BOOK REVIEW: Taste - Surprising Stories and Science about why Food Tastes Good by Barb Stuckey
I'm passionate about food, always have been and always will be. I always space out from the rest of the world while eating, analyzing flavour profiles and diagnosing tastes. The mere enjoyment of food is sufficient to set me into a frenzy. So what's all this hype about taste and what does it actually encompass? This book will enlighten you and guide yo into the light of cuisine.
Whether it's a salted caramel or pizza topped with tomatoes and cheese, you know when food tastes good. Now, the author, a seasoned food developer to whom food companies turn for help in creating delicious new products, reveals the amazing story behind why you love some foods and not others.
Through fascinating stories, you'll learn how our 5 senses work together to form flavour perception and how the experience of food changes for people who have lost their sense of smell or taste. You'll learn why kids (and some adults) turn up their noses at Brussels sprouts, how salt makes grapefruit sweet, and why you drink your coffee black while your spouse loads it with cream and sugar.
Eye-opening experiments allow you to discover your unique "taster type" and to learn why you react instinctively to certain foods. You'll improve your ability to discern flavours and devise taste combinations in your own kitchen for delectable results. This book even provides suggestions on calorie-free ways to get more pleasure from every bite.
After reading this book, I stumbled upon a revelation to bring out full flavours of food not by dousing it in salt, but to add a dash of sugar, a squirt of umami-rich fish sauce or a sprinkle of fiery but stimulating chilli powder. Wonderfully scientific in an understandable way, the fun write-ups throughout the book is an enjoyable way to get closer to what's on your plate.
BOOK REVIEW: Grown Ups by Marian Keyes
We have all read novels on disshevelled families and the ugliness that lies beneath the camaraderie. Giving a breath of fresh air to this scenario, Marian Keyes twists a plot that's whimsical, tear-jerking and beautiful all at the same time.
They're a glamorous family, the Caseys. Johnny Casey, his two brothers, Ed and Liam, their beautiful, talented wives and all their kids spend a lot of time together - birthday parties, anniversary celebrations, weekends away. And they're a happy family. Johnny's wife, Jessie - who has the most money - insists on it.
Under the surface, though, conditions are murkier. While some people clash, other people like each other far too much...Everything stays under control until Ed's wife, Cara, gets a concussion and can't keep her thoughts to herself.
One careless remark at Johnny's birthday party, with the entire family present, starts Cara spilling out all their secrets. In the subsequent unravelling, every one of the adults find themselves wondering if it's time - finally - to grow up?
Taking issues such as loving guys younger to a woman and vice versa, bulimia and dominant behaviour, this book was light-headed and so readable it was hard to put down. Totally an awesome read, I'd recommend this book for mature adult readers for it's sensitive points throughout.
BOOK REVIEW: Apples to Oysters - A Food Lover's Tour of Canadian Farms by Margaret Webb
Glistening rows of apples packed in plastic tubes, slabs of meat wrapped in cellophane, food glorious food. We grew up with tastes that are prepackaged, convenient and clean. But do we truly know where our food comes from or the flavour profiles associated with seaweed fresh out of the sea? The answer would be a resounding no, even for myself.
This narrative but factual book entails a journey from farm to table and the struggles farmers endure to promote full-bodied produce into today's mass-produced world. The author feasts her way across Canada's edible landscape, listening to farmers' hearts while enjoying nature's bounty.
Her tales of dedicated farmers and the challenges they face growing good food are inspiring, touching and gritty. They will make you hungry. They will make you laugh. They will make you run to your nearest farmer's market to hug a farmer.
This tear-jerking and also happy at moments book is a must-read for anyone who appreciates food and inspired food-writing. It was one book I simply couldn't resist till the end.
BOOK REVIEW: The Night Tiger by Yangsze Choo
I have read the Ghost Bride by the same author and for those who have read her book, you will definitely not be dissapointed by this one either. Being familiar with her affinity with spinning stories around the supernatural, she has beautifully weaved a story about were-tigers and severed fingers in The Night Tiger, not in a scary but inquisitive and sometimes informative way.
In 1930s colonial Malaya, a dissolute British doctor receives a surprise gift of an 11-year-old Chinese houseboy. Sent as a bequest from an old friend, young Ren has a secret mission: to find his dead master's severed finger, lost years ago in an accident. Ren has 49 days, or else his master's soul will roam the earth forever.
Ji Lin, an apprentice dressmaker, moonlights as a dancehall girl to pay her mother's debts. One night, Ji Lin's dance partner leaves her with a gruesome souvenir, that leads her on a dark trail.
As time runs out for Ren's mission, a series of unexplained deaths occur amid rumours of tigers who turn into men. In their journey to keep a promise and discover the truth, Ren and Ji Lin's paths will cross in ways they will never forget.
Throughout the storyline, you will learn about the Confucian Five Virtues, the legend of were-tigers, history of certain locations in Malaya's heydays and other snippets of information which you may find useful in your next conversation as a showstopper. Highly readable and a gleaming five stars on my reading list, I hope Yangsze Choo writes more books to snap up!
