The Best Meat Cookbooks
I'm sorry I don't know where this should be posted, but here it goes. I need a cookbook for just meats. I mainly cook beef and pork for my husband. Please help! My husband is now running to the fast food chains once he hears I'm making steak or pork chops. I'm attempting to make a cross rib chuck roast and I marinated it last night and hoping to cook it tonight or tomorrow. Please hurry with your recommendations. Thanks
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There are a number of good meat cookbooks around, including books by Chris Schlesinger, Merle Evans, the Lobels and more. But I agree, there are a lot of variables that my mother didn't seem to face. Basically, she just stuck it in the oven and jumped back.
Check your library for possibilities.
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I have tons of cookbooks but when it comes to good basic technics, I generally refer back to the cooking techniques in my timelife books, and cooking with meat is no exception. I believe there are still some sites where you can get these books, if you are still interested.
The link below is a good illustration:
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re: rinkatink888
Thank you all for your helpful tips and recommendations. It's funny, I have close to 75 cookbooks and most of them are on baking and I don't eat very much meat. My husband on the other hand, is a total carnivore and it's challenging for me to cook meat the way he likes it. He likes flavorful, juicy meat cooked to medium. I always manage to overcook it. So I need a cookbook that will show me how to purchase the right cuts of meat and to how to cook it properly. Maybe I need a new pan, too. Thanks again Chowhounders!
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re: foreverhungry
This is just what I was going to suggest. It actually made me change the way I eat meat ethically.
James Peterson's new book is also a good basic book with photographs outlining various cuts, etc. I do not own it but have flipped through it. Especially good for a less experienced cook I would say.
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If you need something right away for the roast you have, look at this old Chowhound thread: http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/284088 . The instructions Jim H posts on that thread to cook this kind of roast low and slow for several hours are really helpful. I think marinating it for 2 full days as he directs will help a lot, too. I think you HAVE to have a meat thermometer to pull off this kind of roast successfully. There are just too many variables to be able to just follow a recipe's timing and have it come out right.
For a general meat cookbook, I think "How to Cook Meat", by Christopher Schlesinger and John Willoughby is a good place to start, especially to learn about beef cookery. There's a totally unrelated website by the same name that is pretty helpful, too: http://www.howtocookmeat.com/ . It will give you clear, step-by-step instructions on how to broil, bake, braise or pan-roast many types of meat.
I'm a relatively new meat cooker too, and the most helpful tips for me, besides to get a meat thermometer, have been: to let meat come up to room temperature before cooking (this might take a couple of hours for a large cut like your roast); to pat meat dry before searing or roasting; to only cook meat to about 10 degrees below the temps they list on most "doneness" charts because the meat will continue to cook while resting; and to ALWAYS let the meat rest after cooking before cutting into it.
Good luck.
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re: ninrn
I looked at the old post that you suggested and I will follow Jim H's cooking tip. It looks quite easy. My only concern is what kind of meat thermometer should I use? I have a standard dial one. Is there a better option? Thank you for your tips. I'm going to add another cookbook to my list.
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Robert Lauriston
Jan 8, 2013 12:53 PM
Julia Child's How To Cook has good tips on meat. So does Joy of Cooking.
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Michael Symon's Carnivore is a great choice: http://www.amazon.com/Michael-Symons-...
Also check out the store Omnivore in Noe Valley at Church and Caesar Chavez. They have an incredible selection and are really really helpful.
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