19 AM
I thank thee that I am none of the wheels of power but I am one with the living creatures that are crushed by it.
Ford VCM IDS Diagnosesystem on May 31, 2012 at 07:21 PM
As the group sets off on a terrible truths behind the capture of dolphins for the lucrative tourism industry exposure, they also cover an environmental disaster. Louie Psihoyos directs this riveting, Oscar-winning documentary.. xyj