Chef on Fire: The Five Techniques for Using Heat Like a Pro

Chef Joseph Carey is the author of Creole Nouvelle: Contemporary Creole Cookery, a New Orleans native and graduate of Indiana University. He was an executive chef in San Francisco for 16 years, lived in Memphis, where he opened several restaurants and owned and operated the Memphis Culinary Academy, and now lives and works in Oregon. Carey's Chef on Fire: The Five Techniques for Using Heat Like a Pro is at heart not a recipe book although it contains a couple of hundred of them. Instead, Chef Carey teaches five basic methods, introducing a simple yet brilliant concept. He promises that if one masters these five fundamental methods, any home cook can become an expert. Carey brings his considerable teaching skills to bear on the five methods of applying heat to food: * Cooking with dry heat (Roasting, grilling and baking) * Cooking with wet heat (Boiling, simmering, poaching) * Cooking with fat (Frying, sautéeing) * Cooking with fat and liquid combined (Braising) * Extraction (Stocks, sauces and soups) Carey describes each method in detail and in clear and sometimes poetic language. He illustrates each method with numerous stories from his career and with recipes that any home cook can master. The dishes are eclectic and the book carries an enormous amount of information that may well change your approach to cooking. Robert C. Ross 2008

I'm impressed by a chef that quotes Gautama Siddharta, lists an individual portioned coulibiac recipe, a chile rellenos recipe, tells how to pipe Duchess potatoes, and informs that potatoes are sold in 50 lb cartons with "count size" from 40 to 120 potatoes in a carton. It gets better when he salts (bitter) purple eggplant, then further instructs to put a weight on top to remove excess water (these steps are not needed for smaller or non bitter eggplants-I don't salt my eggplants, and no happy eater has been the wiser). He double-fries french fries for tastier crispier results. He sautes often with unsalted butter, albeit clarified, for taste. He puts grilled or sauted meats over a puree of garlic potatoes, to soak up juices...He correctly assigns the origins of Caesar Salad and Cobb Salads...he mentions polyphenol oxidase, the enzyme that causes unsightly browning of cut fruits and vegetables. Yes this is an experienced chef with a touch of food science, a la Harold McGee, painlessly dispensed as useful hints. He suggests sauteing in heavy, stainless steel lined copper or aluminum pans, for fast heat transfer and optimal control.He premixes salt with ground black or white pepper, to speed up salt and peppering when put in a shaker or "dredge". He gentlemanly names and compliments his chef-mentors, (whereas other bitter cookbook writers such as Susur Lee, backstab those who helped, and can not defend themselves in print). This is a good general book for beginner to intermediate cooks, with lots of hints that do not appear in many recipes. Some drawbacks follow, minor at that, such that in a creme caramel recipe he instructs inserting a toothpick to check doneness, assuming a cook knows what to look for, without telling what to expect. I saute not with his clarified unsalted butter or his expensive extra virgin olive oil (EVOO), but often prefer a mix of unsalted butter with vegetable oil, or less expensive olive oil, as the heating destroys the delicate flavor of EVOO. There's a better "butter taste" when using nonclarified unsalted butter, when mixed with a corn, safflower or other oil. There's no mention of the crunchier panko bread crumbs in recipes as a possibility. He doesn't mention brining, in a salt and sugar solution, for a juicier and tastier chicken or turkey, though he does put chicken to be fried in buttermilk bath, a good alternative. I prefer somewhat lumpy mashed potatoes with butter first added, then milk and some cream. He prefers smooth and lump free potatoes, with milk added before only 2 tablespoons of butter for six potatoes, making a soggier less creamy tasting and less distinctive mashed potato. There's no right way, you just may get more compliments with certain ways....and more calories too, so you be the judge of taste vs calories. For making a Cassoulet, he does not tell how long to boil and soak the beans, or say what is the desired consistency of the beans for the best taste and results. He bakes the casso

If you could take any recipe and break it down into five easy steps, you'd be able to master different procedures, and CHEF ON FIRE: THE FIVE TECHNIQUES FOR USING HEAT LIKE A PRO does just this, presenting a technique-oriented book covering boiling, cooking with dry heat, and more. Recipes are couched within the method rather than being profiled as a reason for learning the method, putting the emphasis on learning techniques rather than recipes alone. And it's the techniques which will lead to 'making' the good cook. Diane C. Donovan California Bookwatch

I actually took a ten week course under Chef Carey & got the chance to sample his recipes first hand. I've become very popular with my family & friends using his techniques & recipes. I recommend this book to any & everyone that enjoys good food.

Carey allows the reader into his kitchen and reveals his techniques with many methods and dishes to try them out in your own home. Each chapter breaks down from boiling, cooking with fat, to braising all with easy to follow steps and techniques. A must have for anyone interested in perfecting their meals.