Reviews For Cook's Illustrated Magazine

I find Cook’s Illustrated to be a highly useful cooking magazine. It is short compared to most magazines, but there is no advertising. The magazine simply has recipes, product review and kitchen quick tips. The writer may take a classic recipe and find the best way to make it, and include all of the steps they followed in coming to their recipe. One of my favorite recipes is cream cheese brownies.

In the magazine the author went thru all their decision making steps, such as what was tried to make the brownies really good. For the recipe the author tries chewy, fudgy and cake type brownies, to come up with a combination that would go well with the cream cheese. Then the author tries different cream cheese variations, based on cheese cake recipes to come up with the one that went best with the brownies.

The magazine also gives useful product reviews. They will review a product such as knives, and try the high -priced to the low priced and give their review. It is interesting how the highest priced knife was not what they chose as the best. They also give you their ‘best buy’, which is the product that is not the best, but for the price and quality is a best buy.




Recommended:
Yes

Recommended For: Hobbyists/Enthusiasts

Cooks Illustrated is the written equivalent to Julia Child's TV show in the early days, except there are a few less 8 hour recipes. The articles are extensive and yet concise. I realize that sounds like an oxymoron but its not. They tell you everything you need to know, without any wasted words. I know without a shadow of a doubt that when they tell me something is the best way to do something, it is. I don't even need to read why they think so. Of course I always do because they are so fascinating.

Some recipes may take awhile, but they are always worth the effort. I've never cooked anything from this magazine that wasn't perfect. The kitchen tips are so useful, and the product reviews are so thorough. I've bought things based on their reviews and never been disappointed. In fact its become a bit of a game to see if what I thought was good lived up to their expectations as well.

The lack of ads is just wonderful too, no flipping past perfume ads that fill your nostrils so you can't smell the food you're trying to cook. The only thing I wish was different, is I wish the magazine was monthly. But I'll take whatever I can get from them. I always buy the hardbound copy as well, so I can have a permanent source of the recipes and lend out my old copies to friends. I never seem to get them back.



Recommended:
Yes

Recommended For: Anyone

Cook's Illustrated can't be published often enough for those who love not so much the experience of cooking but the very experience of being in a kitchen. Unfortunately, readers are forced to savor each issue for two months before the salve of the next issue eases the craving.

Like most magazines devoted to the culinary experience, Cooks illustrated features recipes. So many of todays "lifestyle" cooking magazines unload a recipe with arcane ingredients and instructions and assume your life is devoted to recreating their recipes and apparently believe we all live with professional photographers and cake decorators. Alas, few of us are so blessed, if indeed such would be a blessing.

Cook's Illustrated concerns itself with how recipes work and how you can use that information in the confines of the average home kitchen. Cooks doesn't assume that it's readers have all studied with Paul Bocuse, but neither does the magazine talk down to it's audience.

Articles are not merely promotional pieces for regional produce and adhere to no one school of cooking philosophy. Adherents of Escoffier will be at home here as those who swear by the excesses of The Two Fat Ladies. Perhaps the magazines strongest suit is the discussions of materials and equipment that speak in plain English and often pleasantly surprise by demonstrating that the most expensive tools are not always the best.


Recommended:
Yes

Having recently become a serious home cook, I've been on the lookout for cookbooks and related magazines that do a good job at both clearly explaining basic cooking techniques, as well as providing unique and delicious recipes. Cooking Illustrated superbly succeeds at both.

After the requisite editorial and letters from readers sections, CI begins each edition with a series of "Quick Tips" that provide insightful, and sometimes inventive, ways to be more efficient and successful in the kitchen.

Each recipe is written in plain English and provides all the information necessary for success. Techniques are not only described in written form, but also illustrated via photographs or sketch drawings; a list of resources for equipment and hard-to-find ingredients is also listed at the back of the magazine. Moreover, unlike many "lifestyle" cooking magazines, each recipe begins with an excellent, and many times entertaining, discussion of the science involved in cooking the main ingredient(s), as well as details of the author's recipe testing experience. It's all very useful information that comes in great handy for trouble-shooting. All-in-all CI's writing style and thoroughness make each recipe accessible to even novice home cooks.

As a home cook always on the lookout for the best ingredients and kitchen equipment, I look forward to CI's product testing articles, which have ranged from loaf pans to pre-packaged fresh pasta. Since CI does not accept advertisements, it's refreshing to know that the CI's product reviewers are not implicitly beholden to the magazine's advertisers. The product reviews are thorough, and the results are sometimes surprising. Despite what Martha Stewart or Williams-Sonoma have to say, the best isn't always the most expensive. Or, there may be no winner at all; nothing beats homemade pasta.

CI is also available in hardbound editions, each consolidating one year's issues, making for a great general reference book -- a staple for every kitchen.


