The Oxford Companion to Food

The first edition of this magisterial work appeared 15 years ago, the fruit of over 20 years of labour by Alan Anderson, who retired early from his diplomatic career as ambassador to Laos to pursue a new career as a food historian and writer. This edition contains a tribute to Alan by the editor, which conveys a vivid impression of his personality. The current edition contains alterations of some 250 entries and 43 new ones. It is a most extraordinary volume that deserve space on the shelves of any food enthusiast. There are entries on individual countries and their traditional foods, a huge array of individual foodstuffs, history of English and French cookery books (also individual food writers), cheeses, fish, sausages from various countries, meats, puddings and generic dishes. At the end, there is a 20 page bibliography in three columns, which gives some indication of the erudition behind the volume. The book is also very well written and a source of all kinds of quirky facts. We learn, for instance, that the croissant only makes its first appearance in a recipe book in 1905. There is also a lengthy explanation about the difference between an ordinary croissant and a croissant au beurre, which is actually sure to have butter in it, although Alan observes that the cheaper version is preferred by some people because it is easier to dunk in coffee.