Wishlist of Books

Just the other day, JoshuaHappyJumpers was asking me to recommend some cookbooks/recipe books for him... That brings me to the subject of cookbooks, (my personal, unsubstantiated opinion):

Basic steps:
Firstly, identify how much you know about cooking and what you know how to cook.

Then decide between Category Cuisine or Category Technique/Science, (IMHO, are the two major types of cookbooks out there)

A. Cuisine - what are you used to cooking compared to what you want to learn (eg. a French-themed dinner, Thai, Italian, Chinese etc).

• Once you've chosen the Cuisine books, it's easier to narrow down your choices, as books go by Cuisine, Main ingredients, Specific diets, Courses (eg. Breads, desserts) and other easy to identify.
• When you flip through a book, I find it's most important to not get carried away by the pictures, but instead, read the recipes through carefully! I know, even skimming through might seem enough, after all, it's "just cooking food", but this stands between you and the possibility of having a coffee-table book instead of something useful.
• Identify the INGREDIENTS needed. Some of those are seasonal, not available, not available in the required quality/conditions, way too costly for your budget and are maybe so exotic that your intended audience might be a bit wary of trying.
• Identify the METHODS used. Some require equipment/utensils/tools that you may not have. It's not really motivational to slave over a lovely milk chocolate and rum mousse, and learning that you do not have dariole moulds to serve them in, and end up serving it with an ice cream scoop, and everyone at the table exclaiming what nice icecream it is. (Trust me. I went through this recently.)
• Once you have done the above, do check out the elements in the recipes. I find it helpful to research a little about the cuisines so you don't end up with a Pad Thai that resembles a Char Koay Teow on your Sawadee-themed night. Some are inspired (read: fusion) and some are authentic. How to differentiate them? Research and patience to sift through the books available. 

Just keep this in mind - if you're going to spend money on a book which will catapult you to fond memories (and fame) in your guest's minds and stomachs, take a little bit of time to sift through all the grit and ash. It'll pay off!

B. Technique - If you've decided that you do not want to learn a set list full of recipes (which I believe you can get off the Web for free, at reputable sites, of course) and you want to delve deeper into the "How"s and "Why"s.

• Again, as above, you need to narrow it down. Maybe start with something easy for your level of knowledge and experience. Perhaps, you'd like to learn more about bread-making techniques, then buy a book on techniques for that. Or, how to grill meats.
• Also, reconsider the equipment you have at home, when attempting to learn techniques. Unless you have a kitchen, free for your usage, that's fully equipped with everything any chef could ever ask for, which by all means, be my guest. Or rather *thinking* could I be yours? :)
• As the above states, figure out if you have necessary facilities to have a hands-on learning experience. Eg. it requires nitrogen, dehydrators, smokehouse,vacuum-packing machines, reverse griddle so on so forth.

Having mentioned all that, *yawn*, I'd like to put up a list. No.. no.. not hinting. Just keeping track of the books I want to get... 

1. On Food and Cooking : The Science and Lore of the Kitchen, by Harold McGee
2. Ratio : The Simple Codes Behind the Craft of Everyday Cooking, by M.Ruhlman
3. The Elements of Cooking : Translating the Chef's Craft for Every Kitchen, by M.Ruhlman and A.Bourdain
4. And the celeb list of course: Ad Hoc at Home,by Thomas Keller
5. Bouchon, by Thomas Keller
6. Alinea, by Grant Achatz 
7. Pierre Gagnaire : Reinventing French Cuisine 
8. Simple to Spectacular : How to Take One Basic Recipe to Four Levels of Sophistication, by J.V.Vongerichten and M.Bittman
9. What to Drink with What You Eat : The Definitive Guide to Pairing Food with Wine, Beer, Sake, Spirits, Coffee, Tea-- Even Water, by A.Dornenburg and K.Page

So, that's my list... after long years of waiting, wanting and waning. :) Hope this helps!

Cheers!
*scampers off for a nap*