Zingerman's Guide to Good Eating: How to Choose the Best Bread, Cheeses, Olive Oil, Pasta, Chocolate, and Much More

by Ari Weinzweig

Book Overview

Hailed by the New York Times, Esquire, and the Atlantic Monthly as one of the best delicatessens in the country, Zingerman's is a trusted source for superior ingredients -- and an equally dependable... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0395926165
• ISBN13: 9780395926161
• Release Date: January 2003
• Publisher: Rux Martin/Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
• Length: 483 Pages
• Weight: 1.90 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 7.2" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

WHEN THE VERY BEST MAKES SENSE

Zingerman's Guide to Good Eating:A Zinger from Zingerman(When the very best makes sense) "How to choose the best bread, cheeses, olive oil, pasta, chocolate and much more ..."By Marty Martindale Illustrations by Ian Nagy and colleagues This book is a foodie's joy and a hoot! It's also a very quick catchup if you have been totally out of the kitchen for the last decade or two. It's the Mediterranean scene, not the Asian scene, however. The book contains many recipes, great ones, too.Author, Ari Weinzweig, no not Ari Zingerman, taught himself to be very food savvy, and he's graciously willing to share his self-taught connoisseurship methods through this book. Though a Chicago native, Ari went to the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, Michigan where he had to decide on a major and stumbled into the food business at a the lowest end. Finally he and a partner thought the Ann Arbor area could support another deli, for who doesn't hate to leave their college town! Many think the original delicatessens were markets selling Jewish/Kosher foods, the loxes, earliest sour creams, delightful pickles and to-die-for hot pastrami. Not so. It seems Germans, not Eastern European Jews, opened New York's earliest deli. Actually, the dictionary definition of a deli is: "a small shop that sells high quality foods, such as types of cheese and cold cooked meat, which come from many countries." Naming the new Ann Arbor deli was a challenge for the new partners. Ari knew "Weinzweig" would be difficult for customers to pronounce much less remember. After a fashion, they agreed on "Zingerman's" for their Jewish-sounding store name, vendor of Mediterranean delights. They laughed, because the name had, "Zing," and they opened their new market in 1982. When Weinzweig works to make you a greater discerning connoisseur, he calms you with, "How to overcome your fear of the guy behind the counter." Most of this means, "feel entitled to the sample you are offered," or downright ask for one (else how will you ever learn?). Then he gets scientific and devotes sections to: 1. Introduce yourself to the new food (this can be done silently)2. Look at it, describe its color (privately).3. Smell it, "The nose knows what it's doing," he claims.4. Taste it. Move it around in your mouth, discover how it tastes differently in different part of your mouth. (think like a wine taster ... Legs? Woody? Bold?)5. Next he admonishes, Afford the best"," (he's not paying).Weinzweig winds up his connoisseur training with, "Go wild. Taste early, taste often, and above all, have fun!" He then gets serious and confesses, "I'm convinced that smaller quantities of better-tasting raw materials will buy you more satisfaction for the same, or even less, outlay."Ari devotes 23 pages to olive oils opening with a Greek proverb: "Without oil, without vinegar, how can we take a trip?" His quick olive history is a world adventure. Nut oils are also in, and he gives careful particulars for Pumpkin Seed Oil "Gre

