No "Joy" in Muddville...
Paul Hinrichs
I picked up the "New, Improved" Joy Of Cooking at Sam's Club
yesterday. I had vowed to never purchase it because of stories that it
had been essentially neutered by the attempt to bring it up-to-date,
but at $16.95 (cover price$30.00) I said what the hey.
A peremptory inspection this morning revealed my worst fears - the
passable section on smoking meats had been completely purged and there
is not even a heading for "canning" in the appendix. There are,
however, some redeeming sections - pictures of various fish and
general preparation procedures for each, another similar section on
peppers from Bell to Habanero - again all with pictures, how to
dissemble various shellfish, and the Condiments section is now
"Condiments, Sauces, and Dry Rubs" - with a liberal variety of the
latter, including cajun rub for blackening. Lots of non-European
ethnic food that have come into general favor since the last edition
as well, and a new appreciation of spices.
However, the section on pork has some glaring errors, and that offends
me because this undoubtedly will become a reference book and, in the
future, the defintions of these items are likely to change as a
result. The section on fatback says that "Cracklings are little pieces
of fatback that have fried until crispy"...so what does it say, then,
about pork rind? - it gets it basically right, but then says
"Deep-fried pork rind, or chitlins, is also enjoyed as a snack food."
Man, that ain't no chitlin I ever heard of.
Anyway, it has its ups and downs, it is neither as bad as I had feared
nor as good as I had hoped. It's too bad, in the cuisine equivalent of
Gresham's Law, that it has supplanted the Rombauer masterpiece in
bookstores. I would rather see it supplement it. As a kitchen
reference, it shouldn't be pursuing current fads and eliminating
traditional methods. It's okay to include these things, but I always
liked Irma's story about the long train ride to eat horribly unaged
poultry "fresh from the back yard". The only "modern" equivalent of
that would be a story about airplane food, and that really lacks
romance. Still, at $16.95, it's a good cookbook (but no longer great).
A. T. Hagan
paul...@mindspring.com (Paul Hinrichs) wrote:
>I picked up the "New, Improved" Joy Of Cooking at Sam's Club
>yesterday. I had vowed to never purchase it because of stories that it
>had been essentially neutered by the attempt to bring it up-to-date,
>but at $16.95 (cover price$30.00) I said what the hey.
I felt the same way from all of the stories too. I picked it up the same
way also, sitting on the table at Sam's for nearly half the cover price.
>A peremptory inspection this morning revealed my worst fears - the
>passable section on smoking meats had been completely purged and there
>is not even a heading for "canning" in the appendix.
It seems to be a part of a trend. Except for those areas that have
developed a certain chic, food preservation is in general decline, at least
from where I'm reading. Of course, that's just a part of the entire "no
one's responsible so you can't *be* responsible" trend that's been
gradually overcoming what seems like the entire world.
> There are,
>however, some redeeming sections - pictures of various fish and
>general preparation procedures for each, another similar section on
>peppers from Bell to Habanero - again all with pictures, how to
>dissemble various shellfish, and the Condiments section is now
>"Condiments, Sauces, and Dry Rubs" - with a liberal variety of the
>latter, including cajun rub for blackening. Lots of non-European
>ethnic food that have come into general favor since the last edition
>as well, and a new appreciation of spices.
There is new material to be sure. They give the original, historical
definition of a blanc mange with the gelatin and ground almond now. The
cornstarch version is now called simply a cornstarch pudding.
Since it received some brief discussion here upon a time, they have
retained their hominy making recipe. They've also expanded into polenta
and posole' as well. I must say it's the only posole' recipe I've seen
that didn't have at least *some* pork in it though. The new version shares
that with the old version, they have recipes for the dishes I'm looking
for, just not quite like any I've seen before.
>However, the section on pork has some glaring errors, and that offends
>me because this undoubtedly will become a reference book and, in the
>future, the defintions of these items are likely to change as a
>result. The section on fatback says that "Cracklings are little pieces
>of fatback that have fried until crispy"...so what does it say, then,
>about pork rind? - it gets it basically right, but then says
>"Deep-fried pork rind, or chitlins, is also enjoyed as a snack food."
>Man, that ain't no chitlin I ever heard of.
You know, to someone who doesn't know any better, I can see how a crackling
could be confused with fried pork rinds, but chitterlings? This denotes a
lack of guts on the part of the editorial staff, I'm afraid.
>Anyway, it has its ups and downs, it is neither as bad as I had feared
>nor as good as I had hoped. It's too bad, in the cuisine equivalent of
>Gresham's Law, that it has supplanted the Rombauer masterpiece in
>bookstores. I would rather see it supplement it.
