Jamie's Ministry of Food: Anyone Can Learn to Cook in 24 Hours

Although I enjoyed good food as a child (we had cooks in our family-owned hotel), my mother was completely disinterested in cooking, to the point that she could literally get it wrong trying to microwave a curry ready meal ("oh Mum, how do you manage to get the rice so crispy?"). When I left home for uni aged 17, I was able to make a pot of soup, but that was it - I didn't even know how to cook macaroni and cheese... fast forward several years of living off ready meals or jars of cook-in sauces... Then, back in 2008 I saw a copy of this book in Sainsbury's, and although I hadn't watched any of Jamie Oliver's TV programmes, I bought the book on impulse.The first recipe I tried, the bacon and pea conchiglietti, was extremely quick and easy - and delightfully fresh and delicious! I was hooked on cooking from that moment, and still remember my delight when I made chicken chow mein the following evening, and it, too turned out perfect! Utterly excited, I roped in my partner to tackle some of the more involved meals, and within a fortnight, we were cooking perfect roast dinners, with delicious home-made gravy, light and crispy yorkshire puddings, perfect roast potatoes, juicy carrots in a bag, and green beans with sticky, stringy parmesan - what a delight after decades of ready meals and lacklustre cook-in sauces!This book also triggered a love of gardening, as I quickly discovered that it wasn't possible to rely on the supermarket to have the desired herbs in stock when needed - even a window box would be useful if you don't have a garden.From this first cookbook, I have become an avid cook, these days making my own pasta, cooking curries from scratch, grinding my own spices, and an avid follower of Gordon Ramsey and his more sophisticated recipes. This has become extremely important to me since discovering that I am gluten-intolerant, and have effortlessly been able to adapt recipes to suit a gluten-free diet. I would never have been able to do any of this had it not been for this wonderful book. Thank you Jamie!Since then, I have bought copies for my brother and a young friend who left home and needed some recipes - both very well received, and also made a huge difference to the quality of their diets.To the person who was complaining that some of the recipes are for 4 or 6 people, most of the recipes store well in the fridge, and are also suitable for freezing too. When my partner's elderly parents became unable to cook for themselves, I would spend one day a month in the kitchen cooking a month's worth of dinners for them, filling the freezer with a variety of tasty meals that they could simply reheat without any trouble. The more you use this cookbook, the more you will want to share your skills by cooking for friends and family. Just do it!

Good fast service from seller (WOB). I use this book regularly but the different cover fooled me. One is the UK version, with metric and the other is the US version (Revolution). Great book for beginner cooks, I originally bought the book for my daughter in about grade 10. I will give this version to my son when he moves out. Good simple recipes with variations.

Reciepies and information very goodReally like this book

keep buying his cookbooks and as of now have pretty good collection of Jamie's creations. I am his long time fan , who got hooked to his recipes and cooking styles watching his shows on TV and Youtube. All of his books are excellent.: nicely written and well illustrated. certain ingredients may not be available in Indian market, however you can go ahead and substitute them if possible. you will end up developing your own recipes ))

Very easy to follow, lots of ideas and a good present for any young ppl moving out of home for the first time!