Cookery books tell fibs!

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Wyshiepoo

Senior Cook
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Right.

I made Chicken and Lemon Casserole today, and not for the first time my results did not look anything like the picture in the book.

I'm not the best cook but I can follow a set of instructions, the sauce in the recipe book was almost pure white while mine was a pale brown. I really don't see how by following the recipe you can end up with a white sauce.

Some cook books also state that all recipes are tried and tested but I also wonder about that from time to time as I have often had to make modifications to make a recipe work.

Any thoughts?




Book.





Me.

 
No advice, but I think yours looks much tastier, Wyshie, IMHO.
 
Right.

I made Chicken and Lemon Casserole today, and not for the first time my results did not look anything like the picture in the book.

I'm not the best cook but I can follow a set of instructions, the sauce in the recipe book was almost pure white while mine was a pale brown. I really don't see how by following the recipe you can end up with a white sauce.

Some cook books also state that all recipes are tried and tested but I also wonder about that from time to time as I have often had to make modifications to make a recipe work.

Any thoughts?




Book.





Me.
Unfortunately, what you see isn't necessarily what you get. The photographs in cookery books and magazine articles are prepared by stylists whose first priority is appearance rather than accurate portrayal of the dish produced by the cookery writer's cooks.

Ever wondered why your pie doesn't look as neat and tidy as the one in the picture? The answer is a filling of mashed potato. Ditto the ice cream that isn't melting under the photographer's lights. Stylists use all sorts of tricks to make things look "better" for the purpose of the book.

I'd say that could be one of the reasons why yours doesn't look like the picture.


In this case the recipe calls the dish a casserole but the chicken in the photograph is clearly baked/roasted and the sauce made separately and poured over the chicken at the point of service instead of the chicken being cooked in the sauce as yours was.
 
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Well I think that is dishonest.

I also have one book called 500 recipes in 20 minutes, the recipes I've tried from there have been very good, but 20 minutes? You're having a laugh!
 
Unfortunately, what you see isn't necessarily what you get. The photographs in cookery books and magazine articles are prepared by stylists whose first priority is appearance rather than accurate portrayal of the dish produced by the cookery writer's cooks.

Ever wondered why your pie doesn't look as neat and tidy as the one in the picture? The answer is a filling of mashed potato. Ditto the ice cream that isn't melting under the photographer's lights. Stylists use all sorts of tricks to make things look "better" for the purpose of the book.

I'd say that could be one of the reasons why yours doesn't look like the picture.


In this case the recipe calls the dish a casserole but the chicken in the photograph is clearly baked/roasted and the sauce made separately and poured over the chicken at the point of service instead of the chicken being cooked in the sauce as yours was.

Absolutely +1!
 
Well I think that is dishonest.

I also have one book called 500 recipes in 20 minutes, the recipes I've tried from there have been very good, but 20 minutes? You're having a laugh!

They may be 20 minutes, not counting the prep work.;)
 
I like your topic and it reminds me that my children used to ask me if I could make "it" look like the the cookbooks show. Always tried/try.

I recall an especially funny bit that George Carlin did years ago. It was something like discussing the kind of cook his mother was and ended with him shouting with very clear enunciation, "But, does it look like the picture?!"

For years, that was the silly mantra in our house. Meant to be funny rather than critical.

Even now, some of my adult children will utter those words.
 
I had that exact same colour difference with a pork chops in mushroom herb sauce recipe. It taste wonderful, so I don't mind. I actually like the darker colour. But, I was quite surprised the first time I made it.
 
Can you post the recipe?


I can post the ingredients, but I did this as per the book so it would be an almost exact copy of the authors recipe which I think is a no no?

4 chicken joints (I used pairs of drumsticks)
salt
pepper
tbsp. thyme, lemon thyme if available.
zest and juice of one lemon
I pint (uk) chicken stock
cornflour
double cream
 
No advice, but I think yours looks much tastier, Wyshie, IMHO.


It was actually very tasty, I think lemon and chicken go together very well.


I do this absolutely gorgeous (I think anyway) chicken and lemon meatball thing with a yoghurt, mint and preserved lemon sauce.
 
You are correct. The chicken in the book's photo was clearly not cooked in a casserole. It looks baked or roasted to me. The sauce had to be prepared separately. Sauce made from the liquid the chicken cooked in would not be white like that. It would look like your sauce.

I'm curious about who wrote/published that book.
 
Hmm. If you used fond, black pepper, and colored herbs, there would be no way your sauce would be lily-white.

Just saw Andy's post.
 
