Think you aren't a good cook? Or you aren't a cook at all, and the thought of learning is far too daunting, so you stay right out of the kitchen? Alice Zaslavsky wants to reassure you that if you like eating, you can cook.
The energetic writer, food educator, radio and TV host says anyone can cook - and better still, enjoy it.
"I’m here to tell you that you are already a better cook than you think you are," she writes in her brand new book, The Joy of Better Cooking. "If you’ve ever found yourself thinking about dinner over breakfast, if bringing pleasure and nourishment to the people in your orbit gives you a glow, heck — if you already enjoy the eating part, you can find the fun in getting the food to the table, too."
The Joy of Better Cooking - which follows her enormously successful 2020 book, In Praise of Veg - sets out to help all kinds of cooks and would-be cooks let go of the 'should' and 'must' and 'not good enough' that can stand in the way of enjoying the preparation and sharing of food.
The book is stuffed with helpful tips. Every recipe has extras that will help make your cooking easier or better. There are substitution suggestions, including tips on many recipes for making things vegan or gluten-free; shortcuts and longcuts (for those who, say, want to make their own pastries, curry pastes and the like); and 'waste knot' ideas - what to do with the bits that usually end up being binned. (This may make a recipe look long, but remember, you can ignore all of the extras and just give the basic recipe a go. It will all be there when you come back to try a recipe again.)
Zaslavsky's message is very much to do what feels right for YOU.
"Forget about cooking for someone else’s tastes or expectations. I’ve tried doing that in the past, and would strongly not recommend it. Why? Because fear lives here, and the paralysis of choice. Oh, and doubt, of course, about what it is you should be doing, and whether you’re good enough."
You absolutely are good enough, she says, wherever you are on the cooking skill spectrum.
The new book aims to make it easy for everyone to find more joy in the kitchen. The eclectic range of recipes (from old-school-with a twist, like devilled egg sandwiches and Lady Marmalade melting moments, to salads, curries, bakes and more full of international flavours) is organised into five chapters: 'Slapdash - bits and bobs tossed together' - which is a reassuring idea for any new cooks; 'On autopilot'; 'Making the most of it - gluts, windfalls & leftover makeovers'; 'Loosen your shoulders'; and 'Seriously good sweeties'.
The Joy of Better Cooking serves up some wickedly good melting moments. Source: Murdoch Books
It's food for today's cooks, she says - veg-forward, adaptable, low-impact on the environment, high return for a lower level of effort and stress. And good to share, too.
"The best part about cooking, and about food in general, is the connection and sharing it encourages. Connecting people with ideas and concepts, with each other, with their community, and their culture. The sharing we’re privy to over a meal, and the sharing of recipes — old scrapbooks, laminated newspaper clippings, a link flicked over on the phone or in an email."
Here's a taste of what's in the book:
You know those ads for tacos where the little girl says, ‘Why not have both?’ Well, I am that girl, asking, if you’re deciding between making hummus or babaghanoush, why NOT have both? In this mash-up of the two, the chickpeas help make the baba even smoother and creamier, while the eggplant makes the hummus infinitely more interesting. And the pickled cauliflower florets just cap it all off — like chewed-up bits of purple Hubba Bubba bubble gum. On toast with avocado, as a ‘purée’ with Middle Eastern mains, or straight from the fridge, this dip is just hubba-hubba.
Source: Murdoch Books / Ben Dearnley
You can use this tempura batter for any of the bougie brassicas, or just your usual suspects such as regular cauli or broccoli (with the florets split in half lengthways to help accelerate the cook), as well as tofu, mushrooms or even seafood, if you’re so inclined. You’ll notice I’ve popped some tomato paste in the chilli oil, which may seem wild at first glance, but once you try it with this decidedly inauthentic umami-rich addition, you won’t go back. For best effect, make the chilli oil at least the night before.
Source: Murdoch Books / Ben Dearnley
Cold noodles, crispy rice paper wrappers – toss these textures on their heads with a bit of kitchen science. Shocking the noodles in boiling water keeps their texture to it, not slimy while frying the rice paper wrappers sizzles the starch, curling and crisping them into puffy crackers. I usually fry a batch of these whenever I deep-fry, because they make such an easy accompaniment… that’s if they ever make it to the table. The great thing about both these ingredients is that once you’ve bought a pack, they can sit in your pantry forever.
Source: Murdoch Books / Ben Dearnley
You know that version of the song ‘Lady Marmalade’, where Christina Aguilera pumps out that EPIC note as she begins her verse? What a MOMENT, right!? That’s what these melting moments remind me of. The slightly bitter tang of the marmalade in the buttercream is enough to splice through the richness of the biscuit and filling, and as it melts on your tongue, you’ll find yourself having a moment, too. I’ve adopted the custard powder of the classically Aussie yo-yo biscuit, because I like the colour and flavour it provides. Most melting moments recipes use cornflour (cornstarch) — either of these additions stops the flour and fat from binding too tightly, which means the biscuit will, quite literally, melt in your mouth.
This is an edited extract from The Joy of Better Cooking by Alice Zaslavsky, photography by Ben Dearnley Murdoch Books RRP $49.99).
Source: Murdoch Books / Ben Dearnley
