Food Rules by Michael Pollan
Books are great. If I was a tree, I would happily sacrifice myself to become a good book. Here are four that we really love!
1. Food Rules by Michael Pollan
Great, simple short book with practical advice on eating healthy. The gist of the book can be summed up in “Eat food, mostly plants, not too much.”
2. The End of Overeating by David Kessler
This was a real eye-opener for us. The book examines how the food industry has systematically determined the optimal level of salt, sugar and fat that should be in a food to maximize it’s addictive potential. David Kessler’s the guy who as attorney general went after the tobacco industry for it’s attempts to addict us all on cigarettes, and he astutely realized that the food industry was doing the same with salt, fat and sugar. The chapter on how Cinnabon was conceived is especially eye-opening.
This is my go-to book when I’m looking for a Korean recipe and I can’t get my mom on the phone. It has recipes from some of the best Korean restaurants in L.A., which is a great way to put together a Korean cookbook. I’m pretty sure that most of the restaurants decided not to disclose all of their secret techniques and secret ingredients, but you’ll still end up with stellar results relying on the recipes in this book. Learning how to make Korean food from a Korean can be difficult because they rarely use exact measurements, but the recipes in this book are all nailed down to good ol cups and tablespoons.
4. Japanese Cooking: A Simple Art
Not a traditional cookbook per se, but a wonderful read with a ton of illustrations that teach proper techniques for cutting fish and other Japanese cooking techniques. It also features some really beautiful writing, and if you’re a dedicated foodie you could read it cover to cover just for the pure joy of receiving such amazing insight into one of the healthiest food cultures in the world.
Honorable Mention: I’m With Fatty by Edward Ugel
Not so much a food book or a cookbook as much as it is a chronicle of a guy trying to lose weight, but as someone who has an undying love of fast food, fried chicken and all foods made wonderful by deep-frying, I loved reading this book. Ed Ugel mixes equal parts humor and honesty in his journey to lose fifty pounds, and the result is a joy to read that will have you laughing out loud.
What are some of your favorite food-related books?
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