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I can post the ingredients, but I did this as per the book so it would be an almost exact copy of the authors recipe which I think is a no no?

4 chicken joints (I used pairs of drumsticks)
salt
pepper
tbsp. thyme, lemon thyme if available.
zest and juice of one lemon
I pint (uk) chicken stock
cornflour
double cream


Posting the entire recipe for criticism purposes is a "fair use" under the copyright law.

So post the whole thing. The ingredients really won't explain the difference, except if chicken stock was used to make the sauce it won't be white.
 
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Posting the entire recipe for criticism purposes is a "fair use" under the copyright law.

So post the whole thing. The ingredients really won't explain the difference, except if chicken stock was used to make the sauce it won't be white.


Yes, I did wonder if a clear stock might make a difference.



Method.

Place chicken in casserole dish.

Rub salt, pepper and thyme into chicken.

add juice and zest of lemon.

Pour over chicken stock.

cook for one hour at gas 4 180C 350F

drain cooking liquid into saucepan and keep chicken hot.


Apply heat to saucepan.

Add enough cornflour to thicken liquid in saucepan.

Add cream.

Season to taste
 
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It was actually very tasty, I think lemon and chicken go together very well.


I do this absolutely gorgeous (I think anyway) chicken and lemon meatball thing with a yoghurt, mint and preserved lemon sauce.

This is the key for me. If it tastes good, I don't worry about any differences in appearance from how it looks in a photo shoot. When you see what they do to make things look more appetizing in pictures, you quickly realize that that this is not the goal you should be seeking with your cooking. Go for the flavor and let appearance fall where it may.
 
This is the key for me. If it tastes good, I don't worry about any differences in appearance from how it looks in a photo shoot. When you see what they do to make things look more appetizing in pictures, you quickly realize that that this is not the goal you should be seeking with your cooking. Go for the flavor and let appearance fall where it may.

Making foods look better than they are is often done for TV and print ads. They do things that have nothing to do with actual food.

Photos in cook books are a different story in my mind. They should be representative of what the recipe creates. Imagine a first time cook making this recipe and being upset because (s)he did something wrong.
 
Where is CWS when we need her. She does styling for a living. And she creates recipes also.

Actually your sauce looks more like reality. Your sauce looks like you got the fond from the bottom of the pan. And that is where the flavor is. So I wouldn't worry. I would rather have flavor over appearance any day.

I had a friend a number of years back. She was a food stylist. I asked her how come my steaks don't look like the pictures. She told me after the picture is taken the steak is thrown out. The grill marks are made with a product we have here called Gravy Master or Kitchen Bouquet. They use that as a paint to paint on the grill marks. Then the raw steak is painted with watered down Gravy Master to make it look like it has been done to medium rare. The next step is to smear Vaseline all over the steak to make it look juicy and that a pat of butter had melted. Next a lit cigarette or two are placed behind so it looks like it has just come off the grill.

Her advice was to ignore the pictures and look at the recipe. If you have the ingredients, it sounds like something you can make and has the flavors you enjoy, then make the dish. And enjoy all your efforts while learning a new dish. Who knows. It may become the dish everyone likes when they come to your home. And that is what your dish looks like. I want to come to your house for that dish. Yum!

You sound like an adventurous cook. Some folks will only cook the foods they ate as a child and are not willing to take even a bite of a new dish. What a loss for them. :angel:
 
I'm puzzled, Wyshie. Your dish looks so much better than the one from the cookbook. I'd much prefer your gravy to that pallid white stuff, at least I would know it had flavor. That said, I would agree with others, there's some sauce "beautification" going on in the book pic.

I also wonder if there was some cheesecloth or other strainage going on with the book sauce.
 
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Well I think that is dishonest.

I also have one book called 500 recipes in 20 minutes, the recipes I've tried from there have been very good, but 20 minutes? You're having a laugh!
You have to remember that the recipes are developed by people who have knife skills, organize their ingredients, have the tools, etc. It is sort of like home renovations. They always take more time than you think. When I test drive a recipe for publication, I recruit a friend to come over to handle the prep work--preferably a friend who has not worked in a professional kitchen. That gives me a real sense of how long it really takes for the average home cook to prepare the recipe.

Totally off topic, but last fall I had to prepare a lobster-crab-pickled mussel dish for the food photographer. With three of us doing all the prep, etc., it took us 2.5 hours to get from raw ingredients to plating. This was something the Chef indicated took 45 minutes. Longest 45 minutes in the kitchen I've spent to date.
 
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