The Flavor Equation: The Science of Great Cooking Explained + More Than 100 Essential Recipes Hardcover – October 27, 2020

INDIAN CUISINE A MYSTERY TO MEIndian cooking has always been a mystery for me. The farthest I have gone was to prepare an Epicurious Magazine recipe for “Chicken Tikka Misala.” It had a rainbow of seemingly countless spices (and my family loved it). I figured it was time to branch out and explore Indian cuisine… and that led me to this book.THIS BOOK’S SCIENTIFIC APPROACHAs I began reading, I realized that the author comes from the background of biochemistry, microbiology and immunology. When I was in high school, I struggled with chemistry and my teacher agreed to tutor me after school. I faithfully went day-after-day to get his help. Then, one day, he looked at me with earnest eyes and said, “Chemistry just isn’t for you.” That was the end of that and he mercifully gave me a “C” so my GPA wouldn’t get messed up. My classes leaned on liberal arts from that time forward. I mention this because, as I began reading this book I thought… “oh dear, what did I get myself into??!!”So, yes, there are times when this book gets esoteric and stuff flies over my heard. In all honesty, I skimmed through the introductory analyses of flavor from a scientific point of view. That being said, the book was well written. It’s clearly evident that the author was blessed with writing skills in addition to STEM skills.RECIPE CATEGORIESI appreciate that the author breaks down his book into categories of flavor rather than categories of ingredients (chicken, beef, etc). It’s a fresh approach that works for me because it allows me to narrow in on flavors that my family likes. For example, coming from a Hispanic background, there are very few sweet flavored entrees we like… we go for recipes emblematic of our culture like saltiness, fieriness and richness (think enchiladas with a salty, fiery sauce and richly cheesy) as opposed to sweetness.One “richness” recipe approved by my family is the “Roast Chicken Thighs + Vegetables.” With ingredients like garlic, ginger, vinegar and Worcestershire, the flavor profile was a good fit. (Photo from book attached). I got the nerve to post a photo of how my “Roast Chicken Thighs” came out. My dish does not look as appetizing as the author’s, but my family and I enjoyed eating it.And don’t get me wrong, in fairness, I will try some cooking some dishes outside of my family’s “normal” taste.BOTTOM LINEIf you are interested in branching out into Indian food, this might be a good place to start. The Amazon description page says the printed book is 805 pages. I see 555 on the Kindle version. While the book will likely appeal to STEM majors, there are abundant pages of marvelous anecdotes, beautifully written recipes and luscious photographs to appeal to all. If you are chasing the taste of India, then I say “go for it” with this book!

I had purchased this book on a whim a year ago, and it has sat on my shelf since. Don't judge me, I like cookbooks, but there are only 365 days in a year).Anyway, the other day, I grabbed it off the shelf, and started browsing. The photos made my mouth water, everything looked rich and filled with flavor. I settled on hosting a small dinner gathering. Made the Crab Masala Dip, the Beef Chili Fry, Braised Cabbage with Coconut, and the Gingerbread Cake with Bourbon Date Syrup.First, the directions are well written, and easy to follow. Second, most of the spices are not going to be too hard or unusual for anyone who experiments a lot in their kitchen. Your mileage may vary there, especially if you're a one cuisine cook, or newer to cuisine outside of your standard American fare (Im not, I have like 14 soy sauces, 12 vinegars, and a ton of less common spices in my pantry).The dishes all came together very easily, and the aside from the cake, the 3 dishes I made were stove to table in about 30 minutes. The braised cabbage was good, though a bit hot for my significant other's tastes. But we balanced that out with basmati rice. The beef, super tender, juicy, and coated in delicious flavor.As good as those were, the Crab Masala was out of this world. It took all of ten minutes to make, though you wouldn't necessarily believe it. Rich, creamy, loaded with flavor. We ran out of crackers and naan to dip, so we just ate the rest with spoons. Absolutely one of the best things I've made in the past year.So as I said, dont buy this book if you don't like flavor, for everyone else. Five stars.

I dont know quite where to start.. but.. after sitting with the book for a while, and cooking from it once so far ( honey-tumeric pineapple chicken skewers..pictured yum!!!) I am confident this will be THE cookbook for 2020. Amazingly unique recipes.. and my first exposure to Indo-Chinese cooking... now might look for a cookbook on this subj alone. Ingredient wise... to cook a lot of these dishes you may need to hit up amazon if you don't have a Indian Grocery nearby.. ingredients like amchur, curry leaves, etc.. If you have Season, then you know what Im talking about.Like Season, the food photography and styling is amazing. One minor qualm, I have noticed at least one recipe where the picture has an ingredient not listed in the recipe.. chickpea salad picture has tomatoes in the picture, but no tomato is in the ingredient list. Havent dived super deep to see any other offenders :)What REALLY sets this book apart, is the SCIENCE in it.. Literally at least 100 pages of describing what causes and what are flavors... The first 75 pages of the book literally look like a college chemistry textbook. .. then the chapters with the recipes all start with a 10 or 15 pages of science of the flavor.. Its like harold mcgee and season had a love child...a delicious, enthralling love child.The recipes are separated by flavor profile.. think bitter, sweet, fiery, etc.. so it may take a bit of effort to plan a menu if you're used to books divided by sweets, appetizers, mains, sides, etc.. which brings to mind, some menu suggestions would have been appreciated.. that being said.. its hard to say, at 350 pages, that this book is lacking anything.October has seen lots of amazing cookbooks come out.. this is the leader of the pack! I cant wait to dive in deeper and cook more!