Good eating

Nestled in one of the cooler parts of Ann Arbor, on a brick-covered road near some little shops and slightly peeling houses, is deli/restaurant Zingerman's, known for its amazingly high-quality food. Now in "Zingerman's Guide To Good Eating," Ari Weinzweig offers a glimpse into the best foods available."Guide" is half cookbook, half gourmet bible. Weinzweig offers some good recipes (like gazpacho with sherry vinegar, or grilled Tuscan pecorino cheese), but the core of this book is what goes into those. And it's enough to drive a devoted foodie insane -- olive oils, vinegars and oils; pasta and grains; meats; cheeses, and seasonings.And Weinzweig doesn't skimp on the details either. Within every chapter, he describes the different kinds of... whatever he's talking about. For cheeses, he provides a buying guide, then the different kinds: Parmigiano-Reggiano, cheddar, mountain, blue, et cetera. For deli meat, it's salami, Serrano ham, prosciutto, and smoked salmon. As a bonus, he describes the history and making-of each product.Warning: Do not read this book on an empty stomach. The descriptions of food will make you drool -- especially the people who have tasted Zingermans' food before. Even the less savory ideas (salmon anemia) can't kill the response this book will provoke. (And a certain feeling of confidence is inspired by the radio hosts and cookbook authors quoted on the back, as well as restauranteur Mario Batali of "Babbo")A lot of food books can be condescending to the non-gourmet. But Weinzweig avoids that. His style is almost conversational, like having a chat with a gourmet chef. He talks about his own experiences, his own likes, and descriptions of his chats with people who know best. (Including a conversation that compares selecting prosciutto-pigs to dating)So for those who can't experience Zingerman's itself, the "Zingerman's Guide To Good Eating" is a must-have -- both for recipes and info about fine food in general. Just don't read through on an empty stomach.

must have

This is the book to have with you in your car at all times. that way you are never left standing in the isle of your local foodstore wondering which olive oil/balsamic/etc to buy. and its a great book just to read a chapter here and there in any order you'd like when you have 20-30 mins to spare.

Very interesting and informative.

I love this book. I have ordered several food items from recomendations in the book. Everything I have received has been beyond my expectations both in quality and good service. I frequently just read a particular section because the information is well written and can be humorous. I think it's a winner.

Delightful reading on great food and some fun recipes

Those of us who have benefited from Ari's rich knowledge and passion for traditional full flavored foods are happy this delightful and interesting information is now available to everyone. Reading this book is as much a treat as eating the wonderful food at Zingerman's. It is like going on a food expedition with an enthusiastic guide who wants you to share in the fun he is having.This isn't just a book on food history, or a treatise to teach how to discern quality food from mediocre food products, nor is it a book of recipes. It is more than all of these. Ari has the goal of helping us understand how to choose and enjoy great foods from all over the world. He has grouped the book in to six sections and each of these in to subsections. For example, the section on cheeses starts with a guide to buying cheeses, and then has subsections on Parmigiano-reggiano, cheddar, mountain, blue, and goat cheeses. Each of these subsections concludes with a few recipes to provide some ideas on how to enjoy the foods you have just read about. What I particularly like about the recipes that Ari has chosen is that they are mostly very simple preparations that maximize the experience of flavor and aroma.The book also provides mail-order sources for obtaining quality foods and a nice reading list for further exploration. There is also a general index and a recipe index.I was fortunate to be introduced to Zingerman's Delicatessen not long after it opened. The fun of eating there is only half the story. Learning about full flavor foods you haven't experienced before and exploring new tastes is another. Ari Weinzweig and Paul Saginaw are very generous people who love food and love sharing what they learn with others. They have contributed to the Ann Arbor community in many ways and not the least of their contributions is the education they have provided to their customers about great food. They have earned their glowing worldwide reputation. Simply, Ari and Paul and their great staff have contributed to a higher quality of life for many of us.Over the years they have grown their ability to share their love of great food by adding catering, mail order, and a web site. They opened a bake-house to improve the quality of their bread, and baked goods. They developed a first rate training business called ZingTrain to educate their staff and anyone interested in learning what makes Zingerman's what it is. A year and a half ago they opened a Creamery to expand their love of cheese and make some of their own with special attention to their amazing award winning Cream Cheese and stunning Gelato (when was the last time you had a frozen dessert with an aroma?). Now they have opened a sit down restaurant called Zingerman's Roadhouse whose motto is "Really Good American Food". It really is amazingly good.Zingerman's is an amazing and growing institution because of the passion of its founders and the execution of a fabulous staff. This book is yet another contributi