Review by Booklist Review
What the Baylesses offer to their readers is not merely a Mexican cookbook, but a definitive bible on the subject. The authors present their personal journey through the world of Mexican cookery, an itinerary that began in Oklahoma and continued through the eateries of Texas, New Mexico, and East Los Angeles, finally leading to Mexico itself, where they discovered a completely unique and different kind of cuisine from the American bowdlerization. The recipes served up here represent the real McCoy: kitchen-tested regional specialties from Monterrey to the Yucatan, spanning sauces and condiments, basic meat preparations, appetizers and salads, tortillas, egg dishes, tacos, enchiladas, poultry and fish, rice and beans, desserts, and beverages. Along the way, the Baylesses supply a wealth of Mexican food lore, history, and cultural tidbits. A must purchase for any self-respecting cookery collection. Footnotes; glossary; bibliography; to be indexed. MAB. 641.5972 Cookery, Mexican [OCLC] 86-12706
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Rick Bayless (host of the PBS-TV series Cooking Mexican extensively explores Mexican cookery, analyzing particular national characteristics as well as regional variations of the complex cuisine. He traces the history of Mexican food from the humble squash and beans of thousands of years ago to a cuisine that came to include chiles, corn and the orchard bounties (coconut, pineapple, avocados) of the conquering Spanish. Mexican dishes familiar to Americansthe enchiladas, tamales and tacos that are more properly classified with North American Southwestern cookingare included, but the most interesting recipes are the more exotic: Native American-influenced, spice-sweetened food from the Oaxaca region and simple, European-influenced seafood and vegetable dishes of the Gulf states. The author explains how common flavors (tomatoes, chiles, coriander, lime, onion, garlic) are transformed by proportion and cooking method to produce the regional differences. The book is extremely thorough, with over 650 pages, 19 recipe chapters, a glossary, bibliography and ingredients source list (although most are commonplace). The recipes, which are frequently complicated and challenging, are made less intimidating by especially clear and well-organized instructions, and comprehensive, highly readable notes on techniques, ingredients, timing, advance preparation and variations. Illustrations not seen by PW. (November 17) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Bayless and his wile spent eight years exploring and charting Mexico's traditional cooking. The result is a work of depth and breadth deserving of high praise. There is something here for everyone. There are clear, straightforward, easy-to-follow recipes for those would like lo try their hand at truly Mexican fare (sauces, salads, soups, tortillas, tacos, turnovers, enchiladas, tamales, moles, fish, meat, poultry, rice, beans, vegetables, desserts, drinks). There is history, geography and anthropology for the scholarly. And, throughout, there is beautiful, lyrical, novelistic writing for those who look to cookbooks for a good bedtime read (""only after several careful and courteous inquiries was I hesitantly invited into the private patio of the chocolatera. Her cacao beans crackled as they roasted, her charcoal-heated metate coarsely ground the greasy beans back and firth with the cinnamon, almonds and sugar, and her hands patted the paste into fat cigar shapes""). A thinking-person's cookbook--thoughtfully crafted, meticulously researched, carefully conveyed. It raises the food of Mexico to world-class haute cuisine. Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
