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The Oxford Companion to Food
Twenty years in the making, the first edition of Alan Davidson's magnum opus appeared in 1999 to worldwide acclaim. Its combination of serious food history, culinary expertise, and entertaining serendipity was recognized as utterly unique. Including both an exhaustive catalogue of the foods
that nourish humankind-fruit from tropical forests, mosses scraped from adamantine granite in Siberian wastes, or ears, eyeballs and testicles from a menagerie of animals-and a richly allusive commentary on the culture of food, whether expressed in literature and cookbooks, or as dishes peculiar to
a country or community, the Oxford Companion to Food immediately found distinction.
The study of food and food history was a new discipline at the time, but one that has developed exponentially in the years since. There are now university departments, international societies, and academic journals, in addition to a wide range of popular literature exploring the meaning of food in
the daily lives of people around the world.
Alan Davidson famously wrote eighty percent of the first edition, which was praised for its wit as well as its wisdom. Tom Jaine, the editor of the second edition, worked closely with Jane Davidson and Helen Saberi to ensure that new contributions continue in the same style. The result is an
expanded volume that remains faithful to Davidson's peerless work. The text has been updated where necessary to keep pace with a rapidly changing subject, and Jaine assiduously alerts readers to new avenues in food studies. Agriculture; archaeology; food in art, film, literature, and music;
globalization; neuroanatomy; and the Silk Road are covered for the first time, and absorbing new articles on confetti; cutlery; doggy bags; elephant; myrrh; and potluck have also found their way into the Companion.
that nourish humankind-fruit from tropical forests, mosses scraped from adamantine granite in Siberian wastes, or ears, eyeballs and testicles from a menagerie of animals-and a richly allusive commentary on the culture of food, whether expressed in literature and cookbooks, or as dishes peculiar to
a country or community, the Oxford Companion to Food immediately found distinction.
The study of food and food history was a new discipline at the time, but one that has developed exponentially in the years since. There are now university departments, international societies, and academic journals, in addition to a wide range of popular literature exploring the meaning of food in
the daily lives of people around the world.
Alan Davidson famously wrote eighty percent of the first edition, which was praised for its wit as well as its wisdom. Tom Jaine, the editor of the second edition, worked closely with Jane Davidson and Helen Saberi to ensure that new contributions continue in the same style. The result is an
expanded volume that remains faithful to Davidson's peerless work. The text has been updated where necessary to keep pace with a rapidly changing subject, and Jaine assiduously alerts readers to new avenues in food studies. Agriculture; archaeology; food in art, film, literature, and music;
globalization; neuroanatomy; and the Silk Road are covered for the first time, and absorbing new articles on confetti; cutlery; doggy bags; elephant; myrrh; and potluck have also found their way into the Companion.
907 pages, Hardcover
First published October 14, 1999
24 people are currently reading
984 people want to read
About the author
Alan Davidson
68 books7 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews
November 7, 2010
God I love this book. If your'e a food nerd you can simply open it to some random page and you will loose hours. Pound for pound there simply isn't any one book on the subject to match it, though it's certainly not a place to find a recipe. You need to be the kind of person who can happily read pages about the Cashew, or the prevalence of fermented milk drinks in Central Asia, to love or want this book, but if you do, its time to start saving.
August 12, 2008
the editorial review above has the whole concept covered quite accurately. this is the encyclopedia of food: individual ingredients, techniques on cooking them, what different cultures have done with them. i've spent the past couple of evenings with this one on my kitchen table, looking up what i was making for dinner that night, and being both intrigued by the depth of knowledge one could have on pita (for example) and amused at the way that knowledge is presented. i don't know that anyone would be able to just sit down and read straight through this one. much like any other encyclopedia, you'd pull it off the shelf to look something specific up. unlike the traditional encyclopedia, you'd stay to wander off somewhere else, like a foodie hardcopy version of the wikipedia.
March 1, 2019
When I still cooked, I did refer to this reference work. Comprehensive in entries and displayed beautifully, This Oxford Companion remains a quick reference when I read about food, look at recipes, or simply sometimes browse.
Obviously, great care and attention to detail defined Alan Davidson's research and editorship. This is the second edition, edited by Tom Jaine. I understand that maybe not many people would add this work to their libraries but I am glad to have it in mine.
Obviously, great care and attention to detail defined Alan Davidson's research and editorship. This is the second edition, edited by Tom Jaine. I understand that maybe not many people would add this work to their libraries but I am glad to have it in mine.
March 28, 2011
Did it change my life? Perhaps, I was given this the year it came out from my parents, it was seminal in helping me journey through the world and business of food for the last decade.
Typical entry gives an exhaustive background on thousands of subjects and objects within the realm of cooking, eating and food. No recipes here - (where would they put them?) A certain element of humor rides beneath this compendium of culinary clarity.
Typical entry gives an exhaustive background on thousands of subjects and objects within the realm of cooking, eating and food. No recipes here - (where would they put them?) A certain element of humor rides beneath this compendium of culinary clarity.
