America’s Test Kitchen – Book Reviews by the Reluctant Retiree

Mediterranean Instant Pot: Easy, Inspired Meals for Eating Well

Bringing together the #1 diet and the #1 most popular kitchen appliance, this Instant Pot-authorized cookbook makes it more convenient than ever to cook the Mediterranean way, incorporating more vegetables, grains, beans, and seafood into your diet, and exploring the healthful, authentic flavors of cuisines ranging from Turkish to North African in everyday one-pot meals.

Made in the Instant Pot, succulent meals such as Chicken Tagine, Lamb Meatballs with Couscous, Pickled Onions, and Tahini, Shrimp and Asparagus Risotto, and Gigante Bean Soup with Celery and Olives become hands-off affairs for the busy cook. The Instant Pot also takes the waiting game out of cooking dried beans and sturdy grains so it’s easy to enjoy them more often. And vegetables get star billing, both as main dishes (Braised Whole Cauliflower with North African Spices), and sides (Marinated Artichokes and Baba Ghanoush). Recipes embrace the tenets of the Mediterranean Diet Pyramid, translating its less-meat-and-more-vegetables approach into vibrant, healthy one-dish meals that take the guesswork out of balancing portions and multiple dishes. Most recipes are ready in under an hour. And full nutritional information is provided.

I bought this book when I first got my IP. I love how America’s Test Kitchen pays attention to the details. I have to admit that the first time I did more than just leaf through it was just recently. I wanted to make shrimp and was looking for a new recipe. I don’t make rice because my husband has problems with it. To my delight, there was a recipe using Orzo! Turned out really well. I plan to try other recipes as well.

J&J
TOP 500 REVIEWER VINE VOICE
5.0 out of 5 stars Top 5 Cookbook
Reviewed in the United States on December 19, 2019 Vine Customer Review of Free Product( What's this? )
I am virtually speechless... at how Amazing this book is, for All.
I mean, it's America's Test Kitchen, which if you don't know,
has made a living out of literally testing everything, in a kitchen, from appliances to recipes to store bought items.
If you want to know the best store bought chili mix to the best butter to bake with, ATK has tried it out.
They have a show on PBS around 8pm if you want to hunt it down.

So when they make a cookbook, and there is a new edition every year, you can trust it's right.
And this Instant Pot version is. Oh so right.
I dare say, it qualifies as a "Desert Island" cookbook.
One of only 5 you'd need for the rest of your life & the rare good for gifting cookbook.

Too many details to cover so, I'll highlight my faves.
One, adding a hand towel under the cover after you quick release your grains, like rice or quinoa,
and resealing while it sits, makes professional quality fluffy rice move from side dish to main course.

Two, it's not just Instant Pot items.
Simple recipes, like salsa verde, pesto, tzatziki, and of course spices but,
for those you need grinder/ food processor.

The cooking times are spot on.
Including the beginning pages with a cheat sheet for grains, beans, vegs & proteins.
Even a trouble shooting guide if you're new to, Instant Pot or, just cooking in general.
Ps, the foil sling for the salmon was The Best salmon ever,
including my addiction to Costco's pesto salmon. As easy to clean up as well.

As a no meat eater, in a meat loving household (yes, I do seafood but that's it),
the recipes with chicken broth translated so easy by subbing veggie broth.
Yes, there is a recipe to make your own but, Walmart's brand of Organic Veg Broth is the best I tried.
Obviously, I tried a lot. It's the only one with a rich veggie flavor, not salt, pepper or carrots.
So for under $3 @ quart, that's my staple, not making my own.

This is a book rich with winter comfort foods, light summer fare and a wonderful variety of flavor.
But the best part, and No, it's not the quick ease of the Instant Pot, is
with America's Test Kitchen attention to detail, you can be confident, even as a novice,
your recipe will come out right the first time.

JnJ love
4.0 out of 5 stars America's Test Kitchen is the best
Reviewed in the United States on December 7, 2020Verified Purchase
I like how they explain why a recipe works and now I can use my instant pot more. the only problem I have with their recipes is some ingredients are hard to find or you might only use a small amount and be lefty with the rest and not use it. So I just omit some of those and it is fine.

