McGee on Food & Cooking

By Harold McGee

OK so I didn't read absolutely every word of this book, but it's over 800 pages and I reckon I read more than enough of them to equal a decently long novel. I'm actually reading it for my thesis, what with McGee being a pre-eminent food scientist and all, and it's so much more pleasurable to read than your average science textbook. Describing the science behind food - why does bread rise? Why should you start stocks with cold water? - McGee takes you not only through the science but also into some of the history, and this is a large part of its charm. Where else can you learn about why the outside of egg yolks turn yellow on boiling while also enjoying fantastic quotes like this one from Miss Leslie in 1857: “But to stir butter and sugar is the hardest part of cake making. Have this done by a manservant”. Quite - why didn't I think of that? Only bad point from my current perspective is that it's so easy to get distracted by other non-thesis related topics, like how to make cakes and how beer works. Also, nice diagrams!

Rating: 10 out of 10