Secret Sauces: Fresh and Modern Recipes, with Hundreds of Ideas for Elevating Everyday Dishes Hardcover – November 7, 2017

For the last few years I’ve gotten more serious about cooking, inspired by the audacious goal that if you put some passion into it and have the right ingredients and tools, your food at home can be better than at a fine restaurant. To this end, I’ve spent a lot of time perfecting my low-and-slow BBQ technique on charcoal, and am having a blast with my Joule Souse Vide. But if you really want to impress your guests, you need the Secret Sauce.Case in point. I recently slow-cooked some corned beef on my charcoal grill to make pastrami. I then used that to make some Ruben sandwiches. But instead of squirting on some Kraft Thousand Island dressing, I put on a glob of Vanessa’s “Salsa Golf”. The result was the single best compliment I’ve ever got in my cooking. “Wow Roger, that was amazing. Food.Truck. Quality.” If I do say so myself, the smoked meat was incredible, but it was the *secret sauce* that put it over the edge.Recipe books typically focus on how to make the main dish, and might have a sauce recipe on the bottom as an afterthought. This book turns that whole concept on its head—it starts with the sauce recipe, and then gives a suggestion of what you could serve it with. The concept works amazingly well—it’s the kind of book where you start thumbing through the recipes and can’t stop reading. It isn’t just a list of recipes though—there are well-written explanations of what the recipes are trying to accomplish and why. I love the “extra credit” suggestions at the bottom of many of them that give a hint about how to make the sauce even better. The book is about learning how to experiment and make your food even better by kicking your sauces up a notch.The recipes are modern and fresh. Less garlic and an addition of mint in a chimichurri sauce? Mind expanding!The book would be a great gift. It is full of beautiful photos on high quality paper and high quality binding. You can tell I love this book. Get a copy for all of the foodies in your life!

Love the easy recipes and great flavors

Seder's collection of fresh and innovative sauces is cleverly organized for cooks like me who enjoy improvising in the kitchen. Each sauce is paired with a recipe suggesting how it might be used, as well as "extra credit" ideas that riff on the sauce or give additional thoughts about how they might be used. But really, if you like the look of a sauce (and the photos are very tempting), you're encouraged to try it out on your own.Sauces are organized into 8 basic categories: Creamy, Tangy, Herby, Fruity, Nutty, Spicy, Chunky(i.e. salsas), and Confectionary.So far I've tried three of the sauces and all were quite successful. The Pistachio Créme was delicious with some seared char.I really like that the collection includes updated riffs on some classic sauces. For example, my family is strongly pro-anchovy, but for those that aren't, you might try Seder's Walnut and Sage Bagna Cauda. It's very rich and fragrant, and I can imagine pairing it with many meals. (OK, when I made it, I snuck in a few anchovies anyway.)

Haven't had a chance to use it yet but I like that there are pictures that go with the recipes.

For average cooks, who find that life and energy wane by the end of the day, the idea of figuring out something to make for supper can lead, instead, to, "Where do you want to eat?" And, why do we pick restaurant X or diner Y? Is it because they cook their protein or pasta in some unbelievable way? Probably not. The reason we select our eating establishments, is likely because of the sauces.This book provides 1) numerous sauces, organized by respective bases (mayo, pesto, etc.), 2) provides thought-provoking food suggestions on which the sauce can be applied, 3) optional ingredients that can transform the personality of each base sauce, and 4) at least one full-blown recipe for which the sauce is one ingredient. The book paid for itself in its first week. Nice pictures and food histories and origins, too.

Good for home cooks but nothing secret about these sauces. Great format and it is informative in a cool way for beginners to sauce making. Pretty good for throwing party food lacking flavor or flare. It gives you a recipe that’s pretty good and then guides/challenges the more ambitious cook to interpret them in your own way with a practice/homework/creative section for each sauce. Not much content for the price though.(I am a chef though so home cooks please take my opinion lightly)

This little book gives you more than just sauces. For each sauce, it gives you variations and then (the most inspirational part) a few suggestions for using the sauce. These are brilliant. Do you make the same dozen meals over and over? With this book, I think you could go a year and have something different every night.

Love the concept of this book. So many of things I cook need "a little something" and this collection has such surprising possibilities. There's nothing complicated in the prep and the ideas are inspiring enough to plan an entire meal around. For example, there's a Pomegranate-Lemon Reduction that would be poured over Fried Cauliflower. Now, cauliflower isn't my favorite, but this sauce would be the driving force to prepare it and really enjoy it! This book is full of ideas that transform everyday fare into something really special. Quebecois Maple Butter, anyone?