Books

Nose to Tail Eating

By Fergus Henderson

Fergus Henderson caused something of a sensation when he opened his restaurant St John in London in 1994. Set in a former smokehouse near Smithfield meat market, its striking, high ceilinged white interior provides a dramatic setting for food of dazzling boldness and simplicity. As signalled by the restaurant's logo of a pig (reproduced on the cover of Nose to Tail Eating) and appropriately given the location, at St John the emphasis is firmly on meat. And not the noisettes, fillets, magrets and so forth of standard restaurant portion-control, all piled up into little towers in the middle of the plate: Henderson serves up the inner organs of beasts and fowls in big, exhilarating dishes that combine high sophistication with peasant roughness. Nose to Tail Eating is a collection of these recipes, celebrating, as the title implies, the thrifty rural British traditions of making delicious virtue out of using every part of the animal. This new edition, beautifully redesigned, comes with an introduction by Anthony Bourdain.

Beyond Nose to Tail: A Kind of British Cooking: Part II

By Fergus Henderson & Justin Piers Gellatly

Fergus Henderson is revered throughout the world for his unpretentious and respectful approach to meat. As he says, 'it would be disingenuous to the animal not to make the most of the whole beast; there is a set of delights, textural and flavoursome, which lie beyond the fillet.' This is the philosophy that thrilled the food establishment when "Nose to Tail Eating" first appeared in 1999, a quiet declaration that dishes didn't have to be tall and sculpted to be a treat, and that nearly every part of nearly everything we eat can be delicious in the hands of a patient and talented cook.

In this beautiful new collection of recipes, Fergus inspires with more carnivorous classics such as braised shoulder of lamb, pigeon pie, venison liver and pressed pig's ear, as well as extending his no-nonsense approach to the world of breads and sweets - sourdough loaves and lardy cakes, puddings such as chocolate baked Alaska, burnt sheep's milk yoghurt and goat's curd cheesecake, and straightforwardly delicious ice creams including bay leaf and the famous Dr Henderson. Cooks worldwide will cherish and covet "Nose to Tail and Beyond", and give it a place of honour on their shelves alongside Fergus's first collection, as a refutation of waste and disregard and a celebration of all that is good and unfamiliar in what we eat.

The Whole Beast

By Fergus Henderson

AMERICAN REISSUE OF NOSE TO TAIL EATING (PRICE IN U.S. DOLLARS)

Fergus Henderson caused something of a sensation when he opened his restaurant St John in London in 1994. Set in a former smokehouse near Smithfield meat market, its striking, high-ceilinged white interior provides a dramatic setting for food of dazzling boldness and simplicity. As signalled by the restaurant's logo of a pig (reproduced on the cover of Nose to Tail Eating) and appropriately given the location, at St John the emphasis is firmly on meat. And not the noisettes, fillets, magrets and so forth of standard restaurant portion-control, all piled up into little towers in the middle of the plate: Henderson serves up the inner organs of beasts and fowls in big, exhilarating dishes that combine high sophistication with peasant roughness. Nose to Tail Eating is a collection of these recipes, celebrating, as the title implies, the thrifty rural British traditions of making delicious virtue out of using every part of the animal.

Henderson's wonderful signature dish, Roast Bone Marrow and Parsley Salad, is among the starters, along with Grilled, Marinated Calf's Heart and the gruesome-sounding but apparently delicious Rolled Pig's Spleen. He is a great advocate of salting and brining and tends to use saturated animals fats (duck, goose, lard) in quantities that would make a dietician blench. But when the results are dishes of the calibre of Brined Pork Belly, Roasted Lamb's Tongues, Turnips, Bacon and Salted Duck's Legs, Green Beans, and Cornmeal Dumplings (trust me, they are astounding), who cares? Fish at St John avoids the usual fare--no monkfish or red mullet here; instead herring roes, salt cod, eel, brill and skate. Vegetables are mashed (swede, celeriac) or roasted (pumpkin, tomatoes) and he dares to serve boiled brussels sprouts. The puddings (not desserts) are a starry dream of school dinners: Treacle Tart, St John's Eccles Cakes and a "very nearly perfect" Chocolate Ice Cream. Not perhaps for the faint of heart, but for the adventurous an exciting feast of new and rediscovered flavours and textures. --Robin Davidson

Synopsis

A collection of simple and traditional British dishes with a strong carnivorous bent. It aims to enable adventurous cooks to recreate unusual dishes such as Roast Bone Marrow and Parsley Salad, Pea and Pigs Ear Soup, and Ham in Hay as well as the more familiar Tripe and Onions and Fish Pie.