August 22, 2014
Fantastically presented and edited encyclopaedia of food. Full of both useful information and amusing asides, this is a book any food connoisseur would love.
Until I read this, I had no idea how much I didn't know about a subject that is essential to our lives. I know I'll be dipping into this for years to come.
Until I read this, I had no idea how much I didn't know about a subject that is essential to our lives. I know I'll be dipping into this for years to come.
July 13, 2017
I recently added this massive volume to my editorial reference library and, now that I have, I'm wondering what took me so long. The illustrations are beautiful; the writing is elegant and comprehensive; and each entry is a joy to read. I was lucky enough to find a used copy in pristine condition. Now I just have to find a shelf strong enough to hold it.
January 3, 2019
Literally an encyclopedic source for all things food. No illustrations, just the usual lots of dry yet informative British archival work. I would not know who to recommend it to, although there is nothing innately wrong with it. Belongs in a library, and probably not a personal one.
March 16, 2019
This is definitely meant to be a reference book than something to read completely from cover-to-cover, but a magnificent reference book it is! It's very comprehensive, full of detail, and contains any and all information you might want to know provided it's food related: ingredients, phrases, plants, animals, so forth and so on. If you're a foodie, a cook, or a general knowledge nerd, it's worth having a copy.
February 6, 2022
Resurrection cheese. Dirty Anglo-Saxon onion ditties. Borderline pornographic descriptions of some mushrooms. This book never disappoints.
I bought this book with the intention of learning how to cook, starting at aardvark and ending with zwieback. I have not yet obtained aardvark, but I've spent many enjoyable evenings flipping through this book, learning about the astonishing array of food out there in the world.
I bought this book with the intention of learning how to cook, starting at aardvark and ending with zwieback. I have not yet obtained aardvark, but I've spent many enjoyable evenings flipping through this book, learning about the astonishing array of food out there in the world.
August 7, 2017
"The Oxford Companion to Food" is a richly informative book.
January 11, 2019
Interesting to read about different food.
Read
July 6, 2019BBB by v
March 12, 2023
This book belongs to a very rare category: books that are largely unknown and that few people reference, but that are absolute stars and with no equivalent or replacement. Stumbling upon it is like finding an unknown 3-star Michelin restaurant in a small town in Kansas that is 20 miles from any freeway!
I am absolutely delighted to have found this book, by Alan Davidson, the British diplomat turned food writer who disappeared way too soon! For a few years I have been doing food and ingredients research of a fairly arcane type. Every find comes hard earned, and with many hours of research. The Oxford Companion to Food is fabulous resource, thorough, well researched, and rarely missing what you need.
I am a very thorough researcher myself, nearing the obsessional, really---but Alan does not disappoint me! I have found many of my research subjects impeccably published by Alan, with very few gaps if any. Better---for me at least---I have already found several items for which I needed information impeccably listed with sources by Alan.
The book is so pleasantly written that I was able to read it from nose to tail like a fiction book, all 862 pages, from Aardvark through Zucchini, plus the introduction :-) It can be obtained used for a few dollars, which may well be the the best value for the dollar 9or the penny) for any food book I know.
This book truly delights me. I enthusiastically encourage everyone interested in a reference to ingredients to get a copy!
I am absolutely delighted to have found this book, by Alan Davidson, the British diplomat turned food writer who disappeared way too soon! For a few years I have been doing food and ingredients research of a fairly arcane type. Every find comes hard earned, and with many hours of research. The Oxford Companion to Food is fabulous resource, thorough, well researched, and rarely missing what you need.
I am a very thorough researcher myself, nearing the obsessional, really---but Alan does not disappoint me! I have found many of my research subjects impeccably published by Alan, with very few gaps if any. Better---for me at least---I have already found several items for which I needed information impeccably listed with sources by Alan.
The book is so pleasantly written that I was able to read it from nose to tail like a fiction book, all 862 pages, from Aardvark through Zucchini, plus the introduction :-) It can be obtained used for a few dollars, which may well be the the best value for the dollar 9or the penny) for any food book I know.
This book truly delights me. I enthusiastically encourage everyone interested in a reference to ingredients to get a copy!
November 23, 2012
Too many expensive "reference" books and food "encyclopedias" are no more than glorified recipe books, or pretty-picture coffee table fodder. Recipes you can pick up in just about any cook book, or free on the internet. What is harder to find is a book like this.
It doesn't waste valuable page space sneaking in recipes you probably already have in double or triplicate from other food books. Instead, it concentrates on delivering a mine of information about almost every kind of major foodstuff, cuisine, method, term and diet and all in clear, easy to read prose with just enough detail to sate most curious appetites! (Pardon the pun).
It's a weighty book and for something that will probably be used for many years, it really needs a stronger spine (I have a feeling my copy will crack and start losing pages soon). Other than that, I have absolutely no hesitation in recommending it. Without all the theatrics and obscure/obsolete references, I think it even gives Larousse Gastronomique a run for its money. Its certainly a bargain at the price.
