A comprehensive and extremely useful reference packed with facts about the foods on sale today, from flour to herbs to meat to condiments--what and how to buy, and how to look after and cook a vast array of ingredients Most professional cooks are now emphasizing that it is not complexity and elaboration that make for great cuisine but the quality of ingredients--sourcing the best produce at the right time of year, getting the best cut of meat and the freshest seafood, using the finest oils, vinegars, and spices. The difference between one variety of rice and another or one kind of olive oil and another can make or break a dish. With the revolution in fusion cuisine and molecular gastronomy and people's familiarity with foods and ingredients from around the world, supported by the increasingly broad range of supermarkets, the modern cook wants to know more about new ingredients and how to use them. This book leads the reader through the vast array of foods on sale, offering an A-Z of every staple ingredient to be found in the modern cook's pantry: where to shop, what to select, and how to look after it and incorporate it into your cooking. The book also offers recipes to get the reader started with new ingredients.