YouTube creator Helen Rennie offers an in-depth guide to seasoning and texture, so you can confidently cook delicious recipes and answer the most essential question—is it done?
“An indispensable guide to the techniques and decisions that separate good cooks from great ones.” —J. Kenji López-Alt, James Beard award–winning chef and bestselling author of The Food Lab
For years, cooking school instructor Helen Rennie has helped thousands of home cooks solve the problems that stand between them and a great dinner. Drawing on her extensive experience, research, restaurant training, and engineering background, her informative debut cookbook distills two decades of work into a single volume that answers questions that recipes rarely address, such as “why does my chicken stick to the pan?” and “why is my fish always dry?”
The Science of Dinner is an in-depth guide to seasoning, browning, and doneness and offers 60 recipes for both everyday meals and special occasions. Helen organizes her deep (and often obsessive) knowledge into two pillars of great cooking: flavor and texture. Part One focuses on the methods that make food taste great. It explores the building blocks of flavor, including a primer on balancing the five tastes (the secret: you probably need more salt). You’ll also discover why browning matters; how to choose the right cookware; why stainless steel and cast iron skillets heat differently; and how to craft versatile stocks and restaurant-quality pan sauces. Part Two spotlights ingredient-specific texture and explains how you can tell when vegetables, eggs, fish, meat, and poultry are properly cooked, tender, and safe to eat.
It also includes 60 recipes to practice these kitchen skills, including:
- Caramelized Onions Apple Walnut Grilled Cheese
- Balsamic Maple Roasted Brussel Sprouts
- Menemen (Turkish Scrambled Eggs)
- Seared Tuna with Salmorejo
- Grilled Pork Chops with Cilantro Lime Butter
- Red Wine Braised Short Ribs
- Ode to Zuni Chicken with Porcini Sauce
Helen’s recipes do not rely on rules and formulas; instead she empowers you to observe, evaluate, and adapt. With step-by-step photographs, easy-to-read charts, and hundreds of a-ha! moments grounded in culinary science, The Science of Dinner helps you understand not only what to do in the kitchen but why it works—so you can cook with confidence.