AT HOME W/JAPANESE CKNG

Rating:
Summary: Oh, would that some smart publisher reprint this book...
Review: Hands down, this is my FAVORITE Japanese cookbook. Elizabeth Andoh, an American married to a Japanese, is not only a fine cook, cooking teacher, and journalist in her own right, but is in the unique position of being an American consultant to the Japanese food industry. This is her first cookbook, published in 1980 (it was followed by "An American Taste of Japan" in 1985). It's a primer of "pure" Japanese home cooking -- like Mama used to make, if your mama happened to be Japanese. I learned to cook in the kitchens of Japanese friends, and the flavors of Ms. Andoh's recipes make me swooningly "natsukashii" (nostalgic) for Japan.

The book's 130 recipes are organized in the classic order of Japanese cuisine: soups, rice, noodles, braised and simmered foods, grilled foods, deep-fried foods, steamed foods, mixed and sauced foods, pickles, and sweet things and beverages. No photographs, but crystal clear recipes are complemented by beautiful line drawings that illustrate ingredients and techniques. A section in the front details Japanese cooking techniques and equipment, while a glossary at the back not only translates the names of unusual ingredients, but explains how to choose and store them. In all, it's a wonderful book that I can't recommend highly enough.