Ma Gastronomie

By Fernand Point

The Guardian recently asked a number of authors, actors, artists and chefs to nominate their books of 2009. Fergus among them nominated Fernand Point's 1969 semi-autobiographical cookbook which was republished earlier in the year.

Here's what Fergus had to say about Ma Gastronomie...

"My nomination is Fernand Point's Ma Gastronomie.

It's a collection of the great man's (he truly was a great man) recipes, thoughts, menus. Point was the chef of La Pyramide restaurant near Lyon, a legend and mentor to a generation of chefs.

He started his day with the barber coming to shave him and two magnums of champagne. Not bad."

'COCO' - 100 Emerging Culinary Stars

By Ferran Adria, Mario Batali, Fergus Henderson and others.

"Coco" is an exciting, unprecedented guide to the most exceptional talent in the international restaurant world.

"Coco" presents 100 of the best emerging chefs from around the world. It is selected by 10 superstar chefs: Ferran Adria (Spain), Mario Batali (US), Rene Redzepi (Denmark), Alice Waters (US), Jacky Yu (Hong Kong), Gordon Ramsay (UK), Fergus Henderson (UK), Shannon Bennett (Australia), Alain Ducasse (France) and Yoshihiro Murata (Japan). The selected 100 chefs are creating the most innovative cuisine today.

From Singapore to New York, Stockholm to Surrey, Hong Kong to Paris, these chefs are pushing their craft to new heights and have just begun to receive attention for their cooking. Arranged alphabetically by chef, the book will present each chef over two spreads. The first spread includes the curator's presentation of the chef in the form of an original essay, a sample menu by the chef, and two to three of the chef's signature recipes.

The second spread includes photographs of each recipe as prepared by the chef, as well as photographs of the restaurant, the chef at work, and the chef's environment, including farmers' markets and favorite ingredients. In the back of the book, each chef-curator discusses one specific dish that has had a particular significance throughout his/her life or career, accompanied by a recipe and photograph of the dish.

Part cookbook, part guide to the world's best new restaurants, and part who's who of the international food scene, "Coco" showcases the cooking of today's best new chefs, as chosen by today's culinary icons.

The Forager Handbook - A Guide to the edible plants of Great Britain

By Miles Irving

At any time, in any place, food is there for the taking - if only we knew how and where to look.
Miles Irving is forager of choice for James Lowe, head chef at St. John Bread and Wine and if you dine at our Spitalfields restaurant, odds are you'll have eaten a leaf or flower from Miles.
This beautiful book is an in depth guide to foraging, fully illustrated and with recipes from the many notable kitchens that Miles sells to.
Visit Miles online at www.forager.org.uk for more information including details of his excellent foraging courses.

Fat: An Appreciation of a Misunderstood Ingredient

By Jennifer McLagan

Duck fat. Caul fat. Leaf lard. Bacon. Ghee. Suet. Schmaltz. Cracklings. Jennifer McLagan knows and loves cooking fat, and you'll remember that you do too once you get a taste of her lusty, food-positive writing and sophisticated comfort food recipes.

Fat is hot, as public consciousness shifts away from fatphobia, and foodies embrace high-quality fats like lardo and artisanal butters. Sumptuous food photos throughout make for a plump, juicy, satisfying read for food lovers.

Fat in its many forms is often to be found on our menus. This fine book celebrates its finer qualities.

The Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking

By Marcella Hazan

During his recent interview with Rowley Leigh, Fergus spoke of three books and food writers who either greatly inspired him on his journey to becoming a chef, or whose approach to food and cooking he greatly admires.

We have decided that these books, along with others we admire or that have a particular bond (occasionally not at first that obvious perhaps) with St. John and Fergus's approach to dining and cooking deserve a spot on our websites.

This book includes recipes from the author’s two previous books on Italian cooking, as well as more than 50 new ones, and incorporates advice on the use of kitchen equipment and ingredients.

 

 

The Kitchen Revolution

By Rosie Sykes, Polly Russell & Zoe Heron

Tired of deciding what to cook? Want to maximise your meals with minimum time in the kitchen?

Recent surveys have shown that around a third of the food produced in the UK for human consumption ends up in the bin. This means that every adult is wasting hundreds of pounds worth of food a year!

So, the time is right for a kitchen revolution. This is the life-saving cookbook you've been waiting for - home cooking using fresh seasonal produce, with weekly planners, recipes and shopping lists that will enable you to maximise the weekly shop for you and your family.

Using their fantastic system, Rosie, Polly and Zoe have come up with a recipe for every kind of occasion, they'll guarantee that you're making the most of your cooker, fridge, freezer and store cupboard to create healthy and economical meals.

Frugality is a quality we're much in favour of at St. John as well as supporting anything that celebrates seasonality and that promotes good housekeeping and common sense in the kitchen.

Rosie is an old friend of our restaurants' and has also cooked at the Rochelle Canteen (see the event catering page) for Margot Henderson, Fergus's wife so we're only too happy to offer her first book for sale through our site.

Black Pudding and Foie Gras

By Andrew Pern

Winner of the 'Best UK Chef Book' at the 'Gourmand World Cookbook Awards' 2008. Black Pudding & Foie Gras is the first book from Michelin Star chef Andrew Pern of The Star Inn at Harome, North Yorkshire.

The book tells the heart-warming and often humorous story of Andrews life growing up near Whitby, and is full of anecdotes about his local food suppliers.

Andrew gives away the secrets of a large number of his signature dishes which are scattered throughout the recipe section of the book. The narrative is rich, the photography is stunning and the recipes are mouth watering.

It is a 400 page book that is beautifully put together with a tactile suede cover, using award-winning photographers Antonio Olmos and Sam Bailey. Written by Andrew Pern and designed by Face, it is a truly unique book in the in the food market.

Everything But The Squeal

By John Barlow

John Barlow, a self confessed glutton, finds himself in the meat-lovers paradise that is Galicia in Northern Spain.

Observing that the locals, out of deep respect for the animal, consume the whole pig, John sets about considering our relationship with food - what's 'nasty', delicious and what obligations we should observe to the animals we slaughter.

Not only a great account of living with the nose to tail mantra, but also a great travel book - highly recommended by many.

IDEO EYES OPEN LONDON

By Fred Dust and IDEO

Trust one of the most inventive companies in the world to come up with an entirely fresh take on travel books.

World-renowned design firm IDEO shifts the attention of the traveler and everyday observer from mere sightseeing toward looking - really looking - at their surroundings.

City by city each book in the series reveals authentic discoveries at every turn.

Culled from the experiences and observations of the IDEO's designers, cultural anthropologists, and architects, these first two volumes delve into the social, architectural, and epicurean scenes of London and New York.

Insightful, easy to use, packed with photographs and presented in a convenient on-the-go format, "IDEO Eyes Open" rekindles curiosity and invites visitors - and residents - to see these cities with fresh eyes.

St. John features in what is, we think, a smart and attractive little guide to some of London's lesser known or overlooked highlights.

The Taste of France

By Robert Fresson

Fergus had this to say about Robert Fresson's classic book during his recent Financial Times interview...

"...there was another book that had no recipes but it is just the best food book ever: The Taste of France by Robert Fresson. To sit and look at the pictures gets you going and makes you want to cook. There are marvellous big ladies with rosy cheeks holding some buttery, yeasty doughs and things..."

