Description

Product Description

2021 IACP Award Winner in the General Category

Increase your meat counter confidence with this must-have companion for cooking beef, pork, lamb, and veal with more than 300 kitchen-tested recipes.

Part cookbook, part handbook organized by animal and its primal cuts, Meat Illustrated is the go-to source on meat, providing essential information and techniques to empower you to explore options at the supermarket or butcher shop (affordable cuts like beef shanks instead of short ribs, lesser-known cuts like country-style ribs, leg of lamb instead of beef tenderloin for your holiday centerpiece), and recipes that make those cuts (72 in total) shine.

Meat is a treat; we teach you the best methods for center-of-the-plate meats like satisfying Butter-Basted Rib Steaks (spooning on hot butter cooks the steaks from both sides so they come to temperature as they acquire a deep crust), meltingly tender Chinese Barbecued Roast Pork Shoulder (cook for 6 hours so the collagen melts to lubricate the meat), and the quintessential Crumb-Crusted Rack of Lamb. Also bring meat beyond centerpiece status with complete meals: Shake up surf and turf with Fried Brown Rice with Pork and Shrimp. Braise lamb shoulder chops in a Libyan-style chickpea and orzo soup called Sharba.

Illustrated primal cut info at the start of each section covers shopping, storage, and prep pointers and techniques with clearly written essays, step-by-step photos, break-out tutorials, and hundreds of hand-drawn illustrations that take the mystery out of meat prep (tie roasts without wilderness training; sharply cut crosshatches in the fat), so you''ll execute dishes as reliably as the steakhouse. Learn tricks like soaking ground meat in baking soda before cooking to tenderize, or pre-roasting rather than searing fatty cuts before braising to avoid stovetop splatters. Even have fun with DIY curing projects.

Review

"If you’ve struggled to cook meat to perfection in the past, this big, beautiful book should fix the problem. From the dedicated writers at America’s Test Kitchen, Meat Illustrated: A Foolproof Guide to Understanding and Cooking with Cuts of All Kinds is a well-written graduate course in how to turn out a succulent steak, flavourful stew or quickie burger." -- Montreal Gazette 

About the Author

America’s Test Kitchen is well-known for its top-rated television shows with more than 4 million weekly public television viewers, bestselling cookbooks, magazines, websites, and cooking school. The highly reputable and recognizable brands of America’s Test Kitchen, Cook’s Illustrated, and Cook’s Country are the work of over 60 passionate chefs based in Boston, Massachusetts, who put ingredients, cookware, equipment, and recipes through objective, rigorous testing to identify the very best. Discover, learn, and expand your cooking repertoire with Julia Collin Davison, Bridget Lancaster, Jack Bishop, Dan Souza, Lisa McManus, Tucker Shaw, Bryan Roof, and our fabulous team of test cooks!

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Top reviews from the United States

MJ155.0 out of 5 starsVerified Purchase More than just an excellent cookbook Reviewed in the United States on October 28, 2020 I''ve been a fan of Cook''s Illustrated since 2004. Their recipes are tested and reliable. I own at least 20 of their cookbooks and have subscribed to their magazine for the last 15 years. I trust their recipes. I am a homecook "foodie" with a cookbook collection of over... See more I''ve been a fan of Cook''s Illustrated since 2004. Their recipes are tested and reliable. I own at least 20 of their cookbooks and have subscribed to their magazine for the last 15 years. I trust their recipes. I am a homecook "foodie" with a cookbook collection of over 300 cookbooks which I actually cook from. Needless to say, I feel I have a good grasp of good recipes and good cookbooks. Meat Illustrated does not disappoint. It is part education, part cookbook. If you''re a carnivore that loves to cook meat, this book is for you. Finally a book that shows a) where the cuts are located on the animal, b) how the meat is cut, c) the flavor profile of the cut, d) the best way(s) to cook that particular cut. Really a great resource all around for the cook that is interested in learning more about the different cuts of meat plus some EXCELLENT recipes. The book layout is beautiful: More than one recipe per page, some black and white drawings (Cook''s Illustrated signature style) mixed in with color photographs. Pages are of high quality and lay flat when open. I am not disappointed at all!

