Joy of Cooking 1931 Facsimile Edition: A Facsimile of the First Edition 1931

By John Becker, Ethan Becker, Irma S. Rombauer, et al.

Book Overview

In 1931, Irma Rombauer announced that she intended to turn her personal collection of recipes and cooking techniques into a cookbook. Cooking could no longer remain a private passion for Irma. She had recently been widowed and needed to find a way to support her family. Irma was a celebrated St. Louis hostess who sensed that she was not alone in her need for a no-nonsense, practical resource in the kitchen. So, mustering what assets she had, she self-published The Joy of Cooking: A Compilation of Reliable Recipes with a Casual Culinary Chat. Out of these unlikely circumstances was born the most authoritative cookbook in America, the book your grandmother and mother probably learned to cook from. To date it has sold more than 15 million copies.
This is a perfect facsimile of that original 1931 edition. It is your chance to see where it all began. These pages amply reveal why The Joy of Cooking has become a legacy of learning and pleasure for generations of users. Irma's sensible, fearless approach to cooking and her reassuring voice offer both novice and experienced cooks everything they need to produce a crackling crust on roasts and bake the perfect cake. All the old classics are here -- Chicken a la King, Molded Cranberry Nut Salad, and Charlotte Russe to name a few -- but so are dozens of unexpected recipes such as Risotto and Roasted Spanish Onions, dishes that seem right at home on our tables today.
Whether she's discussing the colorful personality of her cook Marguerite, whose Cheese Custard Pie was not to be missed, or asserting that the average woman's breakfast was "probably fruit, dry toast, and a beverage" while the average man's was "fruit, cereal, eggs with ham or bacon, hot bread, and a beverage," the distinctive era in which Irma lived comes through loud and clear in every line. Enter a time when such dishes as Shrimp Wiggle and Cottage Pudding routinely appeared on tables across America.
The book is illustrated with the silhouette cutouts created by Irma's daughter Marion, who eventually wrote later editions of The Joy of Cooking. Marion also created the cover art depicting St. Martha of Bethany, the patron saint of cooking, slaying the dragon of kitchen drudgery. This special facsimile edition contains both Irma's original introduction and a completely new foreword by her son Edgar Rombauer, whose vivid memories bring Irma's kitchen alive for us all today.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0684833581
• ISBN13: 9780684833583
• Release Date: April 1998
• Publisher: Scribner Book Company
• Length: 448 Pages
• Weight: 1.42 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 5.3" x 7.8"

Customer Reviews

The Joy of Cooking is a favorite of mine though I have never owned a copy until now.

This 75th anniversary edition arrived in excellent condition, and goes far beyond the earlier editions from which I have copied recipes and other valued information. It contains 500 new recipes and 4000 of the classic ones updated to reflect newer trends in health conscious preparation and newer cooking methods. I have always been impressed by the inclusion of wild poultry and wild game meats with tips on special handling and preparation for best results in several categories of each. I recommend this volume to anyone who wishes to explore and expand the variety of excellent cuisine they can prepare and serve to family and friends that will impress both those with simple down home tastes and those with highly discriminating pallets. The bonus is being able to get this gem at a small fraction of the original price.

One of my Go-to's

My grandmother gave me this book in 1975. I was newly out on my own and, although my grandmother taught me many things about cooking and canning, I had never read a recipe before, prepared it and enjoyed it-- from start to finish. I have several editions now and I am an avid cookbook reader and collector (2k+ physical books). I don't quite know about this edition, but I'm buying it for a peace officer that has become a very good friend to me and he likes to cook. Thank you, Paul, for treating me like a human being and caring for me like one!

This Book Has a Wide Variety of Recipes...Like an Encyclopedia

It's a useful book and the recipes usually tastes good. I use it most when I cannot find a recipe for something in my other books...the recipes seem to be a standard basic way to make a dish with clear instructions..

Be careful what edition you buy

I purchased the 1975 edition, which is the one I've had before and is one of the best. Unfortunately, Thiftbooks sent me a 1964 edition, even though the listing showed a publiosh date and ISBN number for the 1975 edition. The editions actually vary quite a lot. If you're looking for a particular edition, you may want to buy it elsewhere.

The Best!

This cookbook is for anyone and everyone interested in cooking! Wonderful directions and explanations, as well as a good shopping list!

This book is not what I hoped for (recipes my mother used). I think this edition is too new. But, it

My mother was an incredible chef and I know she relied on Joy of Cooking all of the time. However, I would like to return it and get the oldest edition still available. I tried to find recipes I know she used but they weren't in this edition. But that shouldn't bother most people.

This book is really good!

I really like this book alot! I just wished there were some photos showing the finished dish.

If you can have one cookbook, use this one.

An earlier addition of this was my first real cookbook given to me when I was in 8th grade (many years ago). I learned so much about cooking from this that I honestly will say this is the on cookbook I think everyone needs- you'll get your core cooking knowledge from this and figure out what you need after that on your own. Sadly, my original went MIA in a move, along with my box of less essential cookbooks. Getting it back for a reasonable price makes my kitchen complete.

Want to Learn Something New...This is the Book!

This book…..it’s enormous, no pictures, small font, and I feel so intimidated by it!!! BUT I also feel fancy and like I know what I’m doing since I own this book. It’s a lot of recipes for so many things that I wouldn’t prefer to eat.

Go to book for everything

Tons of recipes. Lots of ideas, do not follow them all, as some need tweaking

first cookbook owned

Received as a wedding gift in 1950...Best peanut butter cookie recipe ever written!

just like new

I have this cook book, and bought this copy for my sister. It arrived quickly, and was in perfect condition.

Joy of Cooking

This book was in good condition and arrived swiftly. My contact with the seller was excellent and would buy from them again. Gail Bagley

Cook up some classics!

Originally a self-published book in 1931, and no less than nine revisions later, this thick volume of recipes (it's got to be at least 3 inches thick) is a great addition to anyone's cook book library. But wait! This book is not merely just a collection of recipes- although with 4000 classic recipes and an additional 500 new ones, that would make it worth buying alone. No, this cook book stands heads and shoulders above the rest because its what I call a "teaching" cook book. It contains recipes for just about every dish or food category you can think of which are arranged in various sections throughout the book. Then, at the beginning of each chapter, there is a kind of introduction which goes into detail about that category. For example, the section on grains starts off with an almost encyclopedic explanation of the types of grains, their anatomy, how to combine them, and so on. A handy, informative cook book with plenty of choices, there is sure to be something for everyone and even healthy eaters will find a great section on what makes up a healthy diet, how many calories you need, etc. Also recommend The Sixty-Second Motivator for readers who need more motivation to eat healthier and have trouble changing their diet habits.

In the top 10 of all cookbooks

When you're looking for a particular recipe and you've already scoured 20 or so cookbooks in search of it, just pick up "The Joy of Cooking" and you'll most likely find what you're looking for. This compact volume was one of my first cookbooks (luckily) and I still refer to it with some frequency. I find that it is particularly useful for basic recipes such as pie crusts. Taking that particular recipe as an example, I made my first pie crusts from their basic recipe (many years ago) and that's the one I still use today, although I have tried others off and on. These recipes have all withstood the test of time. The book is also filled with all manner of cooking tips and techniques. A well-organized index will direct you to the recipe that you're trying to find. You'll also discover that multiple alternative recipes are offered for the same basic dish so that you can select the one most suited to your tastes. This cookbook is the workhorse of them all. I would recommend it for both the newbie to cooking as well as to the professional chef as a reference document. This one gets my highest recommendation -- I can hardly say enough good about it.