Available again in hardcover, this glorious celebration of regional cuisine presents the beauty and traditions of the farms, markets, and tables of France. With 375 full-color photographs, 100 recipes, and a narrative description of the culinary customs of the fourteen great food regions, The Taste of France conveys a sense of the color, flavor, variety, and imagination of a meal in France. From Brittany to Lyons, Provence to Normandy, The Taste of France is a tribute to the legendary pleasures of French cooking.

Cooking of South West France

By Paula Wolfert

This cookbook presents a selection of classic dishes from South West France. The recipes make use of ingredients which the region has in abundance, such as wild mushrooms, truffles, duck, walnuts, chestnuts, hams, cheeses and wines.

The way in which ingredients indigenous to the country and locale the author inhabits are put to good use is an inspiration to Fergus in his efforts to ply the same husbandry at both St. John and Bread & Wine.

The Crisis Cookbook Volume 1

By Nick Lander (Editor)

The Crisis Cook Book has been edited by Nicholas Lander who has had the enviable job of being the Financial Times restaurant correspondent for the past 18 years and is a long time supporter of Crisis, the homeless charity.
During this period he has made the acquaintance of many of the top chefs around the world who have generously donated three recipes - their favourite starter, main course and dessert for this book.

The Crisis Cook Book comprises 84 recipes from 28 top chefs including Mario Batali, Paul Bocuse, Sally Clarke, Alain Ducasse, Chris Galvin, Mark Hix, Ken Hom, Simon Hopkinson, Tom Kitchin, Joel Robuchon, Rick Stein and Alice Waters, which have been converted into an easy-to-follow format by cookery writer, Silvija Davidson.
The second section includes ten introductory essays on wine by Jancis Robinson.

Nick is an old friend of St. John's and Fergus contributes a recipe for Steamed Treacle Pudding.

All proceeds from the book go to Crisis - the national charity for the homeless.

The Fifth Quarter

By Anissa Helou

Fergus and Trevor spent some time in Lebanon a few years ago and much enjoyed the culture of cooking, eating and drinking there. Anissa is an old friend of theirs and St. John's, and having already found a home on their own bookshelves, Fergus and Trevor thought The Fifth Quarter deserved a home on our book pages. Anyone cooking from the pages within will see the shared bond with Fergus's approach to offal at both his restaurants.

The Perfect Marriage: The Art of Matching Food and Sherry Wines from Jerez

By Fergus Henderson, Heston Blumenthal, Angela Hartnett and others

Tasting or grazing is the very latest food trend and teasing your palate with small tapas-style portions has become de rigueur for many restaurant-goers. Now such luminaries as Heston Blumenthal, Marcus Wareing and Angela Hartnett are encouraging us to bring this style into our kitchens. ’The Perfect Marriage’ reveals how cuisines from all over the world adapt to this way of cooking and eating - from sushi from Japan to chicken tikka from India to exquisite little French desserts. But the Spanish influence has not been eradicated and sherry from Jerez is suggested as the ideal match for this kind of food. Heston Blumenthal is the spokesman for this book and chefs from the finest restaurants in Britain have contributed five recipes each. Lavishly photographed and designed this is a book to cook from and to savour.

The Perfect Marriage includes recipes from Fergus Henderson and all proceeds from the sale of the book will go to The Parkinson's Appeal Charity, a cause very close to our hearts at St. John.

 

 

