“Gourmet Today offers a thoughtful, thorough portrait of the way Americans are eating, documenting a cuisine that seamlessly incorporates ethnic ingredients, farmers’ market produce, vegetarian entrees, and quick-cook staples, plus plenty of cocktails. This big green book isn’t the yellow one you bought your mom for Christmas ’04. Not with recipes like Korean bulgogi, farro risotto with cauliflower or Afghani dumplings. Your mother might not make the recipe for David Chang’s Momofuku pork belly buns, but chances are she’d try the pork shops with fennel-pomegranate salsa, and you should, too. Like many of dishes in the book, it’s simple, satisfying, and pretty au courant. Thank you, Ruth Reichl. Come back soon.”
— New York Times 2009 Holiday book roundup
“...a good go-to reference...Gourmet has found a way to deliver every night — a guarantee that though it may be gone, it won't be forgotten.”
— T. Susan Chang, NPR's 10 Best Cookbooks of 2009
“It’s a keeper.”
— Kansas City Star
“When your neighborhood supermarket routinely stocks grass-fed beef, celeriac, and quinoa, chances are you need a book to tell you how to use them, and Gourmet Today is just that book. It’s a comprehensive reference for the educated cook and eater, a book that will teach you about ingredients and inspire wonderfully satisfying meals . . . It’s a book for modern palates and modern cooks. And if you have recently sent your college-aged child to strike out on their own, I would strongly recommend sending them a copy of Gourmet Today.”
— Serious Eats
“Boldly confronts the new face of a changing food landscape . . . [a] smart companion for the contemporary kitchen.”
— Houston Chronicle
“[Gourmet Today] means some practical — and fairly genius — additions [to The Gourmet Cookbook]: an entire section on vegetarian entrees, a section on grilling, and an opening section on drinks, including everything from frozen margaritas to Kashmiri masala chai. Taking into consideration all the time constraints of the modern condition, most of the recipes can be made in less than 30 minutes. The cookbook editors have also clearly been paying attention to issues like sustainability and growing popularity of Old World ingredients: most seafood recipes include substitution suggestions, and you’ll find more recipes including ancient grains like farro and quinoa and vegetables like heirloom tomatoes and purslane. Will Gourmet Today bring the same satisfaction of Gourmet (Yesterday)? . . . I’m actually more than willing to drop the 40 bones it takes to find out.”
— Seattleweekly.com
“Reichl amasses one of the most comprehensive cooking resources available ... Comprehensive, appetizing and thoroughly tested, this mammoth collection is the book no kitchen should be without.”
— STARRED review, Publishers Weekly
“This 1,000 page and 1,008 recipe book is a response to the food revolution begun (in part at least) by Julia Child and Alice Waters. Cookers and eaters have changed . . . We have ingredients available to us that were unheard of a few years ago. Cooking shows on television have educated us about ‘flavor profiles,’ and the balance of acidity, sweet, and salt. Also, the time we’re willing to spend on weeknight meals has changed. We all want fresh, quick, and delicious; is that too much to ask? Basically, it’s a new culinary world and Reichl, Gourmet magazine’s editor in chief, is leading the way. She includes all of the to-be-expected chapters of soups, salads, fish, poultry, and meats. But there is also a decent chapter on Vegetarian Main Courses. A huge chapter on Vegetables. And six separate chapters on desserts! She includes almost 30 pages of menus (I love that) . . . All in all, a great addition to the always-at-hand cookbook shelf.”
— Patti (www.queenannebooks.com)