5 Best French Cookbooks (Reviews Updated 2022)

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Is there anything not to love about France? Whether it’s their culture, fashion, the French people, and most importantly, the French cuisine. French cuisine is one of the most admired and enjoyed cuisine all over the world.

The French cuisine is known for its sophistication and taste, and complexity brings out something wonderful and delicious for every palate. After all, with such precision and elegance, it is hard to achieve French cuisine at home, but if you have a French cookbook, you have better chances of doing so. To bring you the best collection of French cookbooks, we have some of the most loved and admired French cookbooks that will help you ace French cuisine.

Best French Cookbooks

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Here are our French Cookbooks reviews:

1. Mastering the Art of French Cooking

Mastering The Art Of French Cooking

A renowned French cuisine master and an author of French cookbooks, Julia Child, has French cookbooks that are valued and praised worldwide. Part of the reason is her easy use techniques and a great combination of all classic French recipes in her cookbook. It is safe to say that she has translated the French cuisines to English natives to become easier and interesting.

And no need to worry about the extensive and fine French cuisine because this cookbook is specifically crafted by keeping beginners of the French cuisine in mind. She has played with the kitchen tips and explains all the steps you need to do, from buying the ingredients, cutting, chopping, dicing, cooking, and presenting a perfect meal on your plate. Even if you are a beginner or haven’t even cooked ramen, you can start your cooking journey with this smart French cookbook.

The recipes are extremely easy to follow and do not contain complex French names; everything is broken down into simple and basic steps. Once you begin with this cookbook, you will discover yourself enjoying French cuisine.

Why do we like it?

  • Ideal for beginners
  • Easy recipes
  • Well-explained cookbook.
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2. Around My French Table

Around My French Table

Who wants to set the table full of French dishes? We know you do. This is your way to the French cuisine and hosting a perfect French dinner with nothing that doesn’t reach the mark.

This cookbook is graced with more than 300 purely french recipes, and you will get everything from veal chops to Basque potatoes and all kinds of steaks and soups. The author has emphasized creating dishes that solely represent France and enjoy the French culture all over the world. And the best part?

All the recipes in this cookbook are extremely simple to ace, and they also belong to classical French cuisine. You won’t be surprised by the tough french names as the instructions followed to make a complex fancy dish are just too simple to grasp. If you spend enough time with this cookbook, we can guarantee you will be a great french chef, let alone a French home cook.

Another great feature about this cookbook is that it is not limited to any meal. Whether you are looking for breakfast, brunch, lunch, or dinner, you can find everything for every occasion. Not to forget, the collection of desserts and appetizers is praiseworthy.

Why do we like it?

  • It has over 300 recipes.
  • It offers different kinds of recipes.
  • Easy cookbook.
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3. The French Laundry Cookbook

The French Laundry Cookbook

No, it doesn’t teach you how to do your laundry French style, but it has many delicious recipes, all from Keller’s famous French restaurant. Keller’s restaurant is one of the top-rated restaurants for traditional and conventional french cooking that satisfies the palate. You will find all the special items from the Napa Valley-based restaurant in this sophisticated cookbook.

Now a common chef would be wondering how to make restaurant-style recipes at home? But that’s the specialty of this cookbook. With the instructions and guides entailed in this cookbook, you won’t find yourself getting worried about the fancy french names. The instructions are too simple and easy to follow that it seems like a child’s play (Well, not the actual one).

This cookbook has more than a hundred and fifty French recipes, each one laden with simple ingredients and great flavors. You can easily take each recipe each day and will have enough choices for months, and who knows, you get hooked to a single recipe so much. After all, it’s Keller’s cookbook we are talking about.

And with Thomas Keller being the author of this cookbook, there is no chance that you could miss the original and classic French recipes of old times. Don’t think too much because this cookbook sells faster than anything.

Why do we like it?

  • From one of the Top French Chefs
  • Easy recipes
  • It has 150 recipes
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4. The Escoffier Cookbook

The Escoffier Cookbook

We agree we are raising the bar a little too high with this cookbook. But to cater to the professionals and chefs who want to grace their restaurant and commercial kitchens with professional french cooking, something expert is needed. This cookbook has over 3000 french recipes.

According to the critics, Escoffier is the encyclopedia of smart cooking techniques. This cookbook’s complex part is that unlike the French cookbooks for beginners, this book does not translate the french terminologies. The whole reason behind this is aimed at an audience that is already familiar with a certain degree of french cuisine.

After all, why would a professional chef spend their time on beginner’s level all over again? This cookbook is a lifestyle in the French world, and it is over 900 pages long. You can find anything and everything from the French cuisine, and with the 2500 short recipes, you can enjoy a great taste in your kitchen with a fresh french aroma.

To expand your restaurant’s cuisine and try out something wonderful without ordering experts from France, this cookbook is your opportunity to widen up your restaurant menu.

Why do we like it?

  • Ideal for professional cooks and chefs
  • It has restaurant-style recipes.
  • Tasty and professional recipes.
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5. Let’s Cook French

Let’s Cook French

As the title suggests, this cookbook takes you all French. This is an entire family cookbook where any family member can pick a recipe, follow the instructions and achieve the results. Moreover, you can also hold family cooking competitions with this cookbook and who knows, you can achieve the best results of all.

This cookbook is the place to get started if you are not familiar an inch with french cuisine. It is an ideal way to make your way into the world of french taste and delicacies without comprising too much of your time and ingredients. As named as a family cookbook, it pertains towards easy-to-make and friendly recipes.

Not only is it for the English reader, but this cookbook is both in English and french. It is also a great head start for your young chef who wants to hold on to cuisines from different parts of the world. You and your kid can bond over the easy french recipes and enjoy some quality time in the kitchen.

Why do we like it?

  • Ideal for kids and adults
  • Beginner’s level french cookbook
  • Easy instructions.
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French Cookbooks Buyer’s Guide

The adventures with French cuisine are a great story, especially when you have been a newcomer to this side of the culinary world. As much as Italian has gained popularity over the years, many regions of the world can now smartly ace Italian dishes but with French? It gets a little complicated.

To find the best French cookbook for you, here are certain factors you need to keep in mind.

Time

When it comes to cookbooks, the time, they have been running and ruling the market is of great importance. As cookbooks grow and become famous solely upon how useful and helpful customers find it so with a French cookbook, the most important factor you need to consider is the edition. Any cookbook with a 10th or 12th edition has more chances of offering some great insights into the French culture.

Also, it means that many people have tried this cookbook and liked it, so the publishers had to print out another edition. A cookbook that just came na vanished doesn’t seem too promising.

Easy instructions

Learning a whole new cuisine is not an easy thing, especially when it’s French. French are the maestros are complications are their meals and dishes are no exception. To begin with the French cuisine and remain steadfast on it, you must make sure to find a French cookbook that has easy-to-understand instructions. The ingredients, the procedure, and the recipe should all be explained in a language and tone that is understandable for you.

Level of Cookbook

It is not wise to buy a professional-level French cookbook when you are just a beginner. This will bring your morale down when you don’t understand the thing about the French cuisine, but it will also increase the chances of you messing up in the kitchen, which nobody would like to happen.

Uniqueness

The French cuisine is vast, and this goes without saying to enjoy the cuisine, you must be willing to take a risk with the diversity. Don’t just stick to French desserts but also expand your horizons to French starters, appetizers, main course, snacks, and everything.