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Wisdom and notes from a lifetime of reading, thinking, cooking, and eating. And it's not just about food but about how we live, and how we look after ourselves and each other. -- Diana Henry Bee Wilson is the ultimate kitchen friend: smart, funny, conscientious and patient, this is a book you'll want to spend time with, in and out of the kitchen. -- Itamar Srulovich and Sarit Packer, authors of Honey & Co: Food from the Middle East It's not often that a genuinely game-changing cookbook comes out, but this accomplished, approachable and helpful book-its writing as nourishing as the recipes-is most definitely it. Quite frankly, there's not a kitchen that should be without a copy of The Secret of Cooking. -- Nigella Lawson Reading The Secret of Cooking is like sitting in a warm kitchen with an exceptionally articulate friend. I don't need a lot of convincing to pick up a pan, but Wilson's tips are so clever, her recipes so tempting, and her vignettes of family life so candid, that this is a book I can read for pleasure alone. -- Niki Segnit, author of The Flavour Thesaurus

"""Reading [The Secret of Cooking] feels like talking to a therapist who’s trying to break you out of a cooking rut. . . . Wilson’s approach feels liberating and reminds me that cooking for joy or just to get by isn’t just okay but welcome."" -- Genevieve Yam - Bon Appétit ""Bee Wilson is a dreamy writer. . . . She focuses like a laser beam on the things that make capable cooks capable. . . . The Secret of Cooking will build on what you already know in the kitchen, help you refine how you think about food, and very likely take your kitchen confidence—and the pleasure you get from cooking—to new heights."" -- Sheryl Julian - Boston Globe ""The way [Wilson] writes, like how I imagine she cooks, is personal and breezy, sweeping the reader along to address the task at hand."" -- Florence Fabricant - New York Times ""Earnest and accommodating. . . . It’s no surprise that Secret is as much a joy to curl up with as it is to cook from; you’ll be reminded of Wilson’s endearing prose every time you peel a carrot or reach for a metal spider."" -- Bettina Makalintal - Eater ""I somehow got my hands on an early copy of Bee Wilson’s The Secret of Cooking, and I’ve been using it ever since. A lot of cookbooks promise a less stressful, more enjoyable, life in the kitchen, as this one does. But you only have to look at Wilson’s section headings to know she is going to be true to her claims. . . . She is about probability, not possibility; she wants her reader to cook for the life they have rather than for some impossible fantasy existence, because this is how she cooks herself, every day. Every page is full of tricks and shortcuts and substitutions: 15 pages alone are devoted to that simple but immensely useful and versatile bit of kit, the box grater. (NB it really isn’t just for cheese.)"" -- Rachel Cooke - Guardian ""[Wilson] devotes more than 400 pages to dismantling the roadblocks that stand in the way of that pleasure—time, money, guilt, fear, anxiety, insecurity and a raft of other emotions—to help us figure out ways of cooking that work for us."" -- Susan Puckett - Atlanta-Journal Constitution ""The beauty of The Secret of Cooking lies in Wilson’s attention to things that often go unnoticed or unsaid. Whether prompting you to take a fresh look at a ubiquitous tool or everyday ingredient or inviting you to time cooking tasks with songs instead of a clock, her advice makes moments in the kitchen more enjoyable."" -- Laura Brehaut - National Post ""Bee Wilson is . . . a witty and informed companion on everything from marmalade to table manners."" -- Ed Cumming - The Telegraph Magazine ""Wisdom and notes from a lifetime of reading, thinking, cooking, and eating. And it’s not just about food but about how we live, and how we look after ourselves and each other."" -- Diana Henry ""Bee Wilson is the ultimate kitchen friend: smart, funny, conscientious and patient, this is a book you’ll want to spend time with, in and out of the kitchen."" -- Itamar Srulovich and Sarit Packer, authors of Honey & Co: Food from the Middle East ""It’s not often that a genuinely game-changing cookbook comes out, but this accomplished, approachable and helpful book—its writing as nourishing as the recipes—is most definitely it. Quite frankly, there’s not a kitchen that should be without a copy of The Secret of Cooking."" -- Nigella Lawson ""Reading The Secret of Cooking is like sitting in a warm kitchen with an exceptionally articulate friend. I don’t need a lot of convincing to pick up a pan, but Wilson’s tips are so clever, her recipes so tempting, and her vignettes of family life so candid, that this is a book I can read for pleasure alone."" -- Niki Segnit, author of The Flavour Thesaurus ""A wonderful book filled with great things to eat, and wisdom, wit and much kindness."" -- Susie Boyt, author of Loved and Missed ""The Secret of Cooking is just magnificent. Part cookbook, part kitchen philosophy, it's beautifully written, eternally wise and impossible to put down. Plus recipes you'll return to again and again."" -- Tom Parker Bowles, on Twitter ""Bee Wilson might be the most honest food writer out there. . . . In addition to simple, comforting recipes that she really truly walks you through, [The Secret of Cooking] is packed with advice on 'cooking from a standing start' (i.e. when your best self didn’t think to soak the beans overnight) and three things she knows to be true about feeding picky young eaters. (Each of her three kids was particular in their own way.)"" -- Jenny Rosenstrach, author of Dinner: A Love Story ""Wilson’s book provides plenty to learn for all levels of home cooks who have the desire to indulge in the contemplation and wisdom she provides."" -- Sarah Tansley - Library Journal"

Wisdom and notes from a lifetime of reading, thinking, cooking, and eating. And it's not just about food but about how we live, and how we look after ourselves and each other. -- Diana Henry Bee Wilson is the ultimate kitchen friend: smart, funny, conscientious and patient, this is a book you'll want to spend time with, in and out of the kitchen. -- Itamar Srulovich and Sarit Packer, authors of Honey & Co: Food from the Middle East It's not often that a genuinely game-changing cook book comes out, but this accomplished, approachable and helpful book-its writing as nourishing as the recipes-is most definitely it. Quite frankly, there's not a kitchen that should be without a copy of The Secret of Cooking. -- Nigella Lawson Reading The Secret of Cooking is like sitting in a warm kitchen with an exceptionally articulate friend. I don't need a lot of convincing to pick up a pan, but Wilson's tips are so clever, her recipes so tempting, and her vignettes of family life so candid, that this is a book I can read for pleasure alone. -- Niki Segnit, author of The Flavour Thesaurus

Author Information

Bee Wilson is a home cook, journalist, and author of seven food-related books, including The Secret of Cooking. The cofounder of TastEd, she writes for a wide range of publications, including the Guardian, the London Review of Books, and New York Times. She lives in Cambridge, England.

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