The No Recipe Cookbook

By Gary Nichols

Author Gary L. Nichols assures his readers, "There's a Master Chef in all of us," and shares three easy to learn cooking principles that will raise the culinary horizons of any cook from meals of mere pedestrian fare to tantalizingly celestial treats.
An invaluable primer on twenty-two basic herbs and spices, The No Recipe Cookbook teaches readers how to easily prepare exquisite meals from basic, everyday ingredients they'll find in their own cupboards. Quick meals they can turn into masterpieces with a palate educated in the use of these elementary herbs and spices.
The time it takes to learn "no recipe" cooking, the author points out, will be far more productive than the time it takes to memorize endless recipes. Like the maxim "If you give a man a fish, he'll eat today; if you teach him to fish, he'll feed himself tomorrow".
Gary's simple cooking principles prepare anyone to originate, from here on out, an exquisitely tasty meal at the drop of a mustard seed.
From the Back Cover
There's a Master Chef in all of us.

Want to become a wizard of spices, a maestro of herbs? The No Recipe Cookbook will take your cooking from a chore to a culinary challenge and will bring you accolades at your dining room table that you never dreamed possible.

With Gary L. Nichols' three easy to learn cooking principles, you can expand your cooking horizons beyond the pages of any cookbook and into the celestial heights of culinary adventure. The time it will take you to learn no recipe cooking will be far more productive than the time it takes to memorize any recipe.

An invaluable primer on twenty-two basic herbs and spices, The No Recipe Cookbook will teach you simply and easily how to prepare exquisite meals from everyday ingredients found in your own cupboard and move any meal from the mundane to the superb.

When was the last time you got a standing ovation from your family at dinner?

No Recipe Cinnamon and Lime Chicken Fajita, No Recipe Hazelnut-Mushroom Pilaf and No Recipe Insanely Easy Vegetarian Chili are just some of the mouth watering "no recipes" Gary shows you as examples of cooking innovatively with a palate educated in these elementary herbs and spices.

Find the Master Chef inside you and never again fear turning a quick meal into a masterpiece.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Gary Nichols
• Release date: Mar 4, 2011
• ISBN: 9781458185303

Gary Nichols

Gary L. Nichols has no formal cooking training. His parents owned a restaurant that was attached to their house when he was young, so he was constantly around food preparation and he learned to cook hands-on by watching and participating. His mother taught him to add salt, pepper, spices and herbs to give a fantastic flavor to any dish. Her motto is, “If it tastes good in the pot, it’ll taste good on the plate.” Growing up, Gary never saw a recipe and today he knows he can turn any ingredients into a meal that will please taste buds all around the table.

Book preview

The No Recipe Cookbook

Gary L. Nichols

SMASHWORDS EDITION

Published by Gary L Nichols Smashwords

The No Recipe Cookbook

All Rights Reserved.

Copyright 2010 Gary L. Nichols

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Table of Contents

Chapter 1 - Introduction

Chapter 2 - The Beginning

Chapter 3 - The Complexities of Salt

Chapter 4 - Pepper

Chapter 5 - Basil

Chapter 6 - Thyme

Chapter 7 - Rosemary

Chapter 8 - Tarragon

Chapter 9 - Oregano/Marjoram

Chapter 10 - Sage

Chapter 11 - Cinnamon/Cassia

Chapter 12 - Allspice

Chapter 13 - Cumin

Chapter 14 - Coriander/Cilantro

Chapter 15 - Bay Leaf

Chapter 16 - Nutmeg/Mace

Chapter 17 - Cloves

Chapter 18 - Saffron

Chapter 19 - Vanilla

Chapter 20 - Paprika

Chapter 21 - The Exciting Inauguration

Chapter 1 - Introduction

Anyone and everyone can follow a recipe but a no recipe cook is the master of the kitchen, they can assemble a great meal with the ingredients at hand and often manage to do it quickly, easily and without thinking too much about what seasonings to use, how much of this or that goes into a dish or what the exact temperature of the stove or oven should be. I was lucky to grow up in the home of a no recipe cook and was constantly amazed that the same ingredients could be combined with different spices and herbs and develop into a unique and tasty meal that might resemble but was never exactly the same as what we had eaten before.