Ladyfingers
5.0 out of 5 stars Best Of Both Worlds--Greek/Turkish/North African Cooking Made Easy In An Instant Pot
Reviewed in the United States on December 13, 2019Vine Customer Review of Free Product( What's this? )
I couldn't wait for America's Test Kitchen to combine one of my favorite ways of cooking with some of our family's favorite foods. Mediterranean Instant Pot is chock-full of one pot meals, and the ingredient range is diverse enough to satisfy anyone's palate. We love lamb--this cookbook allows me to experiment with different cuts. The first recipe we tried was perfect for our cold Michigan winter day--Moroccan lamb and lentil soup. The addition of harissa makes it wonderfully spicy, and no need to head out to the store to purchase. The recipe for this condiment is also included, as are many others like hummus, baba ghanoush, basil pesto and tzatziki.

One unique feature common to all America's Test Kitchen cookbooks is format--every recipe is fully explained, starting with an introductory paragraph explaining why it works and where to get ingredients, to ending with detailed recipe directions and beautiful photo accompaniments to assure mistake-free end results. I'm a seasoned cook--the recipes found in this book are as suitable for me as they are for beginners. Besides great Mediterranean meals, the beginning of the book is loaded with helpful tips about instant pots as well as successful rice, bean, vegetable and protein cooking methods.

I couldn't be more pleased with these Mediterranean recipes, and using an instant pot makes them almost effortless.

The extravagant one
5.0 out of 5 stars A beautiful book with some superb looking recipes, but....
Reviewed in Canada on May 9, 2020Verified Purchase
Every single one of them seemed to include beans - which I intensely dislike - pasta or potatoes.
The latter I like but my husband and I are both diabetic, so guess what I am careful with and am trying - after nearly 20 years - to get him to cut back on: beans - which he loves - pasta and potatoes!
One person found this helpful

The Complete Diabetes Cookbook: The Healthy Way to Eat the Foods You Love

2019 IACP Award Winner in the Health & Special Diet Category

2019 James Beard Award Finalist

Take control of managing diabetes with a one-stop cookbook of 400-plus creative diabetes-friendly recipes. Meticulously tested recipes deliver exceptional flavor and maximum nutrition and provide a healthy way to cook and eat that truly benefits everyone but especially those battling diabetes. Complete nutritional information is provided with every recipe for easy reference.

Diabetes is a health crisis. America’s Test Kitchen’s urgent mission is to provide a path to healthier eating for anyone cooking for diabetes and encourage home cooks to get into the kitchen with a complete collection of great-tasting recipes. Vetted by a dietician and a doctor, all of the more than 400 inspired recipes maximize healthy ingredients and flavor while adhering to specific nutritional guidelines. Enjoy every meal with fresh and creative recipes for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, including options for entertaining, snacks, and occasional sweet treats.

Anne
5.0 out of 5 stars Very similar to The Complete Mediterranean Cookbook with overlapping recipes
Reviewed in the United States on November 11, 2018 Verified Purchase
As is Cook's Illustrated's pattern,there are many repeated recipes in their books. Still, I think it is worth having both the Mediterranean and Diabetes cookbooks as guides for more healthful eating. The major difference is that the Diabetes Cookbook's recipes include per 1-cup serving information (Cal, Total Fat, Sat Fat, Chol, Sodium, Total Carbs, Fiber, Total Sugar, Added Sugar, Protein, and Total Carbohydrate Choices). I am not a fan of diet books and their claims, however, the Mediterranean way of eating makes sense and for me is easy because I like the foods it promotes: a lot fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans, nuts, legumes and seeds; fish and seafood; poultry, eggs, cheese, and yoghurt (in moderation); wine and a lot of water.

The book(s) is well designed and provides a lot of helpful side-bar information. These recipes take well to everyday meals. None are overly complex and most are easy and good information is provided for the novice cook. Unlike most previous Cook's Illustrated cookbooks these are in paperback with a lot of colored photographs of finished dishes or information on certain ingredients or techniques.

