Cook Like a Chef: Techniques, Tips, and Secrets from the Professional Kitchen to Yours

Steve Pitt is a Toronto-based freelance writer and an award-winning journalist. He has written many young adult and children's books, including Day of the Flying Fox: The True Story of World War II Pilot Charley Fox.

This book is based on the highly successful Food Channel television show
of the same name. Although the title sounds intimidating, in his
introduction Knight insists that the aim of his book is to “remind our
audience just how easy cooking is.”

The opening chapter, “The Basics,” discusses how to create the many
foundation ingredients a cook needs to make spectacular dishes. Knight
also lists “Ten Very Opinionated Tips for Good Kitchenology,” which
range from “Don’t be afraid to screw up—it’s not a contest” to
“There is no such thing as a good bottle of wine under ten bucks.”
The chapter finishes with photos and short bios of eight chefs who have
appeared as hosts on the television show.

The rest of the text features the recipes. In the chapter “Soup,”
you’ll find Chilled Lemon Grass and Coriander Vichyssoise, as well as
Saffron Mussel Bisque. In “Salad,” there are recipes for Grilled
Pear Salad with Port Vinaigrette and for Lobster Salad Napoleon with
Pappadums. “Poultry” includes Southern BBQ Chicken, Turkey Mole, and
Stovetop Coq Au Vin. For pork lovers, there are recipes for Lavender and
Rosemary Pork Tenderloin, Pork Braised in Milk, and Szechuan Pork Ribs.
Game meat fans can choose from Confit of Duck, Roasted Pheasant in
Creamed Port Gravy, and Drambuie Duck. Lamb enthusiasts can try Crown
Roast of Lamb with Mustard Rub and Tangy Braised Lamb Shanks. Gorgeous
full-colour photographs accompany every recipe.

Throughout the book Knight makes hilarious comments about chefs, home
cooks, and himself, although he occasionally serves up weird fusion
metaphors like “viewers demand their tv chefs hit a homer out of the
gate,” which conjures up images of a bat-wielding chef in racing
silks. While taping his show, Knight says, the biggest challenge was
“reconciling our enthusiasm for all things exotic and culinary-groovy
with the discipline of making the show accessible to everyone.” With
his book, he has succeeded very well.