Michael Field's Cooking School

The basic principles of fine cookery are set forth in these detailed recipes for both simple and intricate classic dishes

His untimely death in 1972 has kept Michael Field from maintaining the rightful place he once occupied beside James Beard, Craig Claiborne, and Julia Child in the 1960s and 1970s, teaching Americans about the preparation of real, good food. During that time, he taught, wrote, and was general editor of the landmark Time-Life Foods of the World cookbook series, for which he also wrote several volumes.

Michael Field's Cooking School was his first book. Written in 1965, it was reissued in 1998 as part of the Cook's Classic Library. Meticulously detailed instructions for every page make this a manual for technique. Its instructions are every bit as comprehensive as those in other classics of its time, like Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking. Field, however, includes recipes for dishes such as American Fried Chicken with Cream Gravy, Broiled Leg of Lamb with Avgolemono Sauce, Pesto Genovese, and Risotto Milanese.

One reason for Field's stature is his expertise. The other is the lucid and enjoyable way he shares it. His methods are reassuringly precise but not didactic, and his words are deliciously flowing and lightly literary.