Cookbook: Falling Off the Bone

the appetizer:

Falling Off the Bone by Jean Anderson includes recipes like Glazed Sweet-Sour Spareribs; Crofter's Lamb and Potato Pie; and Bavarian Rouladen.

Falling Off the Bone

by Jean Anderson

Click to buy Falling Off the Bone

From Jean Anderson, one of America's most respected food writers and cookbook authors, comes Falling Off the Bone, 163 lip-smacking recipes that use the more economical cuts of meat to best advantage and to the hilt. You'll find here the simple soups and stews, pot roasts and Swiss steaks that our grandmothers cooked and served with t.l.c.—only Anderson gives them a contemporary spin for today's cooks, kitchens, and tastes. But that's only the beginning. Also here, the curries and chilies and other world classics—lusciously photographed—that prove how truly special the tougher, cheaper cuts of beef, veal, lamb, and pork can be when cooked with love and respect. For anyone who has swooned over a bite of Beef Bourguignon or marveled at their mother's supremely succulent pot roast, Falling Off the Bone is a must-have.

And that's not all. Falling Off the Bone teaches how to tell brisket from butt and oxtail from Ossobuco, how to recognize top-quality meats, and how to master the techniques of braising, slow-cooking, and stewing, which magically turn sinew into meat so tender it barely needs a fork. And talk about flavor! Divided into four chapters—Beef, Veal, Lamb, Pork—each begins with a nutritional profile; offers shopping, storage, and freezer tips; and so that you'll know exactly where the tough cuts are located, provides anatomical drawings of beef, veal, lamb, and pork.

In their rush to put dinner on the table in thirty minutes or less, busy home cooks have forsaken the soups, stews and pot roasts that laze away gaining tenderness and flavor every step of the way—best of all, little "baby-sitting" needed. The toughest veal shank slowly simmered in broth is magically transformed into a fall-off-the-bone-tender Ossobuco. A bony beef tail stewed with vegetables becomes a deeply flavorful and nourishing Oxtail Soup.

The most satisfying and soulful meat dishes don't cost a lot of money—they just take a little more time—make that unattended time. Falling Off the Bone includes family favorites from around the world—recipes that Anderson, herself, has enjoyed at home and abroad. Among them:

Braised Breast of Veal Stuffed with Artichokes and Toasted Pignoli—a strut-your-stuff recipe that's perfect for a small dinner party, and—make a note—it's easier than it looks.
Rogan Josh— a delicate Indian curry that turns sinewy lamb shoulder surprisingly tender
Onion-Smothered Chicken-Fried Steak—a jazzed up version of the Southern classic
Milwaukee "Brew" Stew—a lusty beer-simmered, caraway-scented pork and onion stew that showcases this city's German heritage

Cooked lazily in a stewpot, Dutch oven, or slow cooker, even the humblest cuts emerge more flavorful, and, believe it or not, more tender than the priciest steak at the butcher shop. And oh, my, the money you save!

It's time to embrace the home-cooked food that brings the whole family to the table with ready smiles and eager appetites. With Falling Off the Bone, you'll discover what our grandmothers knew all along: eating "high on the hog" doesn't mean blowing the budget. Moreover, these soups and stews, chilies and curries, muddles, meatloaves and more are as easy on the cook as they are on the budget. Who could ask for more?

About the Author

Jean Anderson, the author of more than 20 cookbooks, has written articles for Bon Appétit, Food & Wine, Gourmet, More, and other national magazines. A six-time best cookbook award winner (James Beard, IACP, and Tastemaker), she is a member of the James Beard Cookbook Hall of Fame and a founding member of both Les Dames d'Escoffier and the New York Women's Culinary Alliance.