11/15 Update: I don''t usually need to do so, but I read through the book cover to cover. This book is fantastic and I wish CI/ATK would follow this format going forward. Short paragraph descriptions of the recipe methodology (no long full page explanations like in the magazines that are a bit excessive) and a full range of cooking styles (from high heat grilling to sous vide) and cuisines (Mediterranean, Middle East, and Asian for example) that make this recipe suitable for a broad range of cooks. I''ve tried 3 recipes so far: Filipino Adobo, Carnitas, and Kalbi. For the purists, these may not be 100% authentic, but they were fantastic, straightforward, with easily accessible ingredients nonetheless. And in case you''re wondering, I found very few repeats in this book from previous CI/ATK publications. It goes without saying: This is one of the best cookbook purchases I''ve made in the last 10 years. 76 people found this helpful Helpful Report I Do The Speed LimitTop Contributor: Cooking4.0 out of 5 starsVine Customer Review of Free Product A good reference book, but.... Reviewed in the United States on November 21, 2020 If you don''t know much about meat, this book will lend you a helping hand. If you are a fairly experienced cook and shopper, do not come looking for something you don''t already know--you will be hard pressed to find something you do not know. And if you are from... See more If you don''t know much about meat, this book will lend you a helping hand. If you are a fairly experienced cook and shopper, do not come looking for something you don''t already know--you will be hard pressed to find something you do not know.

And if you are from somewhere other than the East Coast of America, (who knows, it might even be more specific than that), you might find that the names of the cuts in this book don''t match what you find in your grocery store. (Sure, if you visit a butcher shop, the experienced meat cutter should be able to pair you up with the meat you are looking for.)

Also keep in the forefront of your mind, that the ATK cooks don''t have to walk into a big name grocery store and make do with the choices there at the meat counter. They don''t have to make their meat choices from mass production cuts, or deal with inexperienced, under-paid meat counter employees. So, if you buy this book now, during the Pandemic, be ready to feel some disillusionment--especially if you are doing curb-side pick-up--when you try to fit what you find available, and/or what your "pickers" choose for you, to the advice and information here in this grandiose meat book.

I went looking for info on goat, because I still can''t pick out the right cut for the grill. Goat is not once mentioned. I went looking to see what they had to say about Barbacoa, since there are so many opinions and versions. Barbacoa is not mentioned. I went looking for fresh pork shank or hock, to see if they might have included my very favorite Polish meat dish, Golonka. No pork shank at all, although there are a few smoked hock recipes included. (Do we really need another recipe for Senate Bean Soup or Southern Collard Greens?)

But there is a flat iron steak recipe--and if you don''t know about beef flat iron, you should. There is information for skirt steaks, and if I hadn''t already looked up the information online earlier this year, that would have been helpful. (For some reason, the safest grocery store I found during the Pandemic this year almost always has them in stock and on sale. It was not a cut I used before. Now I even use it to make ground beef and burgers.)

I''m not all that impressed with the book, but I will say it is a great reference book. Not enough pictures either--where they are needed for a visual explanation. I am not an advocate for a picture for every recipe. No. But what I am saying is that more pictures are needed in this book--from a reference standpoint. Information is not laid out effectively either.

Here is an interesting "for instance": There is a header over one paragraph referring to the color of pork and its importance. Then the paragraph talks about ph values. It eventually rolls around to the darker or lighter shade of the meat. On another page, under a different heading, we finally see the difference between whitish, pinkish, reddish pork meat. And that''s how it goes in this book. I found I "stumbled" across more helpful information by accident more than by design.

There are a helpful few pages at the beginning of the book that lists recipes by the cut of meat. Once you spend some time with the book, you will grasp where to go to find what you are looking for. It is arranged by ATK editors'' logic.....

