Building a Meal: From Molecular Gastronomy to Culinary Constructivism

Hervé This; Translated by Malcolm DeBevoise

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Paper, 152 pages, 12 illus.
ISBN: 978-0-231-14467-4
$14.95 / £9.95

March, 2009
Cloth, 152 pages, 12 illus.
ISBN: 978-0-231-14466-7
$19.95 / £13.95

"Hervé This takes virtual cliché dishes and tells you what scientific principles go into their successful preparation. His book, while erudite, allusive, precise, and full of cultural insights, also has charm, wit, and brevity." — Albert Sonnenfeld, translator of Food Is Culture and Culture of the Fork: A Brief History of Everyday Food and Haute Cuisine in Europe

"Hervé This's major contribution is that food is an act of love and is linked to the pursuit of happiness. Building a Meal is the book of a 'bon vivant' and provides an excellent antidote to despair and depression. Its pages celebrate food and life." — Jeanine P. Plottel, Hunter College

"[A] wide-ranging, deeply engaging scientific deconstruction of classic dishes." — Publishers Weekly (starred review)

"A beautifully written treatise on the tenets of molecular gastronomy and cooking’s role in modern society." — Natalie Fasano, Eats.com

"This wonderful book by chemist/chef This continues the exploration of this profound way of looking at eating, cooking, and science." — Choice

"Anyone with a passion for cooking or science is sure to find this a captivating and effortless read." — Sacramento Book Review

Related Subjects

• Food History & Culinary Studies
• General Science

Series

• Arts and Traditions of the Table: Perspectives on Culinary History

About the Author

Hervé This is a physical chemist on the staff of the Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique in Paris. He is the author of Kitchen Mysteries: Revealing the Science of Cooking and Molecular Gastronomy: Exploring the Science of Flavor, among other books.

M. B. DeBevoise has translated almost thirty works from French and Italian in every branch of scholarship, including Hervé This's Molecular Gastronomy and The Columbia History of Twentieth-Century French Thought, edited by Lawrence D. Kritzman.

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