Share your book recommendations - Non-cookbooks

Would love to hear titles of books that got you thinking differently about food...or raised questions that you may not have considered about what we eat, how we eat, why we eat what we do.

Could be historical, could be sociological....maybe cultural. Michael Pollan, Tracy McMillan, Steingarten are, perhaps obvious choices. What/who else do you like?

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Matthew_Snyder_68770

Food, Inc. is pretty much a must for anyone with any sort of interest in the world of cooking and gastronomy. How To Read A French Fry, by Russ Parsons, is pretty good. The Flavor Bible technically isn't a cookbook. Call me a fanboi, but I also like Bourdain's books quite a lot.

ren_74229

Blue Trout and Black Truffles by Joseph Wechsburg - Great book looking at haute cuisine from a different era...and a nice little early history of the Michelin Guide through to what I'd consider it's peak. Continue the saga with The Perfectionist by Rudolph Chelminski, then get a contemporary perspective by watching Michelin Stars - The Madness of Perfection. It's my unofficial Michelin Trilogy.

Tsukiji by Theodore Bestor - Full on ethnography of the Tsukiji market...really changed the perceptions I had of the market and of the seafood trade.

Mindless Eating by Bryan Wansink - A great look at how our perceptions are not always in line with our interests.

American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis - because you have to know when things might be getting rediculous

Stone Soup - Probably the story that I'd say is most responsible for why I love to cook.

Johan_Edstrom_5586

I second American Psycho. Also one of the best family movies ever.

Almost made me cry like the Terminator.

I have to say I really liked the Ruhlman book, The Making of a Chef.

Johan_Edstrom_5586

One book that changed quite a few things for me is - not in any way shape or form related to

cooking. Go rin no sho. I spent around 17 years doing martial arts, lived in Japan for a while

doing it, in many ways I guess that was my "life stage" - the thinking, principles and cutting

things down to their core basics and preparing for whatever may come is an interesting thought

travel and really helpful in anything you try and master or manage.

prince_of_porcelain

Sticking to food related, a couple I remember enjoying over the last couple of years::

Twinkie,

Deconstructed: My Journey to Discover How the Ingredients Found in

Processed Foods Are Grown, Mined (Yes, Mined), and Manipulated into What

America Eats - Steve Ettlinger

The Scavenger's Guide to Haute Cuisine - Steve Rinella

And non food fiction, I always recommend Foucault's Pendulum - Umberto Eco. It's phenomenal, even if no one else agrees.

robert.c.brown15

@Brian, appropriate to mention Foucault's Pendulum given today's Google Doodle and all. Today was the first time I heard of that as well as that book! Learned something just in time it seems.

I just finished reading the third section in Ruhlman's The Soul of a Chef. That is the French Laundry/Thomas Keller section. I really enjoyed it and will probably now go on to read the other sections, but it was an inspiring look into what I love about cooking.

As a musician many things I've read have influenced my thinking about cooking and creating as well as the hours of practice and dedication to a craft I've done over the last 15+ years in the field of music.

Unfortunately, no singular book really stands out to me right now. I will let you know when I think of a good one. I'd have to take a look at my bookshelf.

Reading great literature, watching great film, thinking about them, and then talking about them have probably affected my ideas of how I cook/want to cook and what I strive for when working with food the most.

The River Cottage Meat Book, which is a cookbook so I apologize for that, really changed the way I think about meat and food in general. Especially all the first half before all of the recipes. That was an important book for me and really makes me think about everything I'm buying, cooking, and consuming.

Brendan_Lee_56950

Not food related but very important in the thinking about how we shape perceptions: The structure of scientific revolutions - Thomas Kuhn

Really changed the way I think about perception and what it really takes for people to believe in something new. This definitely applies to the modernist movement and what it would take for it to catch on.

DiggingDogFarm_65362

Taste: Surprising Stories and Science about Why Food Tastes Good By Barb Stuckey

"Learn why bacon is so delicious and cilantro is not for everyone in this exploration of how the senses of taste, smell, hearing and sight influence the experience of food."

Manual of a Traditional Bacon Curer by Maynard Davies

"Maynard Davies, the last of the traditional bacon apprentice-boys, and now retired master-curer, shares here with the reader his lifetime's knowledge of the art of smoking and curing. In this practical manual Maynard explains, step-by-step, how he did it all in his day - from choosing the best raw ingredients, to building one's own smokehouse, to the secrets of making the best sausage. After working in the profession for 60 years, Maynard wants to pass on his expertise to the next generation, in the hope that enthusiasts will get as much satisfaction from producing their own hams, bacons, sausages and countless other products, made with pride from the best ingredients, as he has always done. "

Maynard: Secrets of a Bacon Curer by Maynard Davies

"Fans of Maynard will be delighted to read his further adventures in bacon curing. The last of the traditionally-apprenticed bacon curers, the author regales and inspires his readers with tales of * visits from the health inspectors * his colourful customers and work colleagues * his tips on curing, smoking and selling * the burglaries, bungled deals and triumphs * his growing reputation in the field * travels to learn how to make parma ham and much more. This book is the same addictive concoction of humour, tragedy and plain common sense, told in Maynard's disarmingly frank manner."

Mountain Spirits: A Chronicle of Corn Whiskey from King James' Ulster Plantation to America's Appalachians and the Moonshine Life.

by Joseph Earl Dabney

"Mountain Spirits is a scholarly yet entertaining look into this staple of Southern Appalachian history. The folklore of moonshine whiskey is full of fact and fiction, but the real characters tell stories even more humorous and exciting. Dabney's interviews with actual moonshiners and his documented history allow one to take a trip through the mountains - and through history - to discover both the origins and development of the art of making whiskey. With a complete glossary, photographs, illustrations, and interviews, Mountain Spirits offers a most complete exploration of this craft, from distilling for personal use to the moonshining gangs that emerged during Prohibition."

~Martin

Tim_Sutherland_52834

Letters to a Young Chef, by Daniel Boulud. Well worth reading by anyone thinking of working in a professional kitchen.

Any of Anthony Bourdain's books for a more realistic view of the back of the house.

Waiter Rant, by Steve Dublanica for a view from the front of the house in a US restaurant.

Tim_Sutherland_52834

I just finished, The American Way of Eating: Undercover at Walmart, Applebee's, Farm Fields and the Dinner Table, by Tracie McMillan. Not a lot of new stuff for me, but an interesting read for those who have not seen the produce fields in California or ever seen the kitchen in one of the national chain restaurants.

DiggingDogFarm_65362

Umami: Unlocking the Secrets of the Fifth Taste is pretty good.

CarolynMW_37183

Missing Microbes (focuses on impact of antibiotic overuse)

Grass, Soil, Hope (climate change and its impact on agriculture/foodways)

The Carnivore's Manifesto (sustainable carnivorous eating)

CarolynMW_37183

Ah, almost forgot: the Euell Gibbons books. The recipes are near-useless, but the wild-food focus is classic.

Rick_Ruiz_125018

Are there any good method/information books focused on Vegetarianism/Veganism and/or health related?