Turn to this book for advice, then branch out to fine-tune your knowledge. And remember that experience is the real key to becoming a "meat master". This book claims that it can make you "a meat master" with the information they provide. But, really, there is a lot left out, and it''s that the "other stuff" is left out that makes this less than a stellar book. 71 people found this helpful Helpful Report Susan C5.0 out of 5 starsVerified Purchase Young Aspiring Chef Reviewed in the United States on December 23, 2021 I do not write reviews often at all but I have to say I purchases this for my grandson who is an aspiring chef. Thic book excited him it explains about cuts of meats, how to cook them, how to butcher them, etc. This book was excellent. Studying this is more than a high... See more I do not write reviews often at all but I have to say I purchases this for my grandson who is an aspiring chef. Thic book excited him it explains about cuts of meats, how to cook them, how to butcher them, etc. This book was excellent. Studying this is more than a high priced culinary school could teach him in a year
As a late teen now, a senior, during Covid he has learned nothing in school. Masked up remote learning, This book will allow him to move ahead in a career more than public schools have done for in the past 2years.
. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in more than just a recipe but how you get there. And it is valuable teaching tool 4 people found this helpful Helpful Report Shirley5.0 out of 5 starsVerified Purchase GORGEOUS hardback cookbook with scrumptious recipes and beautiful photos! Reviewed in the United States on July 17, 2021 GORGEOUS hardback cookbook with scrumptious recipes and beautiful photos! This would make a fantastic gift! 3 people found this helpful Helpful Report ladydragonfly5.0 out of 5 starsVerified Purchase This is where you can find the meat Reviewed in the United States on April 7, 2021 Everything anyone would want/need to know about every kind of meat and cut, plus amazing recipes. Thank you again, ATK for helping move my kitchen skills up a few notches. One person found this helpful Helpful Report H. B. Adams5.0 out of 5 starsVerified Purchase Great addition to the Illustrated collection! Reviewed in the United States on December 16, 2020 I live the ATK —— Illustrated Books. The Vegetables Illustrated has been invaluable to me when using a CSA box, Misfits, or Imperfect produce. I can buy any vegetable and know what to do with it. I have already found Meat Illustrated to be just as valuable. I love the... See more I live the ATK —— Illustrated Books. The Vegetables Illustrated has been invaluable to me when using a CSA box, Misfits, or Imperfect produce. I can buy any vegetable and know what to do with it. I have already found Meat Illustrated to be just as valuable. I love the information that it provides which makes it so much easier to figure out which cut is which and when I can sub one for another. I also get a cow share which means that I end up with cuts that recipes don’t call for by name, so this book is really helping me make the most of the meat that I already have rather than buying the meat a recipe calls for. This is a great tool to get the most flavor and value for your money! 13 people found this helpful Helpful Report Holly V.5.0 out of 5 starsVerified Purchase Educational Reviewed in the United States on December 25, 2021 I bought this cookbook for my husband, thinking the recipes would be a great addition to our collection. This book not only has great recipes, but the information they have on each specific cut it super helpful. When we get beef or pork butchered, there are always cuts that... See more I bought this cookbook for my husband, thinking the recipes would be a great addition to our collection. This book not only has great recipes, but the information they have on each specific cut it super helpful. When we get beef or pork butchered, there are always cuts that we have no idea what to do with or we always end up doing the same crap with it (I.e. oxtail)…. Super great book, highly recommend especially for newer meat masters! Helpful Report Grant M Kelley5.0 out of 5 starsVerified Purchase Second time I bought this beauty Reviewed in the United States on November 22, 2021 This is hands-down, my favorite cookbook. I love it. So much so that I bought one for a colleague as a gift. Helpful Report

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Top reviews from other countries

Ed Johannesson 5.0 out of 5 starsVerified Purchase My wife loves this Birthday present and reads it all the time. Reviewed in Canada on September 16, 2021 My wife loves this Birthday present and reads it all the time. Plus I win with all the new ways to cook meat. My wife loves this Birthday present and reads it all the time. Plus I win with all the new ways to cook meat. Report Translate all reviews to EnglishM. Leduc 5.0 out of 5 starsVerified Purchase Excellent Reviewed in Canada on November 24, 2020 Tres beau livre et bien expliqué Tres beau livre et bien expliqué Report Translate review to English

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