On Food and Cooking

On Food and Cooking is substantially longer
than the first. I’ve expanded the text by two
thirds in order to cover a broader range of
ingredients and preparations, and to explore
them in greater depth. To make room for new
information about foods, I’ve dropped the
separate chapters on human physiology,
nutrition, and additives. Of the few sections
that survive in similar form from the first
edition, practically all have been rewritten to
reflect fresh information, or my own fresh
understanding.
This edition gives new emphasis to two
particular aspects of food. The first is the
diversity of ingredients and the ways in which
they’re prepared. These days the easy
movement of products and people makes it
possible for us to taste foods from all over the
world. And traveling back in time through old
cookbooks can turn up forgotten but
intriguing ideas. I’ve tried throughout to give
at least a brief indication of the range of