The Penguin Companion to Food

Rating:
Summary: Astonishing compendium of gastronomic lore
Review: The Penguin Companion to Food is the paperback edition of the Oxford Companion to Food, so see more reviews there.

Considering how big a part food plays in our lives, it's amazing how little most of us know about it. This is a book for those who are curious about what they eat or what they might be eating if they lived in another culture. The range of information is astonishing, especially considering that this is the work of one man: for example, you will find articles on Babylonian cookery, Bacon, Bacteria, Badger, Bagel, Baking, Banana, Barbecue... Well, you get the idea, and that is just a selection of the Ba's! As a Canadian, I was curious to see how much there was on the cuisine of my native land, and I was not disappointed: saskatoon berries, moose nose, and poutine are all mentioned, and there is a full page on Canadian cookery in general. The author is not afraid to dive into some of the darker corners and might even be suspected of having a taste for the bizarre -- devoting several paragraphs, for example, to the subject of whether anyone actually eats the brains of live monkeys. There is a wealth of knowledge here, presented in a literate and entertaining way.