If you want to become more adventurous and prepare more authentic Mediterranean meals (which I reserve for dinner parties due to the time involved) I recommend seeking out Elizabeth David, Paula Wolfert, and Joyce Goldstein's books.


Kris Abrahamson
5.0 out of 5 stars Great recipes! Too many carbs?
Reviewed in the United States on November 11, 2018 Verified Purchase
Many great looking recipes for diabetics or those who just like good, healthy food. I agree with the reviewer who said many meals appeared to contain too many carbohydrates, so use judgment with how many carbs you actually eat based on your specific medical plan. The idea that 25% of a diabetic meal could be carbs is common, but probably not a good idea for everyone. For those interested in halting the progress of diabetes, I recommend THE END OF DIABETES by Dr. Joel Fuhrman.


WIAPilot
5.0 out of 5 stars One of the BEST Diabetes and Low-Salt Cookbooks!
Reviewed in the United States on March 29, 2019Verified Purchase
My fiancé was recently diagnosed with Congestive Heart Failure. He is recovering now, but also is on dialysis, is a diabetic, and has high blood pressure. For him to have any quality of life at all, he is going to need to DRASTICALLY change his diet. We typically would eat out in restaurants or have fast foods. I didn’t cook that often, although I am a very good cook. This has to change and I ordered about 10 Lower-Salt Cookbooks and Diabetes Cookbooks. It was somewhat frustrating because I want to learn to cook with spices and herbs rather than with salt and sugar. This cookbook is absolutely one of the very best! I look forward to trying many of the recipes! It is laid out very well and has beautiful pictures! I cannot recommend it enough!


Steve W. Bonds
3.0 out of 5 stars Higher than expected carbohydrate content in recipes
Reviewed in the United States on January 17, 2019Verified Purchase
While this book does make some effort to use foods where the carbohydrate might be absorbed more slowly than usual, there are still a number of recipes in here that may not work well for many people with Type 2 Diabetes. Use your glucometer to be sure the foods work for you-- don't rely on the recipes alone to create healthy and safe meals.


LOL
5.0 out of 5 stars Healthy, quality recipes
Reviewed in the United States on November 20, 2018Vine Customer Review of Free Product( What's this? )Verified Purchase
The recipes in this book live up to the reputation of ATK. No question. There is a lot of variety and they choose quality ingredients. My only small issue with this book is because of some differences in opinion on how diabetics should eat. If you are on the super low carb side of the argument, you might find that this is too carb heavy (in terms of grains and starchy carbs). If you fall in the moderate carb camp, you will find plenty of options. Many of the recipes could be easily adapted to a lower carb lifestyle. I will use this a lot.

The Complete Cooking for Two Cookbook

650 Recipes for Everything You’ll Ever Want to Make

Because smaller families shouldn’t have to rely on recipes built for four or six, America’s Test Kitchen has reengineered 650 of our best recipes to serve just two. Over the years we’ve discovered that scaling down a recipe isn’t as simple as cutting the ingredients in half—cooking times, temperatures, and equipment need to be adapted as well. This comprehensive cookbook takes the guesswork out of cooking for two so you can be sure that anything you want to make—from Classic Beef Stew to Lasagna to a mini batch of Fudgy Brownies or a Fluffy Yellow Layer Cake—will come out right (and perfectly proportioned) every time. We’ll also give you options when you’re short on time. 150 recipes, including Chicken Saltimbocca and Pan-Seared Rib-Eye Steaks with Sweet-Tart Red Wine Sauce, can be on the table in 30 minutes or less. For those times when you want healthier fare, we’ve provided more than 100 recipes labeled “Light” such as Provencal Vegetable Soup and Poached Shrimp Salad with Avocado and Grapefruit, each with nutritional information listed in an easy-to-read chart in the back of the book. And we include chapters on for-two slow cooking, grilling, and baking pies, quick breads, cakes, and cookies. A 25-page manual teaches the basics of cooking for two, including clever shopping strategies to reduce waste, smart storage tricks help extend freshness of key ingredients, and our picks for the most useful kitchen equipment for any two-person household.

