Classic Cooking Techniques

The key to good cooking is not so much memorizing an encyclopedia of recipes as learning basic techniques, which then can be used as building blocks for creating dishes of all cuisines. While many general cookbooks tend to bury the basics among the recipes, this latest book in the California Culinary Academy series concentrates on techniques and uses recipes as illustration. The method may be classic, but the results are not stodgy: the chapter on roasting and grilling yields an old-fashioned roast leg of lamb as well as contemporary grilled shrimp with dill sour cream. Sauces range from vinaigrette to veloute. The chapter on desserts covers whipping cream, egg whites and pastry bags. Enticing photographs and clear illustrations round out this concise, comprehensive book. (October)