Contents
Copyright 2016 by the Editors at Americas Test Kitchen
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any manner whatsoever without written permission from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.
AMERICAS TEST KITCHEN
17 Station Street, Brookline, MA 02445
Ebook ISBN9781945256097
Pictured on front cover:
Cover Photography: Keller + Keller
Food Styling: Catrine Kelty
Chief Executive Officer: David Nussbaum
Chief Creative Officer: Jack Bishop
Editorial Director: John Willoughby
Executive Managing Editor: Todd Meier
Managing Editor, Special Issues: Megan Ginsberg
Copy Editor: Cheryl Redmond
Assistant Editor, Special Issues: Amanda Minoff
Editorial Assistant, Special Issues: Nina Denison
Director, Creative Operations: Alice Carpenter
Design Director: Greg Galvan
Photography Director: Julie Cote
Art Director, Special Issues: Jay Layman
Senior Staff Photographer: Daniel J. van Ackere
Staff Photographer: Steve Klise
Photography: Carl Tremblay and Joe Keller
Assistant Photography Producer: Mary Ball
Styling: Catrine Kelty, Marie Piraino
Senior Editor, Photo Team: Chris OConnor
Test Cooks, Photo Team: Daniel Cellucci, Matthew Fairman
Assistant Test Cook, Photo Team: Mady Nichas
Production Director: Guy Rochford
Imaging Manager: Lauren Robbins
Production & Imaging Specialists: Heather Dube, Sean MacDonald, Dennis Noble, Jessica Voas
v4.1
Welcome to Americas Test Kitchen
This book has been written, tested, and edited by the folks at Americas Test Kitchen, a very real 2,500-square-foot kitchen located just outside Boston. It is the home of Cooks Illustrated magazine and Cooks Country magazine and is the Monday-through-Friday destination of more than 60 test cooks, editors, and cookware specialists. Our mission is to test recipes over and over again until we understand how and why they work and until we arrive at the best version.
We start the process of testing a recipe with a complete lack of preconceptions, which means that we accept no claim, no technique, and no recipe at face value. We simply assemble as many variations as possible, test a half-dozen of the most promising, and taste the results blind. We then construct our own recipe and continue to test it, varying ingredients, techniques, and cooking times until we reach a consensus. As we like to say in the test kitchen, We make the mistakes so you dont have to. The result, we hope, is the best version of a particular recipe, but we realize that only you can be the final judge of our success (or failure). We use the same rigorous approach when we test equipment and taste ingredients.
All of this would not be possible without a belief that good cooking, much like good music, is based on a foundation of objective technique. Some people like spicy foods and others dont, but there is a right way to saut, there is a best way to cook a pot roast, and there are measurable scientific principles involved in producing perfectly beaten, stable egg whites. Our ultimate goal is to investigate the fundamental principles of cooking to give you the techniques, tools, and ingredients you need to become a better cook. It is as simple as that.
To see what goes on behind the scenes at Americas Test Kitchen, check out our social media channels for kitchen snapshots, exclusive content, video tips, and much more. You can watch us work (in our actual test kitchen) by tuning in to Americas Test Kitchen or Cooks Country from Americas Test Kitchen on public television or on our websites. Listen in to Americas Test Kitchen Radio (ATKradio.com) on public radio to hear insights that illuminate the truth about real home cooking. Want to hone your cooking skills or finally learn how to bakewith an Americas Test Kitchen test cook? Enroll in one of our online cooking classes. If the big questions about the hows and whys of food science are your passion, join our Cooks Science experts for a deep dive. However you choose to visit us, we welcome you into our kitchen, where you can stand by our side as we test our way to the best recipes in America.
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