The resourcefulness and creativity required to become a no recipe cook is not as hard to learn as you may think. Learning to improvise successfully in the kitchen can be achieved by mastering a conspicuous set of principles and practices that can be applied to cooking under virtually any circumstance, from a well-equipped modern kitchen to a backyard grill. With an understanding of the nuances of different ingredients, the variances of taste of spice and herb groups and some basic cooking techniques you can expand your horizon far beyond the pages of any cookbook and into the realm of culinary adventure. The time it takes to learn the basics of no recipe cooking will be far more productive than the time taken to memorize a recipe and you will never be disconcerted when the unexpected happens in the kitchen.

My purpose for writing this book is to teach you how to become a no recipe cook with three easy to learn principles.

The first step to becoming a no recipe cook is understanding there are food groups or categories of ingredients that can be interchanged to achieve similar effects. There are ingredients that provide texture, ingredients that provide flavor, ingredients that provide substance, ingredients that stimulate the receptors in our taste buds and ingredients that cause specific chemical reactions.

Some ingredients that provide texture include; cornstarch, arrowroot and tapioca; some of the ingredients that provide flavor are spices and herbs; ingredients, which add substance are, meat, vegetables and potatoes; all ingredients stimulate the taste buds of sweet, salty, sour, and bitter and ingredients that cause a chemical reaction are baking soda, baking powder, yeast and gelatin.

Learning to become a no recipe cook does not mean you have to know the characteristics of every food but you will need to become very familiar with the ones you are most fond of and become proficient in preparing them in as many varieties as possible. For example understanding the properties of the tomato opens a world of possibilities, it can be turned into sauces, soups, or stews; sliced and served fresh with spices or dried to intensify its flavor. Lightly cooked or raw tomatoes can be pureed to thin a dish or they can be cooked and reduced to thicken. Diced into chunks they give a dish one texture and liquefied they give a dish another, so knowing the potential of an ingredient can turn a simple ingredient into dozens of cooking possibilities.

The second step to becoming a no recipe cook is learning the intricacies of the herbs and spices, which most enhance the foods you enjoy. Before I continue let’s define the difference between a spice and an herb. Some argue that there is no distinction between herbs and spices, considering both have similar uses. However, a botanical definition reveals that an herb is a plant that does not produce a woody stem but it is common knowledge that in certain areas of the United States, a dried herb is considered to be a spice. This leads to more confusion because if a spice is simply an herb, then there cannot be a difference between the two. However, believing this is ignoring the fact that many herbs tend to be leafy green substances and spices are found in plants that are tropical in nature. From a no recipe cooks’ view; if you like the taste use it regardless if it is a spice or an herb.

To become a no recipe cook you must understand that a spice group is like a color palette, so learn to combine spices to match the flavor hues of your favorite cuisines. For example, a Mexican spice palette could include achiote, annatto, chilies, cilantro, cumin, cinnamon, coriander, garlic, onion, oregano, and tarragon, while a Greek palette also might feature chilies, cinnamon, coriander, cumin, garlic, onion, and oregano but it will add anise, allspice, cardamom, cloves, curry leaf, ginger, mustard, nutmeg, olive and sumac. All cultures have their spice palettes, and a simple addition or subtraction of two or three flavors can take our taste buds into a totally different direction.

The third step to becoming a no recipe cook is to become proficient with a few cooking techniques in order to vary the menu and open a myriad of possibilities for your end results. The exact same ingredients grilled, roasted, fried, sautéed, boiled or braised will come out very differently. Think of the difference between fried chicken and chicken soup; between roasted potatoes and potatoes boiled and mashed; between grilled vegetables and those pan-sautéed in butter. Your choice of cooking technique will determine, in large part, the texture of the dish as well as its taste. If you brown onions, garlic and meat before adding them to broth the end result will be very different than if you add them all raw to a stock and boil them together. In the first scenario the flavors will remain distinct, with a hint of toasting from the browning but in the second scenario the flavors will blend smoothly although each is desirable under the correct circumstances, a no recipe cook will know how to determine which method is right for the occasion.

Chapter 2 - The Beginning

Most home cooks never really think about the expression season to taste. They think it is all about following the recipe and if they like the taste then it is an excellent recipe, if they do not like the taste then it is a dreadful recipe. What about adjusting the recipe to your taste, there are no recipe police to arrest you if you deviate. When I learned to cook we never used a recipe, it was always see what is in the cupboard and make something edible with it. I thought that was how you are supposed to cook. Once you learn to dissect a recipe and manipulate it to your taste, food will go from good to fantastic. Seasoning to taste will become instinctive.

The easiest but most widely misused seasoning is salt. I will elaborate more on the complexities of salt later but for now let’s try a simple experiment.

Start with a