Some of Britain’s top chefs, food producers, food writers, critics, publishers and restauranteurs recently met to celebrate the no 1 cookbook of all time as voted by industry insiders. The event was organised at Quo Vadis in London, Soho to pay tribute to Fergus Henderson, whose book – Nose to Tail Eating (published by Bloomsbury) was voted as the most valued and influential cookbook ever.
You can browse all the results of those who voted as well as the choice of Food and Wine Gazette on the following link.
A delighted Fergus Henderson said on the occasion that he was touched to find that a book written ten years ago is still read, used and enjoyed.
Henderson is an English chef who founded the famous St John restaurant on St John Street London. He is often noted for his use of offal and other unpopular cuts of meat. He is most famous for his nose to tail eating philosophy. He trained as an architect and has had no training in cooking or cooked under any other chef.
1000 Cookbooks founder Matthew Cockerill presented the chef with a specially cast sculpture of a piglet head created by Sally Arnup.
Mr Cockerill said: “It’s been interesting asking people about their top 10 books. Some are popular with chefs, some with food writers, but the great thing about Nose to Tail Eating is that everyone loves it. If you care about food, about being true to your ingredients and finding the unsung hero of the dish, then that’s what it’s all about. It’s beautifully written and is utterly the right choice as our number one book.”
The 1000 Cookbooks list has been curated to allow users to discover the world’s best cookbooks and explore the web of connections between the books and the experts who have recommended them.
The platform, which has been called Spotify for food, will offer subscribers comprehensive access to recipes from the top 1000 books and much more, including the finest food content and a ranking of the world’s best cookbooks as judged by a panel of leading chefs and food experts.
Food writer Tom Parker-Bowles said: “1000 cookbooks is an idea of pure unfettered genius. Ask the food world to pick their favourites, then pull it all together to create a list of the culinary greats. Better still, Nose to Tail Eating comes out top. There is justice in the world. The only difficulty is taking one’s list down to 10.” We would have to agree with Parker-Bowles on the latter point about the difficulty to taking one’s list down to 10.
1000 Cookbooks announced that it will be working with publishers, authors, agents and copyright holders to licence content from each of the books listed to create the world’s first smart foodie platform. Users will be able to access tried-and-tested recipes for everything from the humble omelette through to the most complicated, multi-component dishes.
The team has revealed a website that allows users to view the top 50 cookbooks and see the recommendations they have received from top food professionals. Users can also explore the top 10 lists of each contributor and get a preview of the full top 1000 list, which will be available as an app later this year.
THE 1000 COOKBOOKS TOP 10
- Nose to Tail Eating by Fergus Henderson
- Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Julia Child
- The French Laundry Cookbook by Thomas Keller
- White Heat by Marco Pierre White
- Larousse Gastronomique by Prosper Montagné
- Roast Chicken & Other Stories by Simon Hopkinson and Lindsey Bareham
- French Provincial Cooking by Elizabeth David
- The Zuni Café Cookbook by Judy Rodgers
- The Joy of Cooking by Irma Rombauer and Marion Rombauer Becker
- Thai Food by David Thompson
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