If you are a cookbook aficionado, serious home cook or a chef you have been hearing the buzz about Modernist Cuisine for three years and it has hit its crescendo as the six volume cookbook has finally launched. At over $600 list price* the Modernist Cuisine will be on the shelves of any serious cook/chef whose interest lies in science of cooking - who wants to create the perfect bite, to prepare food to the best it could be with cooking techniques both old (steam, fire ) and new (sous vide, homogenizers, centrifuges).
The man behind Modernist Cuisine
To understand the intensity of Modernist Cuisine you must understand Dr. Nathan Myhrvold, principal author and the “front” man for the promotion of Modernist Cuisine. Formerly the Chief Technology Officer for Microsoft, Myhrvold is an intellectual giant with degrees in mathematics, geophysics and space physics from UCLA, and PhDs in mathematical economics and theoretical physics from Princeton University. Myhrvold also worked on quantum theories of gravity with the renowned cosmologist Stephen Hawkins. (Watch the video from the book launch The Institute of Culinary Education for some fascinating facts on Modernist Cuisine.)
His passion for cooking isn’t anything new, at age nine, Nathan convinced his mother to let him cook the family Thanksgiving dinner. Myhrvold worked as an apprentice for two years at a top Seattle restaurant, completed his culinary training at Ecole De La Varenne and competed and won first place in the 1991 World Championship of Barbecue.
Myhrvold appeared on the Colbert Report this week discussing Modernist Cuisine. Many of the amazing photographs from the book that were presented on air, and they are amazing, show cutaways of food cooking – ovens, barbecues, woks physically cut in half so readers will understand what is happening to their food when cooking. Colbert being the funny man he is said, “well what about the George Forman Grill, that is all I cook with” and Myhrvold, with a sense humor and a wry smile on his face replied, “we cut it in half.”
The team
Chris Young and Maxime Bilet completed the core team for Modernist Cuisine, both who worked with world-famous chef Heston Blumental of The Fat Duck and whose culinary credentials are long and their intense passion made them a perfect fit.
Modernist Cuisine took a large team over the many years required to complete – writing, photography, design, editing, proofing, research and recipe development. Many recipes in the book are from leading chefs around the world – Wylie Dufresne, Grant Achatz, Ferran Adria and more.
The launch party at The Institute of Culinary Education (ICE) in New York
Many journalists and chefs gathered at ICE to meet the Modernist Cuisine team, look at the book and taste eight very different dishes from the book. Myhrvold offered up an enlightening, entertaining presentation on Modernist Cuisine watch the photo slide show with story and read the blog post from ICE about the evening.
Considering the science, the modern techniques in this cookbook I was not surprised to see Top Cheftestant Marcel Vigneron of Quantum Kitchen on the SyFy Channel perusing the pages of the book. Top Chef’s and Food and Wine’s Gail Simmons and Amanda Hesser, cookbook author and former food editor for the New York Times both were part of the guest list that evening.
Recipes tasted from Modernist Cuisine
Myhrvold said to make the perfect eggs use two whole eggs and one egg yolk – of course temperature is crucial but a simple concept to try.
Oyster Cocktail – cryoshucked Kusshi oysters, centrifuged pear juice
Caramelized Carrot Soup – pressure-cooked with baking soda
Roasted Corn Elote – freeze-dried with N-Zorbit, brown butter powder, lime and ash powder
Polenta and Marinara – pressure-cooked in mason jars
Mushroom Omelet – constructed egg stripes, steamed in a combi oven
Pastrami, Sauerkraut, Cognac Mustard – cooked sous vide for 72 hours, precisely cured, brined and fermented
Goat Milk Ricotta and Peas – fresh ricotta, centrifuged pea puree layers, essential oil
Pistachio Ice Cream, Cocoa Nib – frozen constructed cream.
*Modernist Cuisine can be purchased at Amazon.com at a large discount from cover price and includes free shipping and at 40 pounds that is a big savings.
Will Modernist Cuisine replace Escoffier’s Ma Cuisine or Child’s The French Cook – both classics, the answer is no? Will it create its own place on the list of legendary cookbooks for the 21st century? The answer is yes.
Comments