In an era of outfitted home kitchens and food fascination, it's no wonder home cooks who never learned the fundamentals of the kitchen are intimidated. Twenty years ago, James Peterson could relate, and so he taught himself by cooking his way through professional kitchens and stacks of books, logging the lessons of his kitchen education one by one. Now one of the country's most revered cooking teachers, Peterson provides the confidence-building instructions home cooks need to teach themselves to cook consistently with ease and success. COOKING is the only all-in-one instructional that details the techniques that cooks really need to master, teaches all the basic recipes, and includes hundreds of photos that illuminate and inspire. Cooking authority James Peterson's definitive, all-inclusive learn-to-cook cookbook. 600 hard-working recipes everyone should know how to make-from the perfect roasted chicken to bouillabaisse and apple pie. 1,500 instructional photos, showing exactly how recipes are made, teach food-literate novices to cook with confidence and more advanced cooks to expand their repertoire.James Peterson has more than 1 million cookbooks in print.Reviews

James Beard Foundation Cookbook Awards General Category Winner

It's heavy enough-and good enough-to warrant a permanent place within easy reach...The text is clear and easy to read. Peterson's ancillary material at the end of some recipes earns special merit as the most varied and interesting factoids in any books we've seen this year.-Washington Post

Peterson'-s masterful survey of kitchen skills is a refreshing dose of tradition for anyone weary of quick-and-simple recipe books. . . . Cooking] will reward those keen to absorb Peterson'-s deep knowledge of food and well-honed explanations for how best to prepare it.-Publishers Weekly

Some cookbooks help you get dinner on the table tonight. Others help you become a better cook for the rest of your life-every recipe teaches you something funadmental. James Peterson's 560-page Cooking is a great choice for anyone who wants to become a smarter cook.-O, the Oprah Magazine

ABC News Web Video: How To Make James Peterson's Perfect Roast Chicken, from Cooking

Easier to use than other cooking-school-in-a-book volumes . . . The step-by-step photographs are superb.-Boston GlobeThis 558-page book contains virtually all the culinary knowledge that the average person needs to know.-New York NewsdayPeterson aims to cram an entire culinary education between these hefty covers, and he comes close.-Charlotte ObserverHuge and encyclopedic . . . it would be a fine gift for any good cook who wants to become even better.-Epicurious.comPeterson distills a lifetime of thinking about food in Cooking. The book's instructions include invaluable frame-by-frame photographs.-New York Times Book ReviewKnow someone who'-s beyond cooking basics and wants to learn more? Give him or her this tome and let your chef wannabe learn the same way Peterson did: by cooking through this incredible book.-Chicago TribuneHis template for a European peasant-style soup was a wonder.-Los Angeles TimesAn extraordinarily comprehensive book . . . best for the cook-to-be who really wants to get down to business.-San Jose Mercury NewsSure to inspire beginner and skilled cook alike.-Seattle TimesThis marvelous author has another winner . . . this cookbook answers virtually every kitchen question.-St. Louis Post DispatchLush photos and sophisticated recipes.-Denver PostCooking is Peterson'-s return to the most basic techniques, written from the perspective of teacher to student . . . colorful, step-by-step, photos accompany many of the recipes.-San Francisco ChronicleFor those who want a thorough knowledge of cooking fundamentals.-ivillage.comInstructive and authoritative . . . Peterson'-s] unwavering focus on what a student really needs to know has produced a superior textbook.-BooklistWhether you'-re a seasoned chef or just starting out, James Peterson'-s Cooking will teach you more than a trick or two.-ParadeAn intensive course for home cooks in the classic techniques that underlie good cooking, this is recommended for all cookery collections.-Library Journal, Starred ReviewSoup whisperer James Peterson tells cooks how to simmer up greatness-Pittsburg Post Gazette

...very informative (and fun to read)-Orange County Register

The best new cookbook of the year-Ashbury Park Press

Read the full review in Library Journal

Read the full review in Publishers Weekly

"Peterson's masterful survey of kitchen skills is a refreshing dose of tradition for anyone weary of quick-and-simple recipe books. The substantial volume is replete with step-by-step color photos, often 10 to 15 per recipe or process, that show the stages of a steak's doneness or how to make napoleons. The immense store of 'recipes to learn by' is arranged partly by course and partly by main ingredient, with each section proceeding through many of his 10 basic techniques. Peterson is careful to include a range of dishes for every skill level, and cooks with any amount of experience will appreciate the numerous boxes that highlight preparation tips and tricks. Dominated by recipes like Fish Meunire and Boeuf la Bourguignonne and with a prodigious chapter on sauces, the book feels like an old-fashioned French culinary education slightly updated with some nominally international dishes (Lamb Korma, Chiles Rellenos with Tomatillo Sauce), an attribute that may turn off some modern-minded cooks, but will reward those keen to absorb Peterson's deep knowledge of food and well-honed explanations for how best to prepare it. Color photos not seen by PW." Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)

James Peterson, one of the countrys most revered cooking teachers, provides the confidence-building instructions home cooks need to teach themselves to cook consistently with ease in success. This instructional manual details techniques, teaches basic recipes, and includes hundreds of photos.Ten Speed Press

In an era of outfitted home kitchens and food fascination, it’s no wonder home cooks who never learned the fundamentals of the kitchen are intimidated. Twenty years ago, James Peterson could relate, and so he taught himself by cooking his way through professional kitchens and stacks of books, logging the lessons of his kitchen education one by one. Now one of the country’s most revered cooking teachers, Peterson provides the confidence-building instructions home cooks need to teach themselves to cook consistently with ease and success. COOKING is the only all-in-one instructional that details the techniques that cooks really need to master, teaches all the basic recipes, and includes hundreds of photos that illuminate and inspire.

JAMES PETERSON is an award-winning cookbook writer and cooking teacher, whose career began as a young cook in Paris. In the mid-eighties, he was a partner and cook at the Greenwich Village restaurant Le Petit Robert. A cooking teacher for over two decades, teaching at Peter Kump’s New York Cooking School and at the French Culinary Institute, he is the author of 13 books, including Sauces, which was his first book and the 1991 James Beard Cookbook of the Year. A self-taught food photographer, James creates the photography for his own books as well as for others’ projects. He lives in Brooklyn, New York.