La Bonne Cuisine de Madame E. Saint-Ange: The Original Companion for French Home Cooking

Arrived in perfect condition; I bought this because it was mentioned in a Julia Child book. Dated, but fun for someone who loves cooking. Glad I got it.

classic cook book

Madame Saint-Ange is the bible of bourgeois cooking. Written in 1924, I think it's been in print continuously in France. It is now out in an excellent English translation by Aratow, the co-founder of Chez Panisse. I wouldn't have believed that the cadences of the original French could be so well rendered into English, but here they are!Bourgeois cooking is the cooking of the urban upper middle class, people who in 1924 probably had a servant, but not a full kitchen staff. It is emphatically not "farmhouse cooking" (as another reviewer suggests), but definitely urban and urbane.Madame Saint-Ange's recipes lay very heavy emphasis on technique, and often build on each other. One of my favorites is the recipe for Boeuf a la Mode (Braised Beef). The recipe itself is only about two pages, but it refers back to the section on "How to braise red meats", which is several pages, and in turn refers back to the section on "How to make a stock", another several pages. And it all pays off with a moist, rich piece of meat in an unctuous sauce.Although she's a perfectionist, she realizes that you don't always have the time or money for doing things the best way. She often gives variations which are faster or cheaper.All in all, a marvelous cookbook.

This book is fascinating. It was written in 1927, and has not been changed since that time (though there are editorial notes with updated information).There is a section in the beginning that talks about how to stoke your charcoal stove and how to "refresh" pork rind by boiling it. While these parts are fun to read, they are a bit out of date. However, when it comes to learning the "hows and whys" of cooking, 80 years means nothing. This book provides answers and instruction pertaining to all the basic kitchen skills. Stock preparation, basic cooking techniques, tools and ingredients are all addressed. Many truly classic recipes are included.The charm of this book really comes through as you read it. It mentions many of the classic teachers of cooking, and is French to the core, but the book is not pretentious in itself. These recipes and techniques are meant for everyday cooking in your home. Expect instruction on how to prepare meat for braising, chicken for poaching, and how to clean fish - don't expect recipes that involve thawing or microwaving.

Well, there's not much I can add to what has already been written on these pages regarding this fine book. As with other great cookbooks which contain much more than recipies, I read it cover to cover before attempting any of the many dishes. There are a few awkward moments with the translation, but other than the totally baffling 'Hunter's Sauce' (pg. 60), your own good sense will guide you through these. It's not, however, the recipies that are the only value of this book, but, as others have mentioned, the delight is in the details, and the working knowledge of the author (you'll understand how the French can eat such rich foods and get away with it - "remove every atom of fat."). Madame will guide you through each painstaking step from beginning to end, from choosing meats and vegetables, seasonings, serving suggestions... in what is a comprehensive, and highly educational course in French cooking. Good cooking takes time and effort, and those willing to put forth the effort will find that Madame has taken the time to inform us, perhaps as never before. Happy cooking

This is entirely my fault for not looking more carefully, but I expected the French edition and this is in English.

This is the cookbook Julia Child used to learn how to cook. The English translation is very good. The instructions are complete and accurate so long as the fact that terminology has changed over time is kept in mind.Some of the teminalogy has tripped me up in places: "stir" means whisk vigorously or beat using a stand mixer. A VERY heavy cake was the result of that error.I have made several dishes - the Beef Burgungione (sp?) is absolutely wonderful - and most have turned out much better than I expected.Be aware this book was printed in the 1920's, so chickens are expected to be between 1.5 and 2 pounds after you killed and cleaned them. When I did find a 2.5 pound chicken I snatched it up and made a poullet au peu. Otherwise, I use chicken parts and carry on. Don't expect a large section on baking or desserts - the French buy their breads and desserts.

Paul won't likely remember me, but as a young employee of Berkeley's KPFA in the early 70's, my pals and I were several times Paul and "Alice'$" gastro guinea pigs. Pretention had yet to creep in. What amazing experiments. I hazily remember that La Bonne Cuisine de Mme. E. Saint-Ange was the subject of some exchange between us because it was the kitchen bible for my then-still alive French grand-mother, Marie-Therese Laroche. A ferocious and brilliant chef especially with reductions and patisserie, I could envision the stained volume on "Mamee's" kitchen work table. She used a tricolore ribbon as a bookmark.On seeing a review of the English version I ordered it immediately. I've enjoyed this fun read and have already tried out a few of the recettes.I may be the one who told Aratow that there was no Madame Saint-Ange. That was my grand-mother's little joke.

This is the cookbook that pre-dated and influenced them all: from ginette mathiot's je sais cuisiner (1932) through prosper montaigne's first edition of the larousse gastronomique (1938) via elizabeth david's seminal french cookbooks of the 1950s (french country cooking, mediterranean food) to julia child and simone beck's treatise on french cooking for the american audience (mastering the art of french cookery, volumes 1 & 2), all relied heavily for their source material on Evelyn St. Ange. La Bonne Cuisine itself borrowed heavily from the bible itself, Escoffier's Guide Culinaire (written in 1907) but I would suggest that whilst Escoffier's tome assumes a fair amount of cookery know-how and is more an academic rather than a practical guide, La bonne cuisine can quite easily be used for day-to-day cookery. She lists all there is to know about french cooking in 700-odd pages, from the innumerable ways to thicken a watery broth to what to do with pastry from scratch to how to rescue a dish to how to prepare/debone all sorts of meats to.....the list goes on and on. Her style is pedantic, slightly schoolmarmish and very, very amusing - but overall it emanates competence in what she's attempting to teach as well as being eminently readable. If you're after a comprehensive guide on french cookery with short, snappy recipes a la Silver Spoon, Ginette Mathiot's je sais cusiner would be a better choice; if however you would like to lose yourself in the pages of a literary, historic cookbook that nevertheless teaches you the a-z of french cookery from scratch, this is a must-have.

This is a book about cooking before it became an academic subject. Written by somebody who did it really well, rooted in an old tradition, but with the ways and means that were available to anybody with a serious interest in food. None of the cooking in the modern haute cuisine style, many very small items in surprising combinations; Mme st Ange still cooks meals. But she cooks them really well. This is back to the basics, back to the roots of Fench cuisine and I'll take one of these recipes over a night out in a three-star restaurant any day.