And so it is with cookbooks. Do we want to reproduce a Gordon Ramsay sea bass with jus vanilla? Or are we trying to relive the original experience, perhaps informing others of what a wonderful time we had? When we pick up a copy of Jamie Oliver's latest is it because we fancy a crack at roast duck with rhubarb or because he was really cute playing the drums as he made lamb curry at the Good Food Show? All of these and more - cookbooks are souvenirs, instruction manuals, lifestyle guides, status symbols, picture galleries, celebrations of food's sensual pleasures and, let us not forget the unwanted Delias, gifts!
In my rather oversized cookbook collection, there is a Troisgros volume written entirely in French, describing the history of the Roanne restaurant and a selection of its sensational recipes. File under souvenir, with a cross-reference to instruction, for it can be fun for a foodie Francophile to fumble his way to a passable Tomates Cariocas. On the other hand, there is Nigel Slater's ( "Real Food" ) celebrating the pleasures of eating hot mushroom sandwiches, with all the juices running down your arm. Stick Nige on the Sensual Shelf with Nigella, who invented the dish anyway.
So when choosing cookbooks, it's a matter of horses for, er, courses ( at least in France, anyway ). So let's take a look at some of the runners and riders.
One of TV's favourite sons is Jamie Oliver, and so his books are always best sellers. Indeed, there is little I can tell you about them unless you are, like me, one of those people who had avoided his books simply because he was an over-rated TV chef, more style than substance, a triumph of presentation over content. When my mother sent me the second book ( "Return of the Naked Chef" ) as a birthday present, I had deliberately avoided seeing a single episode of the TV series - bit snobbish of me really. On opening it for a cursory dismissal, I was first caught by the attractive presentation. Still, you'd expect that, as you would the barrow-boy descriptions of "bashing" herbs and "getting stuck in". But look a little further and and you can't help but be grabbed with the enthusiasm of the lad and I felt virtually compelled to cook his salmon with prosciutto, lentils and yoghurt etc. Explore further and you will find that the book is full of tasty, simple recipes and more injections of adrenalin. Most of the recipes are rehashes of other people's and, if you are looking for new ideas, you could have stuck with your old River Café and Alastair Little ( "Italian Kitchen") books. But remember this is more about style than content and if you are a fan of the Little/Slater "Keep It Simple" school you will probably go on, like me, to buy the "Naked Chef" and "Happy Days". In my opinion, these books improve with Oliver's age, and the most recent is the best.
Now, let's graduate from the ( slightly ) ridiculous to the sublime. You may have seen one of Raymond Blanc's rare television appearances, but most likely you will have become a follower because you treated yourself to a meal or even a night at the Manoir aux Quat' Saisons. Ray White, as some affectionately call him, has an unquestionable passion for food and excellence, and his restaurant is one of those rare places which ooze class without making you feel nervous. And he started his publishing career with a recipe book straight from the kitchens ( Recipes from the Manoir aux Quat Saisons ), which is a great souvenir but a tough instruction manual - an exercise in Restaurant Food at its most perfect. Viewed as the latter, "Recipes" can be heartbreaking, for the food is so perfectly styled and photographed that you can only fail miserably in its reproduction. For this very reason, you may want to consider the equally unattainable "Blanc Christmas" as an ideal gift for the foodie friend or relative who needs bringing down a peg or two for the festive season. If Ray's "tofu and mango brochette with a cashew satay sauce and mushrooms in filo parcels" doesn't make them a little humbler, then on;ly the Total Perspective Vortex will do.
Now don't let this put you off Raymond Blanc, for you will find a distinct change of style in "Blanc Vite" which offers ways to make "fast, fresh food". These dishes are much simpler, and designed to appeal to healthy eaters. Best of all there are fewer pictures, and every reader should feel confident that these delicious dishes are within their reach. Slightly flasher, and more for the dinner party, is the excellent "Cooking for Friends". Whether you prefer this to Blanc Vite will probably depend on the sort of friends you have. My copy has gravy stains in. If you prefer jus, but can't be arsed to make proper chicken stock then file this one under lifestyle or status.
Should you feel comfortable with searing, sautéing and braising you may be interested in understanding why you must use low temperatures for a daube, the cause and effect of Maillard reactions in browning meat or why your souffles never work. If so, I strongly recommend "Blanc Mange" which combines scientific explanation with some splendid recipes - probably my favourite cookbook.
One word that crops up regularly in Raymond Blanc's prose is "passion", an emotion favoured by Gordon Ramsay. Indeed, his first two books were titled "Passion for Flavour" and "Passion for Seafood". Both exquisitely presented, it's in the first of these you will find the signature jus vanille and cappuccino of langoustines and lentils. I think he once confessed that his publishers had asked him to ease off on the degree of difficulty of his recipes, which was brave of them. As a consequence, his third work "A chef for all seasons" is more realistically cookable and, as a bonus, each season's chapter is prefaced with a "passionate" description of the fresh produce available at that time of year.
Since "Boiling Point", people are divided on Ramsay. Some admire his passion and dedication to excellence, some despise the attendant ruthlessness. If you are considering one of these books you are probably one of the former. As Ramsay warns, he has designed his books for those "with the skill of an enthusiast" and would probably disapprove of the coffee table buyer who was impressed by the gorgeous photography and the cachet and controversy of the Ramsay name. But we are all complex characters - ex-footballer Ramsay sometimes runs between his London restaurants, but also has a passion for sports cars. I wonder if he chose them for their fuel economy.
Mendel
In later editions of this article we shall look at cookbooks from Alastair Little, Robert Carrier, Delia Smith, Nigella Lawson, Rick Stein and many more.