October 3, 2014
Obviously I haven't read this book from cover to cover (yet!!!), but wanted to wait a while (from receiving it as a Good reads giveaway) before reviewing it until I'd had some genuine opportunities to seek info from it. This orange beast sits on my cookbook shelf next to the kitchen table and whenever we have a query about the origin of a food, how it could be used, or indeed what the food actually is we can flick through and find the item easily. Items are listed alphabetically just like an encyclopedia. So far this book has delivered well, heck it even has information about the foods we've looked up that we didn't even know we wanted to know and inevitably after researching the initial food of interest I find myself browsing other items on the same page. The only thing I feel is missing is comprehensive nutritional value and benefits information. Other than that this book is a gem which will continue to serve it's purpose throughout my lifetime. A fabulous companion and source of info for any foodie.
September 27, 2013
I've had this book for some time and have had a lot of fun randomly dipping into it now and than. Being the sort of family that we are, we have also spent a lot of time looking up answers to food-related questions in it.
In search of breakfast reading (and possibly inspired by the fellow who read the OED in a year), I recently began flipping through the alphabet. Reading whatever caught my eye on the next letter's page has been amusing, educational and surprisingly literary given the sometimes wide-ranging references.
I have no time limit but am going to see how long it takes me at this leisurely pace to read the whole thing. I'll update when I've finished a letter of the alphabet (Q or U will surely be one of the first, won't they?).
In search of breakfast reading (and possibly inspired by the fellow who read the OED in a year), I recently began flipping through the alphabet. Reading whatever caught my eye on the next letter's page has been amusing, educational and surprisingly literary given the sometimes wide-ranging references.
I have no time limit but am going to see how long it takes me at this leisurely pace to read the whole thing. I'll update when I've finished a letter of the alphabet (Q or U will surely be one of the first, won't they?).
December 28, 2015
Although a few items are missing from this book, either due to spelling or different varieties of the same dishes throughout the world, this book is great for finding out about items that you know little about. In an age of Google it is still nice to have a hard copy of something that describes sixteen different date varieties from Asharasi to Zahidi.
Not often you find a book that comments on General Dwight D. Eisenhower offering cooking suggestions on adding nasturtium to vegetable soups.
I won't say I have read every word, but over a ten year period I have browsed through and read entries that I am interested in cooking with or simply used it as a food history and dictionary.
If you like food this should be on your shelf.
Not often you find a book that comments on General Dwight D. Eisenhower offering cooking suggestions on adding nasturtium to vegetable soups.
I won't say I have read every word, but over a ten year period I have browsed through and read entries that I am interested in cooking with or simply used it as a food history and dictionary.
If you like food this should be on your shelf.
April 9, 2012
Written by renowned culinary writer Alan Davidson, "The Penguin Companion to Food" is "an essential resource for anyone with a serious interest in the central place of food in human life." In addition to the encyclopedia entries, it also includes essays on food history, food and culture, and food science. It's a wonderful resource, but it's similar to "The Deluxe Food Lover's Companion," and I prefer that guide for some reason. Despite my own bias, I can't knock this one - there's a wealth of good information here too.
December 21, 2015
As I got this through a giveaway, I wanted to read it cover to cover to make sure I could give it an accurate review, but it is more a reference guide than something you sit and read.
For the past few days, I have been picking it up whenever I have something to eat and looking up whatever it is. All of the entries are thorough and very detailed. It is a real encyclopaedia of food.
If you are looking for reference book to tell you about cooking and food, I don't see how you could do any better than this.
For the past few days, I have been picking it up whenever I have something to eat and looking up whatever it is. All of the entries are thorough and very detailed. It is a real encyclopaedia of food.
If you are looking for reference book to tell you about cooking and food, I don't see how you could do any better than this.
February 26, 2008
Enyclopedic, covers all food everywhere, even things like medieval cookery. Necessarily limited definition of the same, but still takes up 4 pages. Love it. No index.
October 19, 2008
Ever wonder where fat-tailed sheep live? Or the history of dumplings? If so, this is the book for you. It's an indispensable kitchen reference.
January 2, 2009
Porn for Foodies. What else can I say...
August 28, 2009
This book was a birthday present to me. I love reading about everything from aioli to different kinds of organ meats.
December 24, 2009
A good, but by no means complete or all encompassing compendium to gastronomy. Larousse Gastronomique & interestingly, the Food Lovers Companion make up the trifecta of food reference.
May 11, 2010
The encyclopedia of food. I love it.
February 22, 2011
This was an Honorable Mention for the Dartmouth Medal for 2000. For the complete list, go to http://ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/rusa/aw...
March 9, 2011
Bought this $30 book at Half Price Books for $7! What a gem to have in my library!
June 9, 2012
W A I T I N G to get this as a birthday present!
(But no pressure...)
:)
(But no pressure...)
:)
April 9, 2014
A great reference book to have, when you are looking up some relatively obscure plant or ingredient.
November 29, 2014
There are so many cookbooks out there but this is diffident, is authoratitive and is worth the money.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews