Splendid Soups: Recipes and Master Techniques for Making the World's Best Soups

Filled with passion, warmth, and vitality, James Peterson's exquisitely researched books have earned him a reputation as one of the finest food writers of our time, with two James Beard Foundation Awards to his credit for his classic Sauces and Vegetables.In Splendid Soups, Peterson uses clear, step-by-step guidance to explain the essential techniques for making broths and consomm?s, and then moves on to soups based on vegetables, fish, meat, and other main ingredients. Capturing the heart and soul of the world's finest cuisines, 400 recipes offer an exciting and rich contemporary repertoire to explore, from the exotic Indian-Style Shrimp and Coconut Soup and the elegant Poached Duck Breast with Vegetables to the pungent Vietnamese Spicy Soup with Rice Noodles and the intriguing Chicken Tagine with Apricots, Raisins, and Almonds.

In addition to bringing together the best soup-making techniques and recipes from around the world, Peterson shares the underlying soup-making guidelines that can be used to personalize recipes and create delicious signature dishes. Encouraging a deeper understanding of the ingredients and techniques of national and regional cuisines-including what foods work well together and when to add them to the cooking process-these guidelines liberate the cook from recipes and offer new ideas that will inspire a lifetime of culinary discovery. Throughout the book, helpful text boxes share tips on everything from how to make a base for vegetable soups to how to fix a soup that isn't working out as planned. In addition, Peterson shares indispensable advice on choosing ingredients and selecting the proper pots and utensils, along with crucial thoughts on how to transform a soup from mediocre to magnificent, serving suggestions, and more-all delivered in his engaging and witty style. Whether it's a classic Gazpacho brimming with the fresh flavors of summer or a sinfully indulgent Foie Gras and Truffle Soup, he shows how to bring out the very best that soup has to offer. Filled with exciting ideas and fresh flavor combinations, Splendid Soups is an enduring resource that belongs in every fine cook's library.

Everybody loves a good soup. Creating the perfect soup, though, is a challenge for both the home cook and experienced chef. Making soups is a fundamental skill that can be mastered with this book.

We love James Peterson. Splendid Soups is a bountiful source of enticing ideas -the moosewood collective Authors of the Moosewood Restaurant Cookbooks

JAMES PETERSON has taught professional and home cooks at Peter Kump's New York Cooking School and The French Culinary Institute. A French-trained chef and former owner of a highly acclaimed French restaurant in New York, he is also the award-winning author of:Sauces Winner, 1992 James Beard Foundation Cookbook of the Year Splendid Soups Nominee, 1994 James Beard Foundation Fish and Shellfish Winner, 1997 International Association of Culinary Professionals Vegetables Winner, 1999 James Beard Foundation Essentials of Cooking Nominee, 2000 International Association of Culinary Professionals and James Beard Foundation.

Partial Table of Contents:

BROTHS, CONSOMM?S, AND SIMPLE BROTH-BASED SOUPS.

Clear Broths.

Consomm?.

Combining Broth with Eggs, Cheese, and Herbs.

VEGETABLE SOUPS.

Single-Vegetable Soups.

Beans, Lentils, and Dried Peas.

Mixed Vegetable Soups.

RICE SOUPS.

FISH SOUPS.

BIVALVE SHELLFISH SOUPS.

CRUSTACEAN SOUPS.

MEATS SOUPS.

New England Boiled Dinner, Pot-au-Feu, Bollito Misto.

Asian Tabletop Meat Soups.

Hearthy Peasant Soups.

Borscht.

Chicken.

Duck.

Pork.

Lamb.

Beef.

Veal.

Tripe.

A Few Less Common Ingredients.

BREAD SOUPS.

YOGURT, CHEESE, AND BUTTERMILK SOUPS.

FRUIT SOUPS AND DESSERT SOUPS.

BASIC PREPARATION.

Patterns for Improvising Soups.

Metric Conversion Chart.

Sources.

Index.