The Practical Encyclopedia of Asian Cooking

Rating:
Summary: Easy to follow - FULL OF PICTURES!
Review: I don't know about you, but I like to see LOTS of pretty color pictures when I use a cookbook. This book has pictures of every important step and of the finished project. It also has a great review of important asian ingredients (about half the book is about ingredients). We've tried 4 or 5 of the recipies, and they have all been tasty and not too difficult to make. The only mildly difficult part of using this book is finding the ingredients (most of the ingredients can be found at a regular grocery store, but some probably require an Asian grocery store).

Rating:
Summary: A MUST HAVE for Asian cooks
Review: My 18 years of cooking has included 5 years of AUTHENTIC Chinese. I obtain most of my knowledge from Chinese chefs, my Taiwanese husband, and my mother-in-law. Trying new recipes over the years has enhanced my knowledge, but elbow-to-elbow cooking has always been my favorite.

Pros: Impeccable organization! Has pictures and very detailed information (including translations) of every ingredient you could possibly use to cook an Asian dish. Half the book has descriptive information about Asian ingredients and equipment, and the other half has typical recipes you might look for. Yes, all the recipes have photos too! This book is filled with photos for any photo-fanatics.

Cons: I wish I had this book when I first started cooking Asian food. My international dictionary did a good job, but could not possibly fulfill the needs this book has.

This is the BIBLE of Asian cooking. The title is appropriate...The Practical Encyclopedia of Asian Cooking. Frankly, I was pleasantly surprised there were any recipes at all. -And they included a 100 of them!! I haven't tried any, but already noticed some had very similar ingredients to recipes I already have. Either way, this book should get an award.