On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen Book

Once upon a time, I was expressing my frustration with books on cooking to a chemist friend -- primarily that most books on cooking treat cooking as this magical art. They presume lots of knowledge on the part of the reader and they give directions that theoretically make the food what it's supposed to be, rarely explaining WHY you want to cook this meat at temperature x or mince this thing instead of slice, or whatever. I wanted something that answered a bit more of the Why?

This friend suggested that I hunt down something on the topic that approached things from a scientific perspective, and while looking I stumbled upon McGee. It's certainly less front-to-back readable than I would have liked, and more encyclopediac. And while it has not exactly unlocked the black art of cooking for me, it's a great resource book to have in the kitchen. Any time I'm using a technique or ingredient I haven't used before, I consult Good Harry McGee. And it's a pretty well-written and researched book too (with lots of great historical context), and as such, it's fun to pick up and read random sections from, on occasion.