Last Sunday, I heard an interview on "A Chef's Table" (WHYY/NPR weekly radio program) with Michael Ruhlman, author of a cooking book titled "Ratio: The Simple Codes Behind the Craft of Everyday Cooking." His basic theme is that ingredient ratios, such as we use in bread formulas, is the key to real understanding of many other kinds of foods. It was interesting. Here's a link:
read the book, but did read an interesting review of it on Slate (http://www.slate.com/id/2219243/). I think I'll check the book out from the library to see how I like it.
The review is interesting. My synthesis is that Ruhlman had a worthy goal, but he didn't reach it.
Although I've become very comfortable with baker's math, I must confess it never occurred to me to think about the relationships among different foods, e.g., muffins, pancakes, cakes, cookies, etc., in terms of differing ratios of flour, liquid, fat, etc.
So, now I can cook my banana-pecan quick bread batter as pancakes. Hmmmm .....
Thanks for highlighting the publication David. I read the reviews and, from what was available, segments of the book as posted on Amazon.com. It's not a book I'd spend money on because "cooking" yields to approximations and, once you've got a feel for how heat and time affects various ingredients, it's not (IMO) nearly as complicated as bread making. I've cooked successfully for many decades but was a miserable failure at bread making. Having just discovered the "secrets" of baker's percentages I am more comfortable in that environment and far more successful.
Incidentally, if you're ten years old and you want to make a birthday cake for your mother with one green and one red layer, don't use the entire contents of one of those little bottles of food coloring in each layer ;-)
Thanks for highlighting the book. I think the author is too ambitious for what he thinks he can achieve. The ratio relationship between ingredients is indeed important; for a good cook (not just a cook), however, what's equally important, if not more, is how different flavors react to each other and compliment each other. In scientific terms, how flavors come about is like a chain of chemical reactions between ingredients. Mastering the "secret decoder" (ie, ratio relationship) would just mean one can cook - but cook well? No, that's an entirely different question altogether.
The ratio is a starting place for people who can't cook or bake at all; but by no means it is all there is to it in cooking or baking. Beautiful chefs can go out of that conventional box and make unconventional combinations work; not just work, but work beautifully. To oversell "ratio relationship" can be a trap and limitation.
Just some thoughts. Thanks again for bringing that book to our attention.
I haven't
read the book, but did read an interesting review of it on Slate (http://www.slate.com/id/2219243/). I think I'll check the book out from the library to see how I like it.
Just heard about the book
I haven't read it myself, but got slightly turned off after reading this (great) review.
Thanks for the link, hansjoakim!
The review is interesting. My synthesis is that Ruhlman had a worthy goal, but he didn't reach it.
Although I've become very comfortable with baker's math, I must confess it never occurred to me to think about the relationships among different foods, e.g., muffins, pancakes, cakes, cookies, etc., in terms of differing ratios of flour, liquid, fat, etc.
So, now I can cook my banana-pecan quick bread batter as pancakes. Hmmmm .....
David
Not Something I'd Buy
Thanks for highlighting the publication David. I read the reviews and, from what was available, segments of the book as posted on Amazon.com. It's not a book I'd spend money on because "cooking" yields to approximations and, once you've got a feel for how heat and time affects various ingredients, it's not (IMO) nearly as complicated as bread making. I've cooked successfully for many decades but was a miserable failure at bread making. Having just discovered the "secrets" of baker's percentages I am more comfortable in that environment and far more successful.
Incidentally, if you're ten years old and you want to make a birthday cake for your mother with one green and one red layer, don't use the entire contents of one of those little bottles of food coloring in each layer ;-)
too ambitious...
Hi David
Thanks for highlighting the book. I think the author is too ambitious for what he thinks he can achieve. The ratio relationship between ingredients is indeed important; for a good cook (not just a cook), however, what's equally important, if not more, is how different flavors react to each other and compliment each other. In scientific terms, how flavors come about is like a chain of chemical reactions between ingredients. Mastering the "secret decoder" (ie, ratio relationship) would just mean one can cook - but cook well? No, that's an entirely different question altogether.
The ratio is a starting place for people who can't cook or bake at all; but by no means it is all there is to it in cooking or baking. Beautiful chefs can go out of that conventional box and make unconventional combinations work; not just work, but work beautifully. To oversell "ratio relationship" can be a trap and limitation.
Just some thoughts. Thanks again for bringing that book to our attention.
Shiao-Ping
Ratios for more than bread
My understanding is that professional bakers have long used ratios to describe their formulas for all baked goods, including cookies, cakes, etc.
For example, see the chart on p. 470 of The Cake Bible. That's from 1988, so this is nothing new!
Allen
San Francisco
You're absolutely right:
You're absolutely right: Baker's math is not uncommon in baking.