Jean-Georges: Cooking at Home with a Four-Star Chef

`Jean-Georges Cooking at Home with a Four-Star Chef' by chef Jean-George Vongerichten and journalist / cookbook author, Mark Bittman is one of those delightful books which lives up to both expectations set by the author(s) reputation and the goals it sets for itself.Jean-George Vongerichten is among the very top four or five chefs in the country, sharing the limelight of culinary innovation with Thomas Keller, Charlie Trotter and Alfred Portale. He has three high very well received restaurants in New York City and a few scattered about the hinterlands, especially in Las Vegas. Mark Bittman is a food columnist for the New York Times, inheriting a portion of the mantle of Craig Claiborne as one of the leading culinary newspapermen in the country. Bittman is also the author of several well-reviewed cookbooks on his own, primarily the successfully presumptuous `How to Cook Everything' (See my review of this book).I have to believe that this book was inspired to some extent by the book created out of the collaboration between Patricia Wells and Joel Robuchon, `L'Atelier of Joel Robuchon'. This comparison is heightened by the fact that both Vongerichten and Robuchon did journeyman cooking in the Far East and both continue to have their cuisine influenced by Asian flavors. In spite of several similarities, there are some important differences between these two books. While Robuchon's collaboration deals with his haute cuisine restaurant fare, Vongerichten and Bittman concentrate on dishes from his restaurants that work very well in the home kitchen. In fact, this is the second very authoritative source I have found which says that the home kitchen has several advantages over the restaurant in that it is not constrained by the need to produce every meal in a very short time, on demand. This leads to over-prepping, so that there is a risk that some preparations may fade by the time the end of service rolls around.Bittman's introduction to this book sets the expectations that the recipes in this book will be relatively simple. And, I am extremely happy to report that, on average, not only are these recipes simple, they also are extremely economical with ingredients. These recipes do not wallow in foie gras, truffles, and caviar; however, some of the recipes do consume a rather large amount of wine and butter. Note that Bittman makes no claim and no apologies to the fact that these recipes are NOT about low calorie dishes! It is probably also fair to say that while most of the recipes are easy and inexpensive, they are not necessarily quick. It is simple to reduce a bottle of wine by 2/3, from 750 ml to one cup (250 ml), but it will take you at least an hour to do. So if these recipes are simple, what makes them so special.The simple answer to this question is that they are the original creations of an exceptionally talented chef, which means that you are guaranteed a look at some really new things you can do with familiar ingredients. This is another advantage of the fact that Vongerichten uses relatively inexpensive ingredients. It opens all sorts of possibilities with things in your grocery store every day of the year. I was especially taken by the vegetable recipes. I may have several hundred recipes for green beans, but Vongerichten gives me one that adds the Asian flavor of soy sauce to this very French ingredient. In another recipe, he combines dirt-cheap beets and turnips in an utterly simple recipe with nothing more than salt and butter to create something that will be a knockout on a dinner table for guests. In fact, Vongerichten seems to have a special love for root vegetables, as beets and carrots appear in many of his recipes. He has also brought some very easy traditional French techniques to us when he makes confits of leeks and tarts of leeks and potatoes.It is not surprising that his salads are relatively simple, but it is surprising that his soups are relatively simple too. He even makes terrific mushroom soup with water instead of chicken stock. The recipe does involve making a mushroom broth, but this is a really terrific vegetarian dish.In spite of the Far Eastern influence, Vongerichten uses relatively few really hard to find ingredients. In his glossary of ingredients in the back of the book, the only really uncommon items were galangal, Kafir lime leaves, and amchur. Virtually every other ingredient is regularly stocked by my local megamart, and, aside from lemongrass and nam pla, few of these eastern ingredients are used in many recipes.Everything I have said about Vongerichten's savory dishes carries over to his dessert recipes. There are some recipes for tarts and tuilles that may be a challenge if you are not adept at these techniques to begin with, but if you are, these are `easy as pie'. For the pastry challanged, there are utterly simple fruit `salads', confits, and `soups' which take no more than the patience to clean your produce carefully and have the time to be sure that the cooked preparations cool down to a good serving temperature. My favorite discovery is a simple apple confit that uses nothing more than sugar, oranges, and apples. The biggest cost to this recipe is the very long (five to six hours) cooking time in a 300 degree oven.The fish recipes fall heavily to dishes made of scallops, lobster, shrimp, cod, halibut, mussels and crab. The last thing about the book pleases me is the fact that the authors include several recipes for lamb. This is partially offset by the fact that most of the meat and poultry choices are from somewhat more expensive cuts or birds.This book is a model of what a leading chef can offer the amateur foodie! There are very few recipes in this book I do not want to make now, today, immediately.

This is my number-one cookbook. I bought this book in 2000, when I first started delving into the fusion world of cuisine (I was "bored" with Italian cooking). And, having dined at JG's restaurants, Vong, back then (now sadly closed), I was able to replicate many, if not all, of the recipes featured in this book. The recipes are simple, easy to follow, and almost always come out to perfection. Of course, it is always about using good ingredients, and as with all recipes a few "adjustments" can be made. A few, that is. Back in '00, it was a bit more difficult to find all of the ingredients, locally. And, that meant taking a trip to markets out of town. I met JG at a class in '01 and mentioned how I "recreated" his black plate (from Vong) for a NYE party and he was impressed that I found all the ingredients. Again, that was "back then." Well, I can virtually say that I cooked through the cookbook; never wrote a blog about it; or didn't get a movie published, either. But, IMO this is still the number-one cookbook in my 250-plus (and growing) collection.

Some good recipesDisappointed there weren’t more recipes Od try

This is a terrific book of simply prepared sophisticated food. What prompted me to write was the review below concerning the apple confit. The recipe works. It's a ton of work, but if you follow directions (with adjustments, perhaps, for your own kitchen equipment) you get a desert that will impress any crowd. Most of the other recipes work just as well. When dealing with sophisticated food like this one needs to understand how to balance flavors and adjust technique. Probably not a book for beginners.

I had seen this book on a day time TV show. I was pleased that I could find it on line. I have enjoyed adding it to my reference library. The recipes found in this addition brings back to mind when tradition and prep-work was still an art. When simplicity was not a heat and eat dinner. The craftsmanship shared in this book, makes it a must have for anyone who still cares for the best.

Meals are definitely prepared with no less than a four-star rating and most I would rate even higher. Would be a book I would highly recommend to those who enjoy fine gourmet cooking.

This is one of the best cookbooks I have found from professional chefs. The recipes are very accessible and unique. I have enjoyed dining at Vongerichten's restaurants over the years and find myself continually returning to this book.

Great when hungry and have time to think about what to cook.

It's OK. A little dated and rather full of himself. But some useful techniques.

Want to try out some of fusion French food, need to grab opportunities to start cooking, from front to back

Interesting plating. I didn't quite see the connection with home cooking and most of the photography seemed to be from his restaurant.