Eat London: All About Food

By Terence Conran, Peter Prescott & Lisa Linder

London is a city brimful of culinary possibilities from great gastropubs to trendy bars, lively markets and chefs (Gordon Ramsay, Heston Blumenthal, Jamie Oliver) at the top of their game. "Eat London" is not a restaurant guide - it is a book all about food and the people who make, sell, cook and care about it. From cafés to delis, the Indian food markets of East London to haute cuisine in Mayfair, food quality and originality is the main criterion alongside recognising good, interesting decor, comfortable furnishings, pleasant and interesting surroundings, a convivial ambiance, a sense of history or tradition, consistency and wonderful amusing personalities. Each chapter encompasses a specific area of London with full address listings for every entry and suggestions of itineraries or fun things to do. More than 60 recipes will appear throughout the book by some of Britain' s top chefs including Peter Gordon of Providores, Georgio Locatelli of Locanda Locatelli, John Torode of Smiths of Smithfield, Fergus Henderson of St. John, Rose Gray and Ruth Rogers of The River Cafe, Tom Conran of The Cow and Richard Corrigan of Lindsay House as well as recipes from some of the capital's favourite restaurants such as Fifteen, Le Gavroche, Coq d' Argent, Moro, Bibendum, Gaucho Grill, and Racine amongst others. All photographs are specially shot throughout and the text is full of anecdotes, stories and a sense of London streetlife.

My Last Supper

By Fergus Henderson, Anthony Bourdain, Mario Battali etc.

A vivid compilation of portrait photographs and interviews journeys inside the culinary world to offer an intimate study of fifty of the world’s finest chefs, who describe what their final meal would be and offer one recipe from each meal, with contributions from Jacques P pin, Mario Batali, Rick Bayless, Jamie Oliver, Gordon Ramsay, Giorgio Locatelli and Fergus Henderson. 

Pork and Sons

By Stéphane Reynaud

Winner of the 2006 French Cookbook Award

This May, Phaidon will publish Pork & Sons, by Stephane Reynaud. An authentic and intensely personal cookbook, Pork & Sons presents the reader with a multitude of ideas on how to cook fine and succulent pork, while giving a rare glimpse into the daily life of a small family business in rural France. Above all, Pork & Sons is a tribute to the pig: its 150 recipes are wholesome and rustic, encapsulating the flavours and taste of a region with stunning photography by Marie-Pierre Morel and charming, humourous illustrations of the pig by Stephane’s close friend Jose Reis de Matos. Pork & Sons is Phaidon’s third cookery title, following hot on the heels of the successful Breakfast Lunch Tea and The Silver Spoon. It was originally published in France to great acclaim where it has become a bestseller winning the French Cookbook Award for 2006.

Author Stéphane Reynaud grew up in the French town of Saint-Agrève where he was born into the long family tradition of working in the meat business. Both his grandfather and father were butchers in the region and Stéphane was introduced to the art of rearing and handling animals from a young age. When he was seven, Stéphane was taken by his grandfather early one winter’s day to buy a lamb. He was led into a restaurant where, even in the early morning, the room was full of locals enjoying steak. Stéphane believes this poignant moment was when he discovered his passion for meat and his desire to work in the family trade.

Stéphane, who is self-taught as a chef, owned and cooked in a bistro in Paris before returning to his roots at Saint-Agrève. He now splits his time between his home there and his acclaimed restaurant Villa9Trois in the Parisian suburb of Montreuil. The recipes featured in Pork & Sons are based on dishes served at Villa9Trois and, since the book’s success (Winner of the 2006 French Cookbook Award), Stéphane is now known as the ‘King of Pork’ across France and not just in his native Saint-Agrève.

In Pork & Sons Stéphane shares his recipes with us, invites us to indulge in his family’s age-old passion for the pig and celebrates the long, delicious history between man and swine. He is keen to stress his passion for the whole pig, stating, “I Iove the pig and like the pork”. Indeed, his genuine enthusiasm for the animal is a key feature of the book. Throughout Pork & Sons, Stéphane’s evocative family photographs introduce us to his grandfather and a somewhat eccentric collection of other relatives and workers on the farm in the mountainous Saint-Agrève, creating an atmosphere rich in ancestral tradition.

The 150 recipes are divided between 13 chapters, including one devoted to black pudding, another to sausages and another to ham. Recipes are interspersed with photography of the dishes by Stéphane’s close friend Marie-Pierre Morel as well as information about the various relevant culinary regions of France and delightful hand-drawn illustrations of the pig itself.

Pork & Sons is a colourful and vivid cookbook with a huge range of possible approaches to the selection, preparation and cooking of pork. It is an affectionate tribute to the pig, an acknowledgement of its sumptuous flavour, versatility as an appetizer or main course, and its great popularity around the world.