Recommended:
Yes

Recommended For: Anyone

Cook's Illustrated will change your relationship with food dramatically.
The recipes given are foods that everybody eats, not high falutin foods that you have to travel to the ends of the Earth to obtain. You'll learn how to improve fried chicken, roast a turkey, grill a steak, and other weekday meals. You'll also be fascinated by the research that "America's Test Kitchen" puts into every recipe. They provide the details behind the simplification of each recipe. They also explain the science behind what happens to the food as it is prepared/cooked. Kitchen Tips is a column of tips that readers submit to make your culinary life easier. The illustrations are simple sketches but are effective. The paper the magazine is printed on is high quality. For better or worse, there are no advertisements in the magazine, but there are unbiased product reviews in each issue. The Cook's Illustrated publisher also prints cook books based on the magazine. The Best Recipe is one title, and my wife and I have yet to find one single bad recipe. If you're like me, you'll want to restock your kitchen after you start reading Cook's Illustrated.


Recommended:
Yes

I'm more of a George Foreman cook then a gourmet chef. I basically do burgers, tacos and the occasional tuna fish with the rest of my meals spent outside of my kitchen and in the kitchen's of real professionals i.e. chinese chefs, pizza bakers and those fine folks at Blue Ribbon Barbque.

But for some reason I like to read this magazine. Its highly educational. They explain the origins of recipes, give great tips and have great drawings that show you how to step by step debone a chicken etc. I'm all set if I ever make it to a grocery store.

What I like best about this magazine is the consumer reports like reviews of things like cheap wines, ketchup, salad dressing, coffee makers, toasters etc. These articles are really interesting.

They also attack classic recipes like how to cook a turkey in which they try cooking the thing using a variety of methods and test out old wives tales to see if there is any truth behind them. Its very investigative and I trust their conclusions.


Recommended:
Yes

Cook's Illustrated is one of the best magazines published on the market now a days for the cook looking for easy to follow directions. Most recipes give alternate ingredients that can customize the recipe for each individual's taste. The recipes have all been tried and I have never had a recipe that is a failure. The best part about this magazine is that on the last page you can see a full color picture of what the recipe should look like. Even though this magazine is one of the more expensive cooking magazines it is well worth the price. Along with recipes it gives handy kitchen hints from readers. The best part is that there is no advertising. Instead of looking at page after page of ads, you get page after page of "good eats". I would recommend this magazine to anyone. The variety of recipes are good and the instructions can be followed by anyone.


Recommended:
Yes

I have been receiving Cook's Illustrated for a couple years now and it is clearly my favorite cooking/food magazine. It is great for the beginner or experienced cook because it explains the recipes so completely. You get a full understanding of how to make the perfect waffle and why. They test different methods of food preparation to provide the reader with the best possible way to prepare a specific dish. My favorite issue contained the method to cooking the perfect turkey. Because they have no ads, their opinions are unbiased. They also test kitchen products like mixers or waffle makers, so that you can shop smart. The recipes are generally your standard American fare, and I like that. When I want to get fancy, I'll consult Gourmet or Bon Appetit. I find this magazine unpretentious, easy to read, and an asset to any kitchen.


Recommended:
Yes

The first issue of Cook's I ever read taught me, a bona fide southern cook, how to make even more perfect fried chicken. The second taught me how to make the perfect hamburger (make an indention in the center so it doesn't poof up - use only ground chuck). What's more, the way the articles (and yes, there are articles - not just recipes) are written teach you a lot about the food you are handling and cooking and feeding to your family and friends - a wonderful idea.

Cook's Illustrated take regular cooking and makes it everything it almost was. I like Gourmet, Saveur, etc, but when I'm feeling hungry, not adventurous, this is the magazine I reach for.



Recommended:
Yes

Recommended For: Anyone

Cook's Illustrated is a fantastic resource for both the experienced cook and the beginner. We are enthusiastic, experienced "civilians" in the kitchen and have prepared numerous CI recipes, including, among others, panna cotta, thick-cut pork chops (the brine was to die for!), rice salad and purchased a recommended salad spinner. We have not been disappointed by or failed with any recipe we have tried. The instructions are concise, clear and extremely easy to follow. Additionally, the side commentary offered in the recipes regarding tools, ingredients, preparation tips etc., are interesting and make us feel more confident in our cooking. In fact, when alternate ingredients are suggested, we are often inspired to make the recipe again! (Tahitian vanilla bean vs. Madagascar vanilla bean in the panna cotta!)

CI is well written and laid-out and the art work/graphics are attractive and uncluttered making them easy to follow. I especially like the elegant illustration on the covers. When reading and cooking from CI, it often feels like Chris Campbell is chatting with me one-on-one and we enjoy and appreciate the fact that there is no advertising.


Recommended:
Yes