The Good Cook

Simon Hopkinson loves food and he knows how to cook it. The Good Cook is the result of over 40 years' experience and is based on Simon's belief that a good cook loves eating as much as cooking.

How the ingredients you choose and the way you cook them will turn a good recipe into a great dish. That a cheap cut of meat cooked with care can taste as nice as a choice cut prepared by indifferent hands.

Structured around Simon's passion for good ingredients (Anchovy and Aubergine, Cheese and Wine, Smoked and Salted Fish, Ham, Bacon and A Little Pig) and written with Simon's trademark perfectionism and precision, this is a book that you will cherish for life.

Born in Bury, Lancashire, SIMON HOPKINSON left school at 17 to begin a career as a chef. He opened his first restaurant, the Shed, near Fishguard, just before his 21st birthday. In 1983 he launched himself on the London restaurant scene, becoming chef at Hilaire in the Old Brompton Road. He swiftly found himself one of the most acclaimed young chefs in the business and his friendship with Terence Conran led to the opening of Bibendum in the restored Michelin building in 1987. He retired as a full-time chef in 1995 to concentrate more on writing. As well as Roast Chicken and Other Stories and Second Helpings of Roast Chicken, his books include Gammon & Spinach, The Prawn Cocktail Years (written jointly with Lindsey Bareham), Week In, Week Out and The Vegetarian Option. His critically acclaimed cookery writing has won him the André Simon award, and the Glenfiddich Award three times.