We were delighted to be chosen by Stephane as the UK venue to launch Pork & Sons back in February 2007 and feel it only apt that the book be featured on our site.

The Taste of Britain

By Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall (Foreword), Laura Mason, Catherine Brown

Much is made these days of British food culture. Chefs and food writers, myself included, are keen to tell you that it's thriving, it should be celebrated, it's as good as anything our Continental cousins enjoy. Yet sometimes it seems as if our words come rolling back to us, as if bouncing off some distant land mass, unheard and unheeded along the way, so that we begin to have trouble persuading ourselves, let alone others, that there is something here worth fighting for.

The fact is that if you spend much time in supermarkets, or amongst the proliferation of branded fast foods on any high street, or if you eat in any but a handful of UK restaurants or pubs, then the concept of regional British food can seem a bit like Father Christmas, or Nirvana. A lovely romantic idea, but it doesn't really exist, does it?

Well, yes, it does. And if you're having trouble finding it, it may just be because you are looking in the wrong place. The problem, in part at least, is that the best, most uplifting stories about British food culture are being drowned out by the cacophony of mediocrity, and worse. The Turkey Twizzler is front page news - and rightly so, when it is making pre-basted, additive-laced butterballs of our children themselves. Shavings of Turkey `ham' - 98 percent fat free, of course - are filling the sandwiches of figure-conscious office workers the length and breadth of the nation. But the Norfolk Black, a real turkey slow-grown and bred for flavour, is out there, too - waiting to show you what he's worth. He's not making a song and dance - just gobbling quietly to himself. Track him down, and you're in for a revelation.

That's why this book is so timely, so necessary - and so brilliantly useful. It's a map, an investigative tool that will enable you to leave behind the homogenous and the bland, and set off on an exciting journey to find Britain's edible treasure - some of which may turn out to be hidden on your very doorstep.

The Taste of Britain includes a contribution from Fergus Henderson from St. John on indigenous ingredients and why we should celebrate seasonal produce. 

Don't Try This at Home: Culinary Catastrophes from the World's Greatest Chefs

By Kimberly Witherspoon (Editor), Andrew Friedman (Editor)

Fergus Henderson contributes a tale of culinary misfortune to this raucous new anthology in which some of the world's most notable chefs relate outrageous true tales from their kitchens.

From hiring blind line cooks to butting heads with crazed chefs, these behind-the-scenes accounts are as wildly entertaining as they are revealing.

East Meets West

By B Jayson and J De Montfort

A celebrity cookbook in support of the Tsunami Victims in Indonesia and Sri Lanka. Featuring recipes by celebrity cooks, restaurateurs and food & wine writers. Featured among recipes by Jamie Oliver, Rick Stein, et al is a recipe for Spiced Ice Cream from St. JOHN's Head Baker and Pastry Chef Justin Piers Gellatly.

"East meets West" has been compiled by two British women, Barbara Jayson MBE and Jenny de Montfort, who met whilst living in Indonesia. Barbara was responsible for establishing The Foundation for Mother and Child Health in Indonesia and was recently awarded her MBE for charitable work. Jenny was born in Sri Lanka and has kept up close links with the island. All profits from the sale of the book will go towards the long term rehabilitation of children and their parents affected by the Tsunami.

Gorley's Guide, The Wines of the Languedoc-Roussillon

By Peter Gorley

This is a friendly guide based around wine routes that you can follow through the region, the photographs of and brief notes on many of our vignerons are to be found in its pages.

Langedoc Roussillon - The Wines and Winemakers

By Paul Strang and Jason Shenai

An area where we spend much time sourcing wines, a good book, well researched with a real sense that the author knows the place, featuring some of our vignerons, we have this in our reference library.

The New France: Complete Guide to Contemporary French Wine

By Andrew Jefford and Jason Lowe

Andrew has won or been shortlisted for just about every award for wine writing this year and this is one of the reasons why. Photographed by Jason Lowe who was the photographer on Fergus's book, so our support there!