And that is exactly what it is doing here in the House, supplementing it.
My old 1964 edition will continue to sit on the counter right next to the
microwave just like it always has. My wife has used it a good many times.
> As a kitchen
>reference, it shouldn't be pursuing current fads and eliminating
>traditional methods. It's okay to include these things, but I always
>liked Irma's story about the long train ride to eat horribly unaged
>poultry "fresh from the back yard". The only "modern" equivalent of
>that would be a story about airplane food, and that really lacks
>romance. Still, at $16.95, it's a good cookbook (but no longer great).
I think they'd have been better off to have taken the new and the updated
information they had on hand and made it a "The Joy of Cooking, Volume II".
That would have given us a valuable addition and left the old master alone.
.................Alan.
From the House at Cat's Green -- Alan T. Hagan, NRA Life Member
The Universe is utterly indifferent to the fact that
you do not realize the consequences of your actions,
you will have to deal with them just the same.
Prudent Food Storage FAQ editor. The FAQ is available from:
http://www.waltonfeed.com/grain/faqs/ (ver 2.5)
http://www.idir.net/~medintz
http://www.survival-center.com/foodfaq/ff1-toc.htm
http://www.d-n-a.net/users/dnetIULU/files.html (EUROPE)
http://www.zetatalk.com/food/tfood01.htm
http://www.iinet.net.au/~standeyo/News_Files/Info_Files/html (AUSTRALIA)
(ver 2.5)
The most current FAQ version is now 2.5
Michael J Barnett
I got it as a Christmas present from my wife who watches me use the '64
edition as a first choice reference when I'm trying something new. Her idea
was that this would replace the stained, duct taped and embarrassing (to
her) edition I now use. I found many of the same kinds of shortcomings so
it is shelved in the library and not in the small kitchen shelf area.
--
remove no spam to reply
Michael J Barnett
Paul Hinrichs
ath...@sprintmail.com (A. T. Hagan) wrote:
>You know, to someone who doesn't know any better, I can see how a crackling
>could be confused with fried pork rinds, but chitterlings? This denotes a
>lack of guts on the part of the editorial staff, I'm afraid.
That does it, Hagan! That pun gets you banned for life from,
uh...something, I don't know...
(ROFL)
Mimi
I am kicking myself...always wanted a copy of "Joy" and had a chance to
get the edition before the new one (1964?) for 8 bucks at Half-Price
Books and did not. This was just before the new one was coming out.
Mimi :]
Mimi's Cooksbox:
http://www.geocities.com/heartland/meadows/5903
Mimi's mailbox:
mimi...@hotmail.com
Use this address when replying, fak-a-roo one used to foil spammers...
A. T. Hagan
Mimi <n...@spam.com> wrote:
>I am kicking myself...always wanted a copy of "Joy" and had a chance to
>get the edition before the new one (1964?) for 8 bucks at Half-Price
>Books and did not. This was just before the new one was coming out.
It's still available. I was just in Barnes & Noble the other day and they
had the old and new side by side. I think the last update was in the
seventies sometime, then the one that just came out.
.................Alan.
From the House at Cat's Green -- Alan T. Hagan, NRA Life Member
The Universe is utterly indifferent to the fact that
you do not realize the consequences of your actions,
you will have to deal with them just the same.
Prudent Food Storage FAQ editor. The FAQ is available from:
http://www.survival-center.com/foodfaq/ff1-toc.htm (ver 2.5)
Phil
Mimi wrote:
>
> I am kicking myself...always wanted a copy of "Joy" and had a chance to
> get the edition before the new one (1964?) for 8 bucks at Half-Price
> Books and did not.
Is there a difference between the old and new?
Thanks!
Phil
--
"Lie ? Me ? Never! No, no, no, the truth is far too much fun !" -
Captain Hook
Liz Albrook
Phil wrote in message <34D659...@ibm.net>...
>Mimi wrote:
>>
>> I am kicking myself...always wanted a copy of "Joy" and had a
chance to
>> get the edition before the new one (1964?) for 8 bucks at
Half-Price
>> Books and did not.
>
>
>Is there a difference between the old and new?
You betcha. There's an enormous difference. The new isn't better
than the old but it is definitely different. I find they compliment
each other well. The new Joy has recipes for classic sauces that are,
perhaps, a bit more "authentic" as well as recipes for "New American"
cuisine. There's more of an international flavor to the new book as
well as better adaptations of regional cooking such as Santa Fe style
Mexican, etc. There are many recipes that reflect the growing
interest in good, healthful meals in a hurry. Like it's predecessor,
it's destined to be a classic. If I had to get rid of all but 5
cookbooks, the new and old Joys would both be among the 5 I saved.
Liz