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68 of 70 found the following review helpful:
 Hooked on Wolfert Nov 11, 2009
By Francois
"Trout Hound"
This is my third book by Paula Wolfert. I intend to get all of them. Her books are not just full of recipes, but also contain relevant background information and insights into other cultures. I'm especially interested in learning more about cooking in clay. So this is the perfect book for me. In addition to the material in the book, you'll find more information about Paula's methods on eGullet's forums. I came across a thread on tagines and another on how to cure claypots. Paula contributed to both threads. Her knowledge, enthusiasm, and curiosity are amazing. It also speaks well of her how she encourages others on the forums. Clearly, a very neat lady.
Now the warning: you may end up with a house full of a new class of toys. So far I've accumulated a Chinese sandpot (which I cracked making a Wolfert recipe and successfully repaired using Paula's instructions), four different tagines, an Emile Henry Flame Top dutch oven, two Roemertopf's, a Japanese donabe, a Spanish Cazuela, and a Baeckeoffe oval tureen from Alsace. Regrettably, I'm not done yet. I still want to get some Black Chamba Clay Cookware and perhaps a daubière... unless my wife puts me out of my misery first.
Update (1-21-2010):
I've made numerous recipes from the book by now: Moroccan Fish Tagine with Tomatoes, Olives, and Preserved Lemons (for which I bought an inexpensive Rifi Tagra), Fried Spatchcocked Chicken (made in an Italian mattone), Moroccan Chicken Tagine with Sweet Onions and Raisins, Baked Moroccan Chicken with Charred Tomatoes, Moroccan Lamb Tagine with Winter Squash and Toasted Pine Nuts, etc. , etc. They were fun to make and tasted wonderful. Some recipes are easy to make and some require patience and dedication. There's a thread on eGullet that deals with cooking from this book. Its title is Cooking with Paula Wolfert's "Mediterranean Clay Pot Cooking" You'll find some pictures, experiences, and hints on this thread, should you need help. Paula contributes here as well.
Update (2-17-2010):
I'm still happy with this book and I'm cooking at least one new recipe from it per week. My two recent favorites were "Chicken with Red Wine Vinegar, Tomato, and Shallots" and "White Beans with Tomatoes and Sage." The latter required making the beans before, according to another recipe: "Tuscan White Beans with Sage and Garlic." The beans were just terrific with the tomatoes and sage. It was an instant favorite for us while it was also one of the easiest recipes to make. I used my Chamba bean pot for this dish. (It's winter now in Colorado and it feels nice to put one's cold hands on the warm lid of the Chamba while inhaling the wonderful aromas escaping from the pot.) I'm completely sold on cooking in clay, thanks to Ms. Wolfert. Her book serves as an instruction manual on how to utilize the various clay pots available by providing the recipes that are best made in these pots. Months after I bought the book, I still have clay pots coming in on a regular basis--not that I *must* have them, but because I'm hooked. (Paula says in her book that 75% of the recipes can be made in just six different pots.) I'm also a fan of Ms. Wolfert's style of presenting information, which is not at all dry. As of today, I own all of her books.
28 of 28 found the following review helpful:
The Flavor Explosion Cookbook Dec 11, 2009
By Thomas D. Wirt
"clay coyote pottery"
Paula Wolfert's new book, "Mediterranean Clay Pot Cooking" will end up being a seminal work for the new - old way of cooking, in clay pots. There are the old style pots of mica rich natural clays, and the new high tech flameware ceramic stovetop cookware by people such as Bill Sax, Terry Silverman, Emile Henry and the Clay Coyote Pottery.
Clay Pot cooking seems as though it's becoming the third leg of the natural and local foods nutritional stool. As Paula points out, food simply tastes better when cooked in clay. When you combine it with local, fresh foods, your eating will move to a new level.
Paula has approached this book with her usual masterful presentation of authentic recipes from Morocco, France, Italy, Greece and more, but made them more approachable by adding alternative ingredients and alternate cooking methods for different pots. You can cook these dishes in the usual metal cookware, but if you go the extra step and find some clay pots or flameware pottery, you'll find out what I mean when I say these are "flavor explosion" recipes. It is no wonder a number of top lists have made this the number one cookbook for 2009.
35 of 39 found the following review helpful:
 Clay Pot Cookbook Review Jan 30, 2010
By Egyptian Swede
The book needed more editing. I have made two recipes from it and both had errors. One called for olives in the list of ingredients but failed to mention when to add the olives. Another said to heat the oven to 400 degrees and then never used the oven.
I would also like a picture of the different pots. The recipes call for so many different types of pots and I have no idea about the shape of some of them.
9 of 9 found the following review helpful:
An outstanding authentic book for the experienced cook Jan 27, 2011
By Lisa Nicholson
I adore Paula Wolfert's cookbooks, and this has been a fun addition to my cookbook library. If you are buying it, you should know that making the recipes "authentically" does require some specialized cookware. I have purchased an 11 inch cazuela and a Pommaireware 4 quart clay pot, and this combo allows me to make most of the recipes without additional stuff. Some of the recipes could be easily adapted to a crockpot, but I don't think the flavor would be quite the same. Something magic seems to happen to stews which are slow cooked clay, an observation which is made several times within the pages of this book.
Paula Wolfert is the queen of the slow food movement, and many of the recipes in this book require 2-3 days of small steps before the final dish is ready for the table. For example, marinate on day 1, simmer for hours on day 2, chill overnight, shred meat, strain sauce, reduce sauce, reassemble, slow roast for several hours, eat late on day 3. Definitely reserved for weekend cooking, this book is leading me to a series of Sunday night dinner parties! So far, I have made one of the daube of beef dishes, served alongside the fabulous potato gnocci. It was worth every minute of the prep time.
If you are looking for a book for mid-week supper ideas, this will not be your book. I've made several of the fish dishes which take about 90 minutes to prepare and each has been delicious. These are the "fastest" recipes to prepare in the book.
There are a few things I particularly love about Paula Wolfert's books, and they are all true about this one:
1) Her recipes are truly authentic. This often means a trip to the Mediterranean grocery store as part of the preparation, and there are some ingredients which will simply not be available without the internet for people living outside of large cities.
2) There are no short cuts in these recipes. Each step IS important, and she does an excellent job of explaining the reasons for seemingly extraneous steps.
3) The recipes are impeccably tested. I modify recipes without even realizing I've done it, and I find little reason to change a thing when cooking from this book. Paula has been correct in her measurements right down to knowing how many bone segments would be in 3 pounds of short ribs!
If you are a patient, experienced home (or professional) cook, willing to take the time to make each step a meditation, you should enjoy this book as much as I do.
8 of 8 found the following review helpful:
Discovering clay pot cooking Sep 20, 2010
By jenniwren
I try to discipline myself to avoid buying cookbooks that might sit on the shelf but the recipes in this book were so innovative and interesting that after a trial run with a library copy I purchased it. It is a very personal cookbook with recipes taken from individuals and optimized by Paula Wolfert. I really liked the ethnic mix of recipes -Turkish, Italian, Spanish - plus the detailed information on different types of clay pots, their care and uses. I already have a Romertopf, got a sand pot and will be visiting Coyote Clay Pottery in Hutchinson MN to get a cazuela and chicken roaster. The results from cooking in this medium have been delicious-roasted eggplant, tomatoes roasted with rosewater, lamb roasts etc. This is already one of my regular cookbooks and one I consult before and after a visit to the Farmer's market.
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