Fragrance in cooking

[mangoe]

hi there folks! i have been trying to find a well laid out and easy to follow cookbook of very light recipes, that emphasize delicate scent and fragrance over spice. so maybe a book that works with ingredients like lemongrass/saffron/rice etc....

i know this is a little vague, but if anybody has any ideas or recommendations?

 

[jennyema]

Cooking is 100 % about taste so I doubt you'll find a fragrance cookbook.

Sorry

 

[mangoe]

smell is a very large part of tast - a majority of it even. our taste buds are not nearly as receptive as we think they are - they can distinguish between sweet, bitter, sour, bitter, umamim and spice. but without your scent it would be almost impossible to tell the difference between, say, chicken and beef - or carrot and turnip. look at the obvious example of blind taste testing raw potatoes and apples side by side with your nose blocked.

though perhaps i was not clear, i am not actually looking for a cookbook that is explicitly written around the idea of fragrance in cooking - but a cookbook that focuses on light and typically fragrant dishes. thanks for the response though, i will keep looking

 

[Mad Cook]

Cooking is 100 % about taste so I doubt you'll find a fragrance cookbook.

Sorry

But the sense of smell is an important part or how we taste things and people who lose their sense of smell through head injury or illness often report a loss of the ability to taste.

EDIT: Sorry, Mangoe, our posts crossed in sending and I've more or less said the same as you.

 

[Mad Cook]

hi there folks! i have been trying to find a well laid out and easy to follow cookbook of very light recipes, that emphasize delicate scent and fragrance over spice. so maybe a book that works with ingredients like lemongrass/saffron/rice etc....

i know this is a little vague, but if anybody has any ideas or recommendations?

Try this "Herbs and Spices: The Cook's Reference" by Jill Norman. (Ms Norman is a cookery writer who, among other things was a close associate of Elizabeth David and has edited a number of her books.) It covers all sorts of aromatics, not only the "hot" ones.

 

[jennyema]

I understand very well the connection between taste and smell.

But I still doubt you'll find a cookbook that is organized around the scent of the food.

 

[GotGarlic]

This one is close, I think: "Magic Herbs: More than 200 delicious and healthy recipes that are naturally low-fat and fat-free" by Julie Metcalf Cull, R.D. http://www.amazon.com/Magic-Herbs-Delicious-Naturally-Fat-Free/dp/0471347485

I think I got it years ago at a yard sale. Thanks for prompting me to dig it out. Time to give it a look-see.