Gordon Ramsay's Ultimate Cookery Course (International Edition)

"Gordon Ramsay brings his lifetime of experience and culinary expertise to this book, and there is a lot offered in it. While none of the recipes struck me as particularly innovative or "new," they are solid interpretations of classic dishes around the world. One of the strongest aspects that Ramsay brings to these dishes is the balance in flavors throughout them. In an effort to simplify cooking for chefs, Ramsay chose to title his dishes by the ingredients and flavors in the dishes rather title them classical titles and cuisines they were interpreted from. Just one example is the a classic Thai dish that was called noodles with chili, ginger, and lemongrass. An upside of this choice is that it gets new cooks thinking like a chef, focusing on ingredients and tastes present in a dish. One downside is that the book could have benefited from mentioning the dishes they were based on, providing a background for the reader. Even knowing where a dish originated can be extremely beneficial for a cook. It can help them understand how Ramsay is changing some of the elements from the classics around to provide a more balanced flavor. Overall, this book has some very solid and tasty recipes. Ramsay's palate and experience comes through in the dishes. There is a ton of information beneficial for cooks new to the kitchen, from buying ingredients to cooking techniques and equipment. Cooks who are more experienced can also benefit from seeing how Ramsay has manipulated elements of classic dishes to bring out flavors and achieve balance in dishes."

Cool book. Love that most recipes (all other them? Not sure) are featured in the Prime video series. I watched the videos and noted in the book which episode and the minutes:seconds the recipe was in. So when I decide to cook the food in a recipe then I know exactly where to look to watch the video ri see how GR cooked it :-)

I didn't realize there was an American version made. So I'm having fun converting the recipes from metric. I bought this because I rather enjoyed watching the Cooking Show. If you've gotten in a cooking rut feel like you're eating the same thing or new recipes just don't taste as good as you think they should, these recipes open the flavor box. Make you step just outside the comfort zone. It's not scary. I'm not a picky eater, but I never ate anchovies until this book. I thought they were nasty little fish, but actually they are wonderful packed with flavor. They just melt. What also makes this book note worth is the inspiration from around the world. You can see Asian, Spanish, English, Moroccan, a full international inspiration that is brought to you in an accessible way. You can feel Gordon's passion for cooking and his passion for teaching and sharing. He really does want people to eat good food and learn to make good food. He was taught by the best and now he's the best and this book is offering you the chance to learn from him. I do suggest though having all the ingredients prepped and ready before you start putting them together. Because some of the recipes you have to move fast otherwise you'll burn the food.

With the word "course" in the title, I found myself expecting a bit more of a step-by-step guide to learning cooking. Something that would start with the basics and gradually build toward increasingly challenging recipes. This book is not that. However, though it's not quite what I expected and was hoping for, it's nevertheless an excellent cookbook. Chef Ramsay's recipes are excellent. Not all of them are to my own taste, but that's to be expected from any cookbook. Surprisingly, though, the vast majority of them are to my own taste, and they represent quite a range both of different kinds of food and of different difficulty levels. Though not organized into a course as I'd thought, the book is well organized into sections that will make it easy for the home chef to learn about topics of particular interest. Perhaps you need to learn to make better fish. If so, you'll benefit greatly from a chapter on just that topic. Or maybe you're in need of simple but elegant meals for one or two. Or tips for managing your time, cooking in advance, and preparing larger dinner parties. All of these topics have their dedicated chapters. Where the book really shines is in the little tips Chef Ramsay shares throughout the text. He may not be teaching you how to cook from beginning to end, but he does take the time to share some of the tips and tricks he's picked up over the years that make all the difference but which are often neglected by other cookbooks. In that sense, this book does more closely resemble an actual "course" rather than "just another book of recipes." Even still, lacking longer descriptions of kitchen basics and lacking detailed photographs illustrating certain techniques, the book alone would be insufficient to teach you how to cook if you don't have any other teachers or resources. American readers may occasionally be confused by some British terminology that we don't share on our side of the pond. As the saying goes, we are two peoples divided by a common tongue. However, it's not difficult to figure out the author's meaning simply by rereading those rare passages in the context of the rest of the text. Similarly, we Americans may occasionally have to take the extra step of converting the recipes to U.S. measurements rather than metric. On the other hand, most of the metric units presented in the book are units of weight, and any good kitchen scale should be able to give you readings in grams, so this may be an unnecessary conversion, at least for most of the recipes. Overall, I have to say that even though the book wasn't as much of an organized course as I was hoping for based on the title, it's still become one of my favorite cookbooks and I'm glad to recommend it.

Simple. Fresh. Delicious. From basic tips to advanced techniques this cook book delivers as promised. Not available in North American print yet so I ordered this from BooksFiction via Amazon. It arrived from the U.K. in less than one week, the rest of my ordered was nearly a fortnight later! This book accompanies the TV series of the same name and all the recipes are included. As I had watched the series before ordering the book, I was thrilled to find the recipes turned out as delicious and mouth-watering as they appeared on TV. While I certainly have a ways to go cooking through this book, those recipes I have tried were excellent. I do wish this cookbook had more pictures; not all are featured in photogragh form and while easy to follow, personally I would like to see what the dish should look like. The only other thing worth pointing out is that this edition is not in imperial measurement. Everything is listed as 250 ml (1 cup) etc. or by weight: 200 grams. Not a problem so long as you have the conversion or your measuring devices are metric. I suspect the North American version will be converted if or when it is produced.

Great seller. Quick ship. Item better condition than described. Shipping thru Amazon says I did not receive item. But I did and quickly.

I bought this book as a companion to the BBC Cooking show series by the same title. The combo really works well. This is the best material and cook book Gordon Ramsey has put together. Even an novice cook like me, can make great dishes with this book and instructional TV shows. You can get them on Channel 4 via a VPN server in the UK. Ramsey explains why you want to buy these types of knifes, these types of pots, and these types of spices. He goes from the basics of how to cut an onion, to cooking an omelette, to making a nice souffle. He goes through the process fast on the TV show, but it's worth it to see each recipe a couple times. If you follow these recipes and watch what he does, and follow along with this book, you will become a better chef. The favors are magnificent, and impressive. Also, his enthusiasm is infectious, you can see and feel the passion he puts into every dish. Mahalo Gordon Ramsey for putting you principle knowledge to a most practical and straight-forward cooking course. You have made me a star in my new town.

The cookbook is amazing. Excellent recipes wonderful way that has been presented. Easy to understand and the outcome is delicious. Thank you so much. I will be ordering more.