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Mala Beads & Meditation | Home » » The Frugal Gourmet Cooks Three Ancient Cuisines: China, Greece, and Rome | | | | | | | Description: | | Having tackled cooking with wine ( The Frugal Gourmet Cooks with Wine ) and American food ( The Frugal Gourmet Cooks American ), TV chef and Methodist minister Smith now cheerfully brings ancient Chinese, Greek and Roman cookery down to earth. Much of his Herculean effort, however, turns up fare that appears relatively modern. And though the "Frug" enthusiastically talks history ("Caligula and Cleopatra used to drink expensive pearls crushed and dissolved in vinegar"), his view is unfailingly vernacular ("Those Romans must have had wild dinner parties!"). Characteristically, Smith goes out of his way to make food accessible, sometimes too much so: crushed potato chips garnish a Chinese fish salad, and MSG is an optional ingredient in many Hong Kong dishes. Unusual ingredients, cooking terms and techniques are ably covered, and the recipes themselves make entertaining reading, rollicking with such Smithisms as "cut a chicken wing into 3 logical pieces" and "the end result will just blow your socks off!" But cooking instructions can be sketchy: in a chicken stock recipe, straining and defatting techniques go unmentioned. Illustrations not seen by PW. First serial to Redbook; BOMC HomeStyle and Better Homes & Gardens Book Club main selections.
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc. | | | Product Details: | | | Author:
| Jeff Smith | | Hardcover:
| 525 pages | | Publisher:
| William Morrow & Company | | Publication Date:
| 1989-08 | | Language:
| English | | ISBN:
| 0688075894 | | Package Length:
| 9.2 inches | | Package Width:
| 5.9 inches | | Package Height:
| 1.6 inches | | Package Weight:
| 2.1 pounds | | Average Customer Rating:
|  based on 7 reviews |
| | | | Customer Reviews: | |
Average Customer Review:
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4 of 4 found the following review helpful:
"FRUGS" BEST COOK BOOK! May 29, 2008
This is an excellent cook book! It's full of great recipes and stories by a very talented cook and writer. This one focuses on 3 major influences in the culinary world. Jeff Smith entertained us for years on his PBS program 'The Frugal Gourmet'. Not only did he teach us many savory dishes, he also educated us. Not satisfied with just cooking delicious meals for his viewers, he would give detailed history lessons about the origins of the dish and made it all a lot of fun!
This may be Mr. Smiths best cook book and it is a worthy edition to everyone's cook book library. I own and have read many, if not all of his cook books, not only for the man's knowledge of cooking, but his incredible wit! This guy was funny and I would have loved to have hung out and throw a few beers down with him.
Unfortunately, this man had some very seriously bad press released about his personal life and well..... I am not one to spread rumors.....he seemed like a great guy and sadly he died before he was able to clear his name.
R.I.P. Frugs!
13 of 13 found the following review helpful:
Going to the Past to Get to the PresentMay 19, 2008
With his very thorough research, Jeff Smith shared his studies and his knowledge very generously to readers.
This is a very fascinating book.It is not a recipe book, not a history book, not a travel book and not a book on his thoughts about cooking, it is all four elements presented in a well illustrated and well organized book.
His writing and quips brought me many smiles and giggles, so it is also entertaining as well as being a study into the cooking histories of China, Rome and Greece.
I read many books and usually donate most to second hand stores.I don't have lots of space for keeping things.Some of my books,I had to pay for in installments because they were rare and expensive.
This one will stay with me.It costed me only fifty cents and bought me a wealth of information.
I'll share a bit of information, to the Chinese cooking "is not a part of living,it is living".Greeks were instrumental in developing the frying pan.The very early Romans lived primarily on grains.
If you like cooking, history, and memoirs, you'll adore this wonderful book by Jeff Smith and I recommend it highly.
3 of 3 found the following review helpful:
Cooking with HistoryOct 24, 2007
I never though I'd read a cookbook, but Jeff Smith is such an engaging personality that I was almost left wanting more prose and less recipes! If you like cooking and you like history, this book will deliver on both counts.
4 of 5 found the following review helpful:
 Fine Collection and Commentary on Cuisine InfluencesJan 24, 2002
Taking Chineese, Greek and Roman cooking influences, Smith ofTV fame brings forth an offering which resembles the James Beard books which provide not only great recipes but a running commentary on the culture which produces the food and some experience remembrances by the author.This is fun cooking and well done. Well representative of the cuisines and done with helpful hints on each. A workhorse for the cook willing to use it to branch out and experiement in these formative areas of food history. For openers, try Spareribs with Black Beans and Pepper Sauce, Halvah Cake or the Seafood Risotto. My humble opinion is that Roman cooking is slighted out of the three. See Malto Mario for some great Rome recipes.
6 of 6 found the following review helpful:
My favorite Frugal Gourmet CookbookOct 02, 2001
This book by Jeff Smith has to be my favorite one that he has written. This book focuses on recipes from China, Greece, and Rome. The recies in this book are flavorful, and very enjoyable. My favorite recipe in here is strangely enough Garlic, Eggs, and Pasta. There is a wide range in recipes, both in flavors and ingredients. Jeff Smith does an excellent job of paring history as well as anecdotes with all of his recipes. This should be a must add for anyone who enjoys historical cooking.
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