Once upon a not-long-ago time, a woman named Julia Child taught America that there was a country called France and it had a great cuisine. Since then, with the ascendance of global cooking, the world of food has opened at a dizzying pace, and menus have been culled from countries on all continents. We savor new tastes, but are staggered to discover yet another unfamiliar dish. With an introduction by the highly respected food writer Corby Kummer and many recipes from renowned chefs 1001 Foods to Die For entices the reader to cook, of course, but also to sit and read the almost 1,000 pages as if it were a novel. Curiosity satisfied the reader can go forward to span the globe in the home kitchen and confidently hold his or her head high among the foodiest of foodies.
Before diving into the recipes, let curiosity be a guide to ask questions about food. What is Pho, and how do you pronounce it? (Click the recipe above for both answers.) Is Zarzuela a wild Spanish dance, or a stew "brimming with seafood and perfumed with garlic" from the Catalan coasts of Spain? Is Ajiaco, a new pharmaceutical or a hearty chicken soup, the national dish of Columbia, served as part of the Christmas celebration? Is it enough to celebrate St. Patrick's Day with the familiar corned beef and cabbage, or should we rise the next day and eat Ulster Fry, the classic hangover breakfast dish of bacon, sausage, eggs, tomato and potato? Is Shoofly Pie an Amish invention or is it a version of a classic treacle tart?
This book is for both the cook and the curious. Packed with classic recipes, many from culinary stars including the stalwart Julia Child herself, 1001 Foods to Die For is an adventure in cooking, and a way to discover the world outside our own kitchens. The recipes are wide ranging. To wake the taste buds there are such favorites or about-to-become-favorites as a classic Peruvian Seviche or Italian Carpaccio or Scandinavian Gravlax . There are soups from around the world such as a Red White and Blue Clam Chowder from the United States, a Hot and Sour soup from China. There are grain dishes such as Couscous from North Africa, or Arroz a la Tubada from Mexico. Seafood is equally represented with Greek Baked Fish, possibly French Moules Farcies. There are poultry recipes and meat recipes such as an Asia Chicken Satay, a French Cassoulet, a British Rabbit Pie or classic mouthwatering Beef Wellington. There are entries for Cheeses, for salads, for vegetables, and of course desserts such as a classic Chocolate Mousse, a Tarte au Citron, Ice Cream, Fudge, Toffee Apples and Treacle Tart (or is that Shoo-fly Pie?).
The book's contributors include more than eighty renowned culinary professionals--chefs, writers, critics, and historians, all of whom share their expert opinions on the delicious dishes and cuisines that must be experienced at least once in a lifetime. Among the culinary stars who have contributed recipes are:
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