Product Description

Robuchon is the most influential French chef of the post-nouvelle cuisine era. Since the mid-eighties, he has been called the primus inter pares of Paris' three star chefs for his work both at Jamin and at his eponymous restaurant. He is renowned for the relentless perfectionism of his cuisine. His food was seen as instrumental in leading French cuisine away from the excesses - and excessive reductionism - of nouvelle cuisine. In particular, his cuisine is seen as harkening back to a more authentic, even bourgeois French cuisine - cuisine actuelle - which focuses on making each ingredient taste of itself. He has mentored such distinguished chefs as Gordon Ramsay and Michael Caines and his signature dishes include a cauliflower cream with caviar and potato puree.In The Complete Robuchon he offers us his recipes (over 800), secrets and tips: from the perfect omelette to vegetable soup, leg of lamb to marinated mussels, to his renowned potato puree every dish is described in detail starting with the ingredients, he tells you how to clean and prepare them down to the way to hold the pan and precise cooking times. It is all here - a catalogue of the basics of French cuisine and a broad sampling of dishes that have earned the author his titles of glory and his truly imaginative recipes from L'Atelier.Born in Poitiers in 1945, Joel Robuchon became the official chef of La Tour de France, where he learnt a variety of diverse regional techniques. At 28, he became head chef at Harmony-Lafayette, overseeing 3,000 meals a day. In 1981 he launched Jamin in Paris and within three years had received three Michelin stars. In 1996 he left his Parisian restaurant, establishing L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon in Tokyo. He opened another L'Atelier in Paris in 2003 and has since established Ateliers in Las Vegas, New York and London. ***Winner of the Gourmand Cookbook Awards 2008 Best Cookbook Translation***

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #3832 in Books
• Published on: 2008-10-31
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 610 pages

Review
The rest of the gastronomic world may play with nitrogen gas or conduct jolly television cook-alongs, but France's Joel Robuchon quietly issues a back-to-basics collection of 800 recipes for the home kitchen. No pictures, no gimmicks, just precise step-by-step instruction from a perfectionist chef. The man either has no imagination, or is the one, true sensible chef left on the planet --Terry Durack, The Independent on Sunday

I expected the Complete Robuchon to be rather complicated, but its the opposite - simple versions of the classics, a really French charcuterie section with things like chitterlings, and over 800 recipes. Good value --The Observer Food Monthly

... Its surprisingly difficult these days to find a decent recipe for turnip. You have to turn to a Frenchman for that. Joel Robuchon's smothered baby turnips with chicken juices takes 25 minutes to produce and elevates this unstylish veg to new and glorious heights --The Telegraph Magazine

Certainly worth taking seriously. Robuhon is the most influential French chef of the Poist-nouvelle cuisine era. He is renowned for the relentless perfectionism of his cuisine, which looks back to an authentic, even bourgeois French cuisine, which focuses on making each ingredient taste of itself. This is a book for serious cooks. --The Oxford Times

He's the man who quit cooking at the age of 50, only to return with his cleverly casual yet utterly creative Atelier restaurants. Surprisingly, though, when it came to writing the definitive cookbook, the great Robuchon has gone back to basics. Stocks, sauces, forgotten regional recipes and a little culinary folklore make this a guide to traditional greatness. There's no Atelier recipes ... but the legendary Robuchon mash is there. Phew! Why buy? For the last word on French cooking, from a master. --Joanna Saville, Australian Gourmet Traveller

There is, however, every reason to buy The Complete Robuchon (Grub Street, £25) by Joel Robuchon, a chef who greatly surpasses Gordon Ramsay in the matter of Michelin stars (17 to 13) ... it is great value. Ignore the recipes with expensive ingredients (foie gras) or rare ones (mirabelle plums); the majority are simple, delicious and cheap. I have cooked the best roast chicken, a delectable lemon tart, soups, vegetable dishes and sauces and stews, all superb, from this book. If I had to own just one cookery book, this would be it. --The Spectator

With over 800 recipes (seven pages on pot-au-feu), the regional chapter, including tariflette de Savoie and buckwheat porridge with bacon, is particularly tempting ... Recipes are stated with exemplary clarity --The Independent

It is all here - a catalogue of the basics of French cuisine and a broad sampling of dishes that have earned the author his deserved fame. --Irish Homes

...packed with gutsy, bourgeois cuisine, with plenty of simple, rustic dishes. Apart from the recipes, Robuchon gives away all his secrets and tips ... a book destined to be a kitchen essential. --Fork magazine

Customer Reviews

A French masterpiece
This is so much more than a how-to cookbook - instead it covers all its bases, with recipes ranging from the perfect fried egg or vegetable stock to cassoulet. It is undaunting for a cooking newbie, and sumptuous enough for a proper foodie. The genius of this book is that by giving me the basics, I was undaunted by the more adventurous recipes suggested.

Recipes are divided, on the whole, into prime ingredients, and this serves as an encylopaedia not only on how to cook them, but when to buy them and what to look for. Each method is explained in a simple, detailed fashion, offering hints and trivia along the way (aided by the classic and simple design). I can honestly say that this is an excellent guide to have on the kitchen bookshelf - great both as a reference and as an inspiration.

Beats Delia (really)
I Love this book. It has everything from basics like "how to panfry a steak" to fantastic complicated dishes. The recipes are explained in a straight forward way and are very easy to follow. The results are fantastic. Some recipes are more complicated than others, but they have been wonderfully adapted for the home cook. This is one of those classic cookbooks that can become the backbone in your kitchen library. I have yet to try a recipe from this book that does not meet up with my expectations. There are no photographs in this book, This however does not take away any of the magic of this book, Organized by type of food (i.e turnip-where there are 3 or more recipes, etc), you can find recipes for almost anything. I have found that often in cookbooks with illustrations/photographs, one tends to ignore the recipes that do not have photographs, in that sense this book is better, because you don't get distracted by a pretty picture.
It is a book that is meant to be used as a cook book, NOT a coffee table book like The French Laundry Cookbook, Recipes from a 3 Star Chef Limited Edition or The Big Fat Duck Cookbook (although all 3 fantastic) tend to be.
Highly recommendable

It is a complete cookery course
As the other review suggests, this is like Delia smiths complete cookery course, but the difference is it's from possibly one of or the best chef in the world. (yes yes ferran Adria but thats on another level of strange and wackiness). There are around 800 recipes and the chapters are seperated into ingredients. There are no photograpghs, but this to me doen't matter as the recipes presented aren't ones which need a photograpgh so you know what it should look like. Because of their simplicity and how the recipe intructions are precise. The food in question may be the basics, but it is the best the basics can get. There are a few slightly more complicated recipes and a few extravagant ones invovlving truffles and foie gras - about 10 out of the 800. An excellant book to purchase. 5 stars. All Delicious.