The flavor bible
by Karen Page · first published 2008
75% recommend25% neutral
Why HN recommends it
Reference that works like an index of ingredient pairings: look up one ingredient and see what goes well with it. Useful for improvising with what is in the fridge
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
Winner of the 2009 James Beard Book Award for Best Book: Reference and Scholarship Great cooking goes beyond following a recipe--it's knowing how to season ingredients to coax the greatest possible flavor from them. Drawing on dozens of leading chefs' combined experience in top restaurants across the country, Karen Page and Andrew Dornenburg present the definitive guide to creating "deliciousness" in any dish. Thousands of ingredient entries, organized alphabetically and cross-referenced, provide a treasure trove of spectacular flavor combinations. Readers will learn to work
Affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Mentions per year
What Hacker News says
Related books
2012–2023The Way to Cook
Julia Child
Recommended by 3 · mentioned by 33 recommend · 3 mention3 recommend · 33 recommend
2013–2023The Professional Chef
Culinary Institute of America., Elizabeth Riely, Steven Kolpan, Linda Blocker
Recommended by 8 · mentioned by 118 recommend · 11 mention8 recommend · 118 recommend
2012–2022Twenty
Michael Ruhlman
Recommended by 9 · mentioned by 109 recommend · 10 mention9 recommend · 109 recommend
2015–2023The science of good cooking
Guy Crosby
Recommended by 5 · mentioned by 65 recommend · 6 mention5 recommend · 65 recommend
2009–2026Ratio
Michael Ruhlman
Recommended by 18 · mentioned by 2218 recommend · 22 mention18 recommend · 2218 recommend
2017–2024La technique
Jacques Pépin
Recommended by 11 · mentioned by 1211 recommend · 12 mention11 recommend · 1211 recommend
2009–2026On food and cooking
Harold McGee
Recommended by 67 · mentioned by 9167 recommend · 91 mention67 recommend · 9167 recommend
2017–2025Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat
Samin Nosrat
Recommended by 53 · mentioned by 6953 recommend · 69 mention53 recommend · 6953 recommend
This is a bit off topic, but have you ever seen this book? It's an amazing dictionary of food pairings: http://www.amazon.com/Flavor-Bible-Essential-Creativity-Imag...
on “Show HN: Find the best recipe for any two foods, based on over 600k recipes” ↗…on them, burn them, use them with wet hands, set stuff down on them, and they don't turn off. I have a couple of cookbooks with simple, staple recipes that I use for reference, but I've also found The Flavor Bible(1) to be incredibly useful—it basically works as a big index of ingredient affinities, so you can look up flavors that go well together for a huge variety of ingredients. I keep my kitchen stocked with…
on “Ask HN: Hackers who cook” ↗For flavor pairings for your kitchen bookshelf I highly recommend: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4443485-the-flavor-bible
on “Show HN: Search for ingredients to pair with other ingredients” ↗The Flavor Bible is an excellent book for pairing foods. They also have a vegetarian version.
on “‘I’d rather eat an actual burger’: plant-based meat’s sizzle fizzled in the US” ↗…recommend On Food and Cooking, The Way to Cook and The Joy of Cooking, The Professional Chef, Essentials of Italian Cooking, Ratio, Food Lab. If you're looking for a reference on combining flavors see The Flavor Bible [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Modernist_Cuisine
on “Ask HN: How do you learn (not copy/paste) cooking?” ↗Sounds like The Flavor Bible - it's a great reference book to find pairings of ingredients.
on “All of human cooking compressed into 2 megabytes” ↗> Sounds like The Flavor Bible - it's a great reference book to find pairings of ingredients. I think fpshero says exactly that (https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48294459): > I have a wonderful book that explores this idea of…
on “All of human cooking compressed into 2 megabytes” ↗…myself, happy at my table and via gifts of food. In terms of books, the biggest difference-makers have been 'The Way to Cook', Julia Child, 'The French Laundry Cookbook', Thomas Keller, et al, and 'The Flavor Bible', Page and Dornenburg.
on “Ask HN: What things have richly rewarded the time invested in mastering them?” ↗I read "The Flavor Bible" and was inspired to make an app that adapted its ingredient recommendations as you built your recipe. The result is my app for android/iphone. The iphone link is below(made it free for today) and the…
on “Show HN: My Food Pairings Mobile App” ↗Ruhlman's Twenty is a great first cooking book. Heartily seconded. I'd get "Ratio", and the Kindle version of "The Flavor Bible", to accompany it. That'll set you up for a lifetime of cooking without ever looking up a recipe again. (Keller's books are all Ruhlman's writing, right?)
on “Rice Cooker Hacks - The Ebert Way” ↗…Cooking is AMAZING. McGee used to live in Palo Alto too. I just bought the Thomas Keller Sous Vide book. I'll probably buy the myrhvold book too. You know what I've found terribly useful lately? The Flavor Bible. On the other hand, somebody got me the recent Herve This book on molecular gastronomy and didn't really get much out of it.
on “Nathan Myhrvold unveils massive cookbook for science geeks” ↗…home cook, Essentials Of Cooking, The Elements Of Cooking, or How To Cook Everything: The Basics, are all excellent too. I couldn't decide which was the best, so I listed them all! For Flavours: The Flavor Bible gives an easy way to look up an ingredient, and see what else would go well with it. Great for creating your own dishes! The Flavor Thesaurus gives in-depth information about combinations of ingredients,…
on “Ask HN: What are the best textbooks in your field of expertise?” ↗…Cooking School book as we speak. I'm currently trying to teach the bf how to cook and this seems like the perfect tool to go through. Another recommendation I'd make for improvisational cooks/bakers is The Flavor Bible. It's great for "what do I do with these random ingredients in the fridge"?
on “Baking with the Bread Whisperers of Paris” ↗…much less a translated one) [Technique] La Technique [OR/AND] New Complete Techniques - Jacques Pepin [Why ___?] On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen - Harlod McGee [Pairing] The Flavor Bible - Andrew Dornenburg ---[Japanese]---: Japanese Cooking: A Simple Art Sushi: Jiro Gastronomy *[Next 3 are "maybes", haven't had time to read/research them fully.] Ivan Orkin (Chef focused on Ramen)…
on “Cooking for Founders” ↗…mediocre food. A biology class would be useful for an artist, but if you're learning to draw, take a life drawing class. Taking biology first won't help. Once you are comfortable with Ratio, grab the Flavor Bible for reference. It's a huge paper database of flavor affinities. After getting comfortable with the art of cooking, read McGee. It's well-written enough to read straight through but dense enough to use…
on “Show HN: Parsnip – Duolingo for Cooking” ↗