Get Togethers: Rachael Ray 30 Minute Meals
by Rachael Ray

When I first saw Rachael Ray on the Food Network, I thought she was something of a lightweight appearing alongside Wolfgang, Emeril, Mario, and Bobbie. It didn't take me long to change that opinion. This book sustains that good opinion.

The book is simply 30 Minute Meals 3. It's recipes and menus are taken directly from the scripts of the Food Network show 30 Minute Meals. This is a good thing. If nothing else, it insures that the recipes have been run through with several pairs of eyes more than once and it saves one the time required to download the almost always good recipes from the Food Network web site. It also means that you have a foolproof visual aid to show you exactly how it can be done in 30 minutes. And, at a very affordable list price of $22, discounted to below $20, I'm sure, this is a very economical resource.

The book is not pure foodie fare in that it makes a judicious use of prewashed and cut vegetables, boned and skinned meats, prepared stocks, cake mixes, and frozen foods. It is not, however, a revivial of the food culture of the 50's where building meals from packages and cans was heralded as the sensible way for the housewife to prepare dinner quickly and easily. Rachael makes abundant use of fresh raw materials such as lettuce and pancetta, and makes the application of extra virgin olive oil and garlic into something of a mantra.

At the same time, this is definitely not fast food. As Rachael states on numerous occasions, her cuisine is a remedy to fast foods, which I heartily endorse. The overriding virtue of her books is that she not only presents recipes which can be done quickly, she presents whole menus which, in theory, can be done in 30 minutes, and shows how to switch from one preparation to the other, so as she does on TV, the whole meal can be done quickly. Her success in accomplishing this feat is more than worth the reasonable price of admission.

As Rachael will be the first to admit, few of her recipes are original. Many are fast lane versions of classic dishes. Many others are adapted from older books. I recognize, for example, a dish made in 10 minutes with canned tomatoes and frozen green beans which are based on a Paula Wolfert classic which can cook for over an hour. Rachael spends a lot of time reading old cookbooks!

For those who may not know of Rachael's work, there are some caveats. First, finishing a typical Rachael Ray menu in 30 minutes of real time is a stretch for the average cook. I have never seen Rachael cheat on the screen, but her pace can only be sustained by someone who really knows her way around the kitchen, has a kitchen which is very well laid out to fit her style, with plenty of work room and plenty of high end pots and pans. It also helps that all ingredients are right at hand. It also helps to be a thirtysomething who knows the recipes by heart and can keep in constant motion for 30 minutes. Another caveat is that there are several cooking techniques such as braising and roasting which simply cannot be done in the 30 minute window. Rachael relies heavily on the grill pan and the broiler. Fancy techniques are also absent, although this is probably a good thing for non-foodies. There are no omlets, but plenty of their Italian cousin, the frittata. I also have some qualms about not washing the 'pre-washed' greens and some of the additives which may come along with the few prepared foods she does use.

Lastly, there are some pet peeves. First, using the 'evoo' abreviation for extra virgin olive oil at every single occurrence is a REAL bother. Every other cookbook I have ever read simply says 'olive oil' and makes it plain once that it always means extra virgin olive oil. Even Mario Batali isn't that compulsive about olive oil. Second, stating some measurements in two different ways, the exact teaspoon or tablespoon fraction followed by the 'handful' or 'once around the pan' is simply unnecessary. Giving the precise measurement is great, and far superior in a book to Jamie Oliver's glugs or Tyler Florence's counts, but the second hip measurement is unnecessary. Everyone who cooks works out their own methods for approximating precise measurements. Just say at the beginning of the book that one can use their own judgement and leave it at that. Third, the expression of fractional quantities is simply wrong. One may say 2 and 2/3, but it should NEVER be written that way. It is just distracting.