Tim Anderson - Japaneasy
Japaneasy by Tim Anderson was my first Japanese cook book and I was excited to dive into it. What really shone out of this book was Tim's passion for all things Japanese which was fantastic to read and really made me smile. I love reading about passions people have because you cannot help but get caught up in it and want to try the recipes contained within the pages.
Tim appeared on Masterchef in 2011 and he went on to win the series with a trio of burgers dedicated to LA, Tokyo and London, all cities that had shaped him. After winning Masterchef Tim went on to open a Japanese soul food restaurant called Nanban although this has since closed.
Another thing I loved about this book is how it really got me interested in trying Japanese cooking and I started googling ingredients I had never come across before and I really do love having these things in the cupboards just in case at some point I decide to make something.
As with a lot of cookbooks I have, the fried chicken drew me in and was actually the first thing I tried. The different fried chickens from different cuisines never fail to amaze me. Take a simple piece of chicken, put different spices on and you get something so different. The karage chicken was absolutely incredible. I have heard before how popular fried chicken is (did you know that KFC even opens on Christmas Day in Japan?) and so was really pleased there was a Japanese fried chicken in this book. The JFC instantly stood out. There is a gorgeous crab croquette recipe that we need to try, I mean, what is not going to be to love?
Tim starts the book with reasons people generally give to not make Japanese and he covers them all off, it is well written and will make you laugh. It is not all sushi and noodles and the dishes in here will inspire you. This is such a lovely book, if you want to start with Japanese food at home, this is the book to get. I am still not so sure on matcha but that's perfectly ok. The book is laid out nicely making it a very easy read and I love that the edges are blue, it is nice to have small details that make it stand out. Tim's personality shines out of the book and there are some very funny little quips like ‘totes not diffy’ and ‘much less difficult than coming up with another way of saying not difficult this far into the book’. It is very well written and with Tim's confidence oozing out you also feel confident cooking and so need no special skills, although there will be ingredients you need in order to be successful.
If you want to get into Japanese cooking and are from the West then this is probably a great book to get as it will ease you in, not overwhelm you and make you feel you can make anything in this book, I highly recommend it.
Recipes 7/10
Readability 7/10
Knowledge learnt 6/10
Total 20/30