Cooking Basics For Dummies® -- About the Authors -- Contents at a Glance -- Recipes at a Glance -- Table of Contents -- Introduction -- About This Book -- Conventions Used in This Book -- Foolish Assumptions -- How This Book Is Organised -- Icons Used in This Book -- Where to Go from Here -- Part I: Go On In - It's Only the Kitchen -- Chapter 1: Cooking with Confidence -- Warming Up to Your Kitchen -- Getting Acquainted with Basic Cooking Techniques -- Planning Your Menu -- Kitchen Safety Essentials -- Chapter 2: Gathering the Tools You Need -- Collecting Your Cookware Basics -- Going Potty for Pots and Pans -- From Slicing to Dicing: Knives for All Occasions -- Tools for Mixing and Baking -- Small Appliances: Necessity or Luxury? -- Miscellaneous Gizmos and Gadgets -- Chapter 3: The Bare Necessities: Stocking Your Store Cupboard -- Dry Goods: The Store Cupboard's Backbone -- Spicing Up Your Life with Dried Herbs, Spices, and Seasonings -- Peanut Butter and Beyond: Bottled and Tinned Goods -- Condiments to Fancy-Up Any Meal -- Stocking Up on Baking Supplies -- Cooling It with Refrigerated and Frozen Staples -- Buying and Storing Fruit and Vegetables -- Selecting, Buying, and Storing Meat, Poultry, and Fish -- Part II: Know Your Techniques -- Chapter 4: Boiling, Poaching, and Steaming -- Cooking Food with Water: The Techniques Defined -- Making Rice Just Right -- Working with Other Whole Grains -- Boiling, Steaming and Poaching: Vegetables and Fish -- Poaching Seafood -- Chapter 5: Sautéing -- Knowing When to Use Oil or Butter -- Making Great Sauce from Bits in the Pan: Deglazing -- Chopping Onions and Garlic -- Getting Versatile with Your Sautéing -- Chapter 6: Braising and Stewing: Now That's Home Cooking -- Braising versus Stewing -- Try Braising - It's Easy! -- Time to Stew -- Chapter 7: The House Smells Delicious: Roasting and Grilling.

Roasting Essentials -- Roasting Poultry -- Roasting Your Veggies -- Roasting the Big Guns: Beef, Pork, and Lamb -- Making Marvellous Marinades -- Get to Grilling! -- Chapter 8: Creating Sensational Sauces -- What Sauce Really Is -- Classic White Sauce from ze French -- Gravy Worth Getting a Spoon For -- Egg in Your Sauce -- Blender Sauces: Impressive in Minutes -- Dessert Sauces to Die For -- Part III: Expand Your Repertoire -- Chapter 9: The Amazing Egg -- Selecting Fresh Eggs -- Discovering the Real Deal about Raw Eggs -- Getting the Techniques Right -- Enjoying Eggs-traordinary Egg Recipes -- Chapter 10: Stirring Up Soup-er Homemade Soups -- Brushing Up on a Few Essential Soup Skills -- Following a Few Tricks of the Soup Trade -- Cosying Up to Comforting Soups -- Achieving the Perfect Blend: Puréed Soups -- Chapter 11: All Dressed Up: Salads and Dressings -- So Many Dressings, So Little Time -- The Soul of the Salad: Crisp, Fresh Leaves -- Ten Quick Salads . . . So Easy You Don't Need a Recipe -- Chapter 12: Pastamania -- Don't Sweat the Fresh Stuff: Dried versus Fresh Pasta -- Pasta Tips and Tricks -- Name That Pasta: Pasta Types and Cooking Times -- Sauces: Pasta's Best Friends -- Pasta Creations -- Chapter 13: One-Pot Meals -- Savouring the Benefits of One-Pot Cooking -- Chapter 14: Sweet Somethings -- Half Empty or Half Full: Measuring Techniques for Puddings -- Cosy Puddings and Elegant Ices -- Fruit from the Oven -- Biscuit Collection: All You Need Is a Glass of Milk -- Let Them Eat Cake (Or Tart or Tiramisù) -- Part IV: The Part of Tens -- Chapter 15: Ten (Or so) Herbs You Should Know -- Basil -- Bay Leaf -- Chervil -- Chives -- Coriander -- Dill -- Marjoram -- Mint -- Oregano -- Parsley -- Rosemary -- Sage -- Tarragon -- Thyme -- Chapter 16: Ten (Or so) Spices You Should Know -- Allspice -- Caraway -- Cardamom -- Cayenne or Red Pepper.

Chilli Powder -- Cinnamon -- Cloves -- Cumin -- Curry Powder -- Ginger -- Nutmeg -- Paprika -- Peppercorns -- Saffron -- Turmeric -- Chapter 17: Ten Ways to Think Like a Chef -- Know the Basic Techniques -- Use Only the Freshest Ingredients -- Get It Together -- With This Basil, I Thee Wed -- All the Plate's a Stage -- Plan Your Menus in Advance -- Be Thrifty -- Don't Be a Slave to Recipes -- Simplify, Simplify -- Above All, Have Fun -- Glossary of (Nearly) 100 Common Cooking Terms -- Index.