The reason given in the forward for this cookbook is really quite sweet. A neighbor, a man and his daughter, complained that about having too many leftovers after he cooked. After receiving hundreds of requests along the same line, the editors decided answer the requests. Then they discovered that cooking for two people required much more than just dividing the recipe in half!

This cookbook is the result of their work. I’m an empty nester so it was perfect for my husband and myself. I was so impressed I bought copies for both of my daughters! It was so great to see a cake recipe that wouldn’t leave me with enough cake to eat every day for a week!

Even better, IMHO, is the section in the beginning where they give some tips on buying for a smaller household. Tips for using up the leftover ingredients, smaller sized pans. These are all things I personally struggled with after my last daughter moved out!

Joe Gee
5.0 out of 5 stars Great explanations as to why the recipe works!
Reviewed in the United States on December 14, 2020 Verified Purchase
Great pictures, easy instructions, and really great recipes.


P. Warner
5.0 out of 5 stars Big Beautiful Book!
Reviewed in the United States on December 4, 2020 Verified Purchase
Lots of yummy recipes structured for one and two servings. Beautifully illustrated. Great for a gift so buy two...you will want to keep one.

Scott Barnard
5.0 out of 5 stars Awesome cookbook, every kitchen should have one.
Reviewed in the United States on December 3, 2020 Verified Purchase
A cook book that weighs 4 pounds, 450 pages, 650 recipes and information on everything from preparing food, the deferance between canned tomatos, how to cut meat and everything and anything that deals with cooking in between. If I could give it a 10 score I would. Funny thing is I have not made one recipes yet. By the recipes I've look at in this book, I will be making a lot of these recipes. And before I read a review of a reviewer that is complaining they have to send this book back because " it's to big, "there's no pictures", "to bulkie". I have this to say, stop your whining and do some COOKING!!!! This cook book uses common ingredients and common sense to make theses recipes. Yes it has common information that a beginning cook can use. And deeper information that over time a beginner can use. But the best part of this cook book is this. COOKING FOR TWO PEOPLE !!!!

Katie likes books
5.0 out of 5 stars Well thought out and informative
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 26, 2020Verified Purchase
Plenty of recipes and additional information regarding all aspects of food and cooking. Its complete in itself for 2 people wanting to stop waste.

Multicooker Perfection: Cook It Fast or Cook It Slow-You Decide

Multicookers such as the GoWISE USA and Instant Pot Duo are hugely popular; however, most recipes are unreliable or are designed to work in only one model of multicooker–and most often, they use only the pressure-cook setting. Enter Multicooker Perfection, a collection of foolproof recipes tested and developed to work in any multicooker and conform to your schedule. Make each recipe “fast” using the pressure-cook setting or let dinner cook while you’re out by preparing it “slow” on the slow-cook setting.

These crowd-pleasing recipes are perfectly suited for cooking at the touch of a button, from soups and stews like Easy Beef and Barley Soup and Chipotle Pork and Hominy Stew; to weeknight-friendly meals like Braised Chicken Breasts with Tomatoes and Capers, Ziti with Sausage Ragu, and Thai Braised Eggplant; to company-worthy dishes like Tamarind Braised Beef Short Ribs and Osso Buco with Sweet and Spicy Peperonata. Plus, you’ll find a chapter of unexpected recipes like Boston Brown Bread, Buffalo Chicken Wings, and even a perfectly creamy Cheesecake. Make cooking easier and better with this must-have cookbook for any multicooker owner.

I swear, my favorite new appliance in the kitchen is my Instant pot. I wasn’t sure just exactly what I could make in it other than soups and stews. Well this cookbook changed my opinion of that! The incredible range of recipes really surprised me. Cheesecake, really?

One of the reasons that I grab America’s Test Kitchen cookbooks is the way they explain everything. And I do mean everything! If there is something that you need to do different, they not only tell you “how” to do, they explain “why” you need to do. It makes following their recipes so much easier.

So if you’ve got an Instant Pot, grab this book. No, they didn’t rate the Instant Pot the highest, but every one of these recipes is doable if you follow the instructions. One of take away’s that I got from it is that anything you can do in a Slow Cooker, you can do in an Instant Pot!

