Product Description

In Jacques Pépin: More Fast Food My Way, the man who taught millions of Americans how to cook shares the techniques he honed in the most famous kitchens of the world to show you how to create simple, special meals in minutes. Jacques shows you how to create great-tasting dishes ranging from stunning salads to main courses to desserts - all special enough for company, yet easy enough for those weekday evenings when you have no time.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #11481 in DVD
• Brand: PBS
• Released on: 2009-01-06
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Box set, Closed-captioned, Color, DVD, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 3
• Running time: 780 minutes

Customer Reviews

fast foods with black summer truffles and a dash of spanish saffron? your order will be right up!
Jacques Pepin returns in a 3 DVD disc set that is a visual companion to his book of the same name, both a sequel to the original series Fast Food My Way. In a way, the Fast Food series are a testament to a long distinguished career, showcasing how all those years and experience can culminate in the most difficult frontier for any master in his craft: simplicity.

8 Episodes per disc, each beginning with an idea for a quick, throw-together dish appetizer ("minute" recipes), a warm welcome from Jacques and a 30 minute episode comprising of a 1st course, a main dish, and a dessert. Wine pairings are also gently suggested, with type and region noted.

Each show features combinations that are presented as menus at the end of book equivalent. Knowing how to match dishes to compliment the palette is, in itself, an art form.

The recipes have an international expanse (although onion, garlic, "good" olive oil, chives, parsley, and sour cream seem to be the recurring staples), ranging from seafood Paella (tried this recipe: delicious!) to baked lobster loafs using hot dog rolls, sauteed mustard greens with spicy Italian sausage, New England style chowder, middle eastern coucous with veggies, pork medallions in pomegranate sauce, tibetan bread (ready in 15 minutes!) shrimp with cabbage and caviar, almond paste Mont Blanc and Salmon Pizza on lavash bread, and my favorite one, potato gnocchi with eggs and truffles. There is also some simple but surprisingly elegant looking desserts that will sure be a delight to guests, ranging from apricot clafoutis to cherries in Armagnac sauce, and a fancy raspberry tart on cookie dough. Daughter Claudine joins him for a few episodes, providing light banter and added familial warmth. You can get a taste of the menu of this 3 dvd set by having a peek at KQED's website's Pepin page.

The basis of Pepin's "Fast Food" is the edict that you should look at your supermarket as your prep cook. "Make your supermarket work for you!" So whether it be something as obvious as rotisserie chicken (you make the sauce), cream cheese, prepacked salmon, canned caviar, seedless raspberry preserves, or the controversial truffle oil (which Pepin wisely hints, only contains the "essence" of truffles), jarred alcaparrado, pre-cut lobster tails, salsa, you will wisely cut down on your time by using one or two bought, pre-made items. Also, it helps to pre-prepare some of the ingredients to your fast food, whether it be pre-cut, pre-rinsed onions (to rid it of sulfuric acid), chicken stock, or lamb stew cubes.

Keep in mind however, that a big contributing factor to the "fast" in Pepin's fast food is the instructor himself. Head chef to France's president de Gaulle, resume entries from Howard Johnson to the Russian Tea Room, departmental dean of New York's French culinary institute, and cooking professionally for over 60 years, this is also the man who can famously remove every bone from a chicken with merely a slash..AND keep the whole chicken intact... in 20 seconds. As long as you understand this, you won't feel set back when you have to account for just a tad little additional time in the preparation of Pepin's "Fast Foods." Still, consider the time well-spent, because you will definitely be able to dazzle your guests in both taste and presentation. An added treat is seeing some of his complete techniques being demonstrated in practice.

Now, a little about Pepin's personality. All great artists train us not only to enjoy beauty in life, but also to find new ways of seeing beauty in our surroundings. Pepin's Masters degree in French poetry certainly contributes to his delight when he comments on the beauty of pieces of vegetables and fruits or his crystalline observation that "the recipe is only the expression of the moment," a comment that instantly aligns cooking with jazz improvisation. His eye for proportion and balance in composition is evident even down to the way he tops a tomato with a garnish or cuts a skirt steak to show you the insides: it's almost painting with food. Yet his instructions are casual and his gentle resonant voice is warm and inviting. Pepin sips coffee or wine at the beginning or end of the shows, adding to the welcoming atmosphere. At one point, you can even hear the film crew chuckling when he winks at the camera and says, "don't tell the guest I ate half his egg."

You may be able to watch some of these shows online. But with the dvds' crisp sound quality (the sizzle of a sautee, the knock of knife on chopping block, and of course the instructor's voice) and excellent resolution and definition, the sensual and beautiful pleasures of cooking is a delightful gift from Jacques Pepin and his way.

A MUST Have for any Chef's Shelf!
Ah, Jacques Pepin....master of all things cooking. This series is wonderful in it's simplicity. You'll learn the basics of paring an apple, spatchcocking a chicken and to really make a great hollindaise. Pepin is featured in a simple kitchen with minimal distractions. He doesn't talk much about anything but the food he's preparing. (nice change from some of the "gabby" chefs of today). Very good on basic technique and simple food prepration. When you get the box, you'll think it's small but there are 13 hours worth on 3 DVDs.

Great Cooking Classes
This is a great DVD of Jacques continuing series on PBS - Fast Food My Way. In this series you get simple recipes that have that gourmet WOW factor. The receips are easy to prepare, make a great presentation and taste delicious. Mini Savory Cheescakes and Scrod (fish) Packages are favorites. If you can buy the cookbook and DVD of the series together you will really enjoy both.