(Part 2) Top products from r/cookbooks

Jane Grigson's English Food (1979) is probably as close as you'll get to an English Mastering the Art. It's as much a history and anthrolpological study of English food as it is a collection of recipes, but its recipes are extensive and excellent.

Elizabeth Luard's The Old World Kitchen (1987), which ranges across the European continent, nonetheless contains a fine, idiosyncratic collection of English recipes in its midst (and is probably the best single-volume reference of old world peasant cooking traditions).

The incomparable Elizabeth David's English Bread and Yeast Cookery (1977) covers every inch of the English bread-making tradition, from milling wheat to presenting at the table. David's attentions were usually focused in a more southerly direction -- the foods of France, Italy -- but she treats the baking traditions of her home nation with as much detail and respect as she does those of more foreign locales

If you want a more contemporary, chef-y book, check out Fergus Henderson's more recent The Whole Beast (2004), which is delicious, detailed, and delectable.

And finally, if you want something a lot more chef-y, Heston Blumenthal's The Fat Duck Cookbook (2009) will show you contemporary English gastronomy at its most ambitious (but also, maybe, its most pretentious). It sure is pretty to look at, tho.

If you are looking for basic cooking information the Joy of Cooking is obligatory.

A couple things I've learned along the way is first to start slow and work through cookbooks. It's easy to keep buying book after book but they are just decoration if you don't know them well. Secondly, be wary of books with lots of pretty pictures! In my experience they are full of single-purpose recipes that don't teach you the true nature or source as you spoke of above.

As far as source recipes I'd second everything mentioned so far but if you are looking to blow people away with Italian and Mexican dishes (my particular favorite styles)... look no further than:

The Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking - Marcella Hazan - Possibly my favorite author of cookbooks of all time. This is definitely the one to start with in my opinion.

The Art of Mexican Cooking - Diana Kennedy - If you are looking for real mexican food this book is a great place to start.

Bonus Book... not a cookbook but a great way to learn about cooking

One of the most beautiful books / series is Patisserie at Home by Melanie Dupuis. There are a couple more like The Complete Guide to Baking: Bread, Brioche and Other Gourmet Treats, French Cooking at Home and The Ultimate Book of Party Food. They are simply stunning!

If you're looking for basics, it's hard to beat Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything The Basics.

http://www.amazon.com/How-Cook-Everything-The-Basics/dp/0470528060

It's exactly what you're looking for. It covers the basics of cooking, with 1,000+ photos.

Another go-to recommendation is Jacque Pepin's New Complete Techniques, a fantastic 2012 update of his epic masterpieces La Technique and La Methode, with 1000 new photos.

http://www.amazon.com/Jacques-P%C3%A9pin-New-Complete-Techniques/dp/1579129110

Both books are great. I prefer Pepin's book since it's based solely on classic French technique, but Bittman's book would be better for an absolute beginner.

Instead of some of the generalist books already featured here, let me recommend you two books which are more narrowly focused:

• Oaxaca al Gusto: An Infinite Gastronomy by Dianna Kennedy
  
  
• Yucatan: Recipes from a Culinary Expedition by David Sterling
  
  If you are at all interested in learning about Oaxacan or Yucatan food, you can not go wrong with either one of these books.

Man, I'm really sorry to hear about this. How sweet of you to help her replace it, though!

I own this one, which is amaaaaaazing and broken out by country (Albania, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Germany, Hungary, Poland, "Yugoslavia"--yep, it's old, Russia, Poland, and some other ones: http://www.amazon.com/Eastern-European-Cookbook-Shaw-Nelson/dp/0486235629/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top

I picked it up at a Goodwill a couple years ago, so before you pay Amazon for shipping it's worth checking out a local thrift/used book store. Good luck!

Mark Bittman's Fish: The Complete Guide to Buying & Cooking is pretty decent. If I can recall it does have info on frozen seafood as well

This one does a really great job at Mediterranean/Lebanese, since one of the cooks is from Lebanon and moved to England. There are lots of gorgeous recipes that are more of a fusion, but check it out:

Honey & Co.: The Cookbook https://www.amazon.com/dp/0316284300/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_2F2rybXATJKWG

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0743260643/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1522680593&sr=8-1&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=williams+sonoma+american&dpPl=1&dpID=51E86K6Cl-L&ref=plSrch

I really enjoy this series of books (I have them all). I have hundreds of cookbooks, and this series is where I look first for a specific dish.

Ordering used you can probably get it around $6.

For a more lyrical taste on it, I'd recommend Brillat Savarin's Physiology of Taste

I ended up getting Gran Cocina Latina. So far seems like exactly what I was looking for - a little bit from each region. The author seems to have quite a bit of experience with the various areas (or at least to my inexperienced eye). My only complaint is that she calls for very specific ingredients that are not readily available where I currently live, and doesn't often mention more accessible substitutes.

The one I have for Asia is The Complete Asian Cookbook, which doesn't address 'Asian' cooking as a whole, but has a chapter for each country, each with an intro about the style and ingredients of the area.

The recipes in The Mile End cookbook are totally up my alley. How to preserve, smoke, bake, etc.

https://www.amazon.com/Betty-Crockers-Cookbook-Everything-Today/dp/0307098222/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_14_t_0?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=STDPQRZ99NXBF5M3HA1Z

The Yul Brynner Cookbook!

Also:

Steamdrunks

The Forest Feast (not unusual, but it's gorgeous)

Alice Eats

Roald Dahl's Revolting Recipes

[Desserts $0.99] (https://www.amazon.com/Desserts-Authentic-Middle-Eastern-Cooking-ebook/dp/B071G4RND6/ref=sr_1_3?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1497873174&sr=1-3)

[Appetizers (Mezza) $0.99] (https://www.amazon.com/Appetizers-Authentic-Middle-Eastern-Cooking-ebook/dp/B071JQS8TZ/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1497873174&sr=1-1)