Carrie 4.0 out of 5 stars America’s Test Kitchen’s Recipes Are Worth Trying

Reviewed in the United States on April 23, 2018 Verified Purchase Having actually used a jiggle-top pressure cooker, and learning that early electric models were hardly reliable, I waited a long time before trusting the wave of acceptance as serious. It appeared to have a learning curve, so I reviewed several multicooker cookbooks. And then I saw America’s Test Kitchen MP handbook. I have ATK’s Food Processor Perfection and now use my machine regularly. When MP arrived I devoured it from cover-to-cover. It was a disappointment to learn that my machine didn’t even come in second in the rating tests, but affected recipes did recommend how to adapt for the shortcoming of the brand due to temperature issues. I’d only tried hard-boiled eggs in my new cooker, so now turned to serious cooking using the North Carolina-Styled Pulled Pork recipe and was delighted with the result. (I also realized why one should order additional silicone gaskets when the results remained so fragrantly evident, even after careful washing.) Yesterday I made Macaroni and Cheese – YUM!
I like the “why this recipe works” lead-in, the occasional suggestions for variations, adjustments for cooker size differences. and the photos that accompany nearly every recipe. This book makes clear that, as long as the user follows the basic multicooker user’s manual, it’s difficult to make a mistake in the kitchen so feel free to adjust seasonings, etc. (I often include Pimenton de la Vera DOP by El Rey in savory recipes because of its lovely smokey flavor.) I definitely recommend ATK’s Multicooker Perfection, even if its recipes are primarily based on a discontinued machine. They actually work on all multicookers.

Creamless Creamy Tomato Soup | America’s Test Kitchen

There’s nothing quite as satisfying as making your own soup 🍜. This is a recipe from Cook’s Illustrated that I’ve made several times. It tastes so much better than the canned ones.

Plain tomato soup can be thin and sharp. Adding cream—the usual stodgy solution—merely dulls it. We wanted to tame the tartness without losing flavor.

America’s Test Kitchen

Practical Home-Cooking Resources You Can Count On

We’re all in this together. Let’s roll up our sleeves, wash our hands, and stay busy in the kitchen.

Friends of mine love coming to my house for dinner. I am a subscriber to Cook’s Illustrated/America’s Test Kitchen websites. I can find some fabulous recipes there. The middle of March they posted the following article. After the article is a link to the page containing the full article and a link to 50 recipes for your enjoyment!

Staying at home and cooking for yourself, your family, and your neighbors has never been more important. As always, you can rely on all of us in the test kitchen for resources to help you plan, shop, and cook for yourself and your loved ones. We are committed to serving as a resource to you every day.

We’ll be using this page to post articles and recipe collections that we think will help you feed the people you love in this unpredictable time. Check back often—we plan to add new posts every day about topics you’re looking for now: pantry-friendly inspiration, info on ingredient substitutions, and big-batch recipes you can freeze. We’ll even provide an occasional break from the norm by way of a dispatch from our test cooks and kitchen staff, who are all currently working from home.

We’re all in this together. Let’s roll up our sleeves, wash our hands, and stay busy in the kitchen.

P.S. To make our content even more accessible, we’ve taken some unprecedented measures. As part of our Keep Calm and Cook Sale, we’ve slashed all our cookbook prices to $19.99 (or less) and they’re ready to ship. We created a collection of 50 of the America’s Test Kitchen recipes you need now—and freed up access to all of them. We’ve opened up our ATK Kids website (so many recipes and fun activities, now free). You can also get every recipe, rating, and resource on all our sites with an all-access membership, now just $1 for 3 months.

America’s Test Kitchen

Recipe collection

Skillet-Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Lemon and Pecorino Romano | America’s Test Kitchen

Got 10 minutes? Try this simple recipe!

Anyone who knows me, knows how much I love the folks at Cook Illustrated and America’s Test Kitchen. The testing that they do on recipes is unbelievable. They elected to share a number of these with everyone during the current crisis. So, enjoy!

Have 10 minutes? You can make the best Brussels sprouts that you’ve ever tasted.
— Read on www.americastestkitchen.com/recipes/10260-skillet-roasted-brussels-sprouts-with-lemon-and-pecorino-romano