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| The Professional Chef | 
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| Author: Culinary Institute Of America
Publisher: Wiley
Category: Book
List Price: $70.00
Buy New: $24.09
You Save: $45.91 (66%)
Buy New/Used from $24.09
Avg. Customer Rating:  (67 reviews)
Sales Rank: 236788
Languages: English (Original Language), English (Unknown), English (Published)
Media: Hardcover
Edition: 7th
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 1056
Shipping Weight (lbs): 7
Dimensions (in): 11 x 8.8 x 2
ISBN: 0471382574
Dewey Decimal Number: 641.57
EAN: 9780471382577
ASIN: 0471382574
Publication Date: September 5, 2001
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
The Professional Chef, the official text of The Culinary Institute of America's culinary degree program, has taught tens of thousands of chefs the techniques and fundamentals that have launched their careers. Now in a revolutionary revision, The Professional Chef, Seventh Edition not only teaches the reader how, but is designed to reflect why the CIA methods are the gold standard for chefs. With lavish, four-color photography and clear, instructive text, The Professional Chef, Seventh Edition guides culinary students--professional aspirants and serious home cooks, alike--to mastery of the kitchen. Over 660 classic and contemporary recipes, with almost 200 variations, were chosen especially for their use of fundamental techniques. These techniques and recipes form a foundation from which a professional chef or home cook can build a personal repertoire. From mise en place (preparation) to finished dishes, the book covers Stocks, Sauces, and Soups; Meats, Poultry, Fish, and Shellfish; Vegetables, Potatoes, Grains, and Legumes, Pasta and Dumplings; Breakfast and Garde Manger; Baking and Pastry. In addition to a comprehensive treatment of techniques and recipes, The Professional Chef, Seventh Edition teaches readers other critical elements of the professional chef's domain--much of it universally applicable to any kitchen. From "An Introduction to the Professional," to the identification of tools and ingredients, to nutrition, food science and food and kitchen safety, the book is a wealth of beautifully presented information useful for any cook. The Culinary Institute of America has been hailed as "The nation's most influential training school for professional cooks" by Time magazine. The Professional Chef, Seventh Edition, the cornerstone of its program in book form, belongs on the shelf of every serious cook.
Amazon.com's Best of 2001
Recognized as the definitive cooking school textbook, the Culinary Institute of America's The Professional Chef is also the perfect guide for independent study at home. More than 1,000 pages are packed into the voluminous seventh edition, with information and recipes designed to teach technique. It is so comprehensive, it could be the only cookbook you need to own. Almost guaranteed to answer any question you could possibly imagine, The Professional Chef is one of the most useful reference books ever written for the kitchen. With thousands of photos showing step-by-step instructions, you'll learn to identify and trim any kind of meat, seafood, fruit, and vegetable, and extensive photos and descriptions of spices, pasta, and grains take the guesswork out of new and unusual recipes. Seemingly complicated techniques for recipes such as Hollandaise Sauce are described with photos and with so many tips, tricks, and troubleshooting guides you feel as though an instructor is cooking alongside you. Organized from the simplest techniques and most basic information to the more complicated, you can use this book as a reference guide, a resource for increasing your confidence in the kitchen, or as a recipe-filled cookbook. The seventh edition has been completely reworked to include more-contemporary techniques alongside classic, more-sophisticated recipes, and there's greater emphasis on food safety, nutrition, and technology in the kitchen. --Leora Y. Bloom
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| Customer Reviews: Read 62 more reviews...
 Advanced Knowledge and skills September 3, 2007
19 out of 19 found this review helpful
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This is the TEXT book for the CIA. I have used this book to increase my skill level tremendously. I am not a chef, but I am a pretty-damned-good cook.
I found the background information indispensable when creating my recipes and fixing others.
Only buy this book if you are DEAD SERIOUS about food preparation.
 This is a culinary school textbook, not a cookbook August 18, 2007
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
Billing itself as THE text book of one of THE top culinary schools in America, I had high expectations when I plunked down $40+ dollars for it ... expectations that were only partially met.
The most important thing to remember about this book is that it's a TEXTBOOK, not a cook book. Granted, the material is about food and cooking, yes, but if you buy it with the expectation of finding out the best and tastiest ways to make a given classic recipe, you're going to be sorely disappointed.
Why ?
This book is basically overview material on a wide variety of ingredient and food preparation related subjects.
You'll see, for instance, a picture of what carrots look like when they've been chopped, diced, julienned, fine burnois'd (1/16" square dice), and cut into various other shapes ... but you're not going to find a lot of indepth textual or photographic material on knife selection, care and cutting technique - the book assumes you'll be taught that information in a separate in-person class on knife skills. It's just overview here.
If you look up a recipe on, say, classic American chili ... you'll find a tiny little recipe in the back that gives you a basic, stripped down, no-frills highly minimalistic recipe with very brief instructions ... the reader (student) is left to flesh it out, season it up and otherwise put their own personal/regional spin on it. There's no pontificating whatsoever on the various styles of chili. If you want that, the book assumes you'll go buy a book on chili and learn it on your own.
There are exceptions - stock making and consumme, for instance, is covered in depth.
Bottom line: this is a good overview book for freshmen culinary school students, but if you're a home cook looking for a good book of solid recipes with fully fleshed directions, you'll be much happier with something like "The Complete Joy of Cooking" or "The Best Recipe".
Five Stars Hands Down! November 4, 2006
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I have several cookbooks and textbooks that I refer to on the daily basis and this is one of the most informative and useful texts that I have ever purchased. The only book that I use more then this one is The Professional Chef, Eighth Edition! The recipes are outstanding!
Nasir, Executive Chef
Comprehsensive Work! May 6, 2006
15 out of 15 found this review helpful
At the risk of simply repeating, at length, the sentiments expressed in earlier reviews, I'll be brief...
This is an amazingly comprehensive work that covers seemingly every facet of professional cooking. The book is arranged nicely and follows a logical progression.
In buying this book I was looking for something that could speak to cooking technique in such a way as to improve my cooking KNOWLEDGE, vice a simple book of recipes. This book has unlocked a good deal of creativity in me, in that now that I understand the principles that govern how certain types of food behave, I can get on with making up some of my own stuff.
The only word of caution I can provide is that the recipes inside usually make enough for 10 people. If you are comfortable with making conversions you will have no problem.
The Bottom Line: If you own no other book about cooking technique covering a broad range of topics, this is the book.
A must for one who wants to devote himself in the culinary field!!! April 17, 2006
6 out of 8 found this review helpful
I have read the book thoroughly & found that this "Modern Bible of Kitchen" is for one who wants to excel in culinary techniques & should try to possess this scripture....I finished this book within a week i bought it & go through this book religiously on a daily basis as i myself would like to pursue a career in the Kitchen...
hats off to the authors n CIA of course for this marvellous publication...
Wish u good luck CIA,
Gaurav
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