Affable Essex boy Jamie Oliver continues the British culinary invasion with The Naked Chef Takes Off, the smashing follow-up to his bestselling The Naked Chef. For Oliver, the young Food Network import, food is all about passing the potatoes around the table, ripping up some bread, licking my fingers, getting tipsy, and enjoying the company of good friends and family, and cooking up what real people at home really want. The thing is, real people picking up cookbooks are often seeking easy-to-follow recipes. But that s not Oliver s bag. The layout of many of his recipes may frustrate traditional-cookbook readers--instructions often appear as one big chunk of conversational text with nary an ingredient or measurement in clear view--but that s part of the charm of Oliver s cookbooks. His commentary, tips, and cooking steps come across in a very approachable, colloquial style and leave plenty of room for individual flair or improvisation. Oliver s enthusiasm for cooking is infectious, the ...

#Number 1 (2004-01-07) This guy will convince you that you can do any recipe you want, He inspires you to cook. I ve never done one of his recipes with the same ingrediants twice and rarely fully follow his own seasonings but he gives a great base to start with and experiment. Alot of other chef s dont like him but what can you say when the people who eat his recipes love it. all five books are worth buying

#Superlative Chef and Fantastic Food (2003-09-13) I watched Oliver s very first TV program in England and admit that I was going to be very critical (I was working as a Chef at the time with my own restaurant). When the half hour show ended I was enchanted with the young man and his approach to food and life. I never missed another show all the time I remained living and working in England. I have all three of his books and they are all great. He is so enthuiasitc about food that you can t help but be caught up in the joy of cooking and sharing your efforts. Since his success ...

#Awesome (2003-03-20) I ve never written a review for any book before, but I had to for this one. I ve had the best food of my life from the recipes in this book. For example, I bought this book about 3 months ago, I eat pasta daily (literally) and for the past 3 months *every day* I ve used Jamie s sauce on my pasta. Before that I used about 30 different store-bought flavors. The amazing part is how simple *and healthy* it is: Plum tomatoes, olives, olive oil, salt, and pepper - that s *it*. Cooked properly, it s perfect. I also made a shrimp dish that was awesome. Forgot what i...

#Yum! (2003-02-06) Wonderful every-day ingredients elevated to new heights. Who knew simple foods could be, well, so simple! And so delicious! Even a vegetarian (like myself) can use most of the recipes, by either omitting meat all together or substituting it with soy-based products. I have to give Jamie major props for promoting organic foods!Besides this being an excellent cookbook, it s an excellent read. The writing style is sharp, witty, conversational and warm. I cannot recommend it highly enough.

#Book for all cooks (2003-01-04) I ve been a big fan of the FoodTV since I got cable and I ve always been extremely impressed with Oliver s approach to raw cooking. He s innovative methods of using fresh ingredients make the his dishes just a little different than others. I found myself anxiously flipping through the pages when I first got it as a present. The colorful pages and the exotic but simple ingredients in his receipes made me drool. The boldness of his cooking as well as his creativity are very displayed. I was a little sad about not having outdoor markets such as on...