How To Boil Water: The Confidence-Building Cookbook for Beginners with Food Network Recipes

This is such a great entry level cookbook, I have very limited skills and was looking for something easy to understand and with simple ingredient's and this delivers. I like that there’s also lots of pictures of what it’s supposed to turn out as well. Super recommend!

This is a fantastic book! I'm a self taught cook in the kitchen and consider myself a good cook, but this book has helped me to become even better. It is full of helpful advice and detailed instructions about preparing the most basic of foods that most of us enjoy on a regular basis. It is a must have for new cooks or for those starting out life on their own, which includes cooking all those foods that mom used to. It has simple and easy to understand instructions. It gives definitions of cooking terminology. Great and delicious recipes! The lasagna was amazing! Better than my moms! You won't regret your purchase on this book. It is definitely worth every penny!

Let's start with a disclaimer: I've never cooked and it's always been intimidating to me. However, I'm 24 now, and I decided to buy a beginner's cookbook. Well, I bought this cookbook 2 weeks ago and I have already mastered five delicious recipes: pasta, green beans, soup, fried eggs, and brownies. I served them to friends, to rave reviews! The best thing about this cookbook (besides the pictures) is how the recipe will include even the smallest, most seemingly obvious details (instead of saying "cheese," it will say "use a handful of freshly grated Parmesean and grate it with a box grater"). I never knew how much better pasta tastes with fresh herbs and freshly grated cheese, but now I do! My only complaint about this cookbook is that it's VERY meat-heavy, so if you are a vegetarian like me, you can only use about half of the recipes (sigh). Otherwise, a life-changing gift for yourself or someone else.

This cookbook is great for those new beginners who are just trying to get a handle on basic cooking skills: how to correctly boil an egg, how to create a sauce, how to tell when things are done, etc. It contains a great blend of core recipes (pancakes, eggs, brownies) with a few more creative recipes thrown in. If you have already been cooking for a while, I'd probably skip this one just because it really does focus on the basics. However, I did learn that my mother's way of boiling eggs was totally wrong! This would make a great gift for a college grad, someone getting their first place, or young newlyweds who can't afford to eat out for every meal!

This a really good book! I grew up in Texas and my "culinary" instructors were my mom, aunt and grandmother. I know how to cook all the down home meals they cooked...by sight and memory. No measuring, etc. A massive amount of basic cooking terminology and proper skills didn't make the rounds in my family. This book gave me an education I was not expecting from a basic cookbook. And it was fun! I was kind of skeptical of a lot of the basic, broken down recipes...until I tried them. Basic is good! Very good! I plan on getting copies of this book to my college kids. Every cookbook fan should have a copy of this book in their library.

The perfect cookbook for my college-age boys who want to "eat-in" their apartment several times per week. The other "college cookbooks" I'd seen were too advanced, even for "clueless in the kitchen" college students. This one has VERY basic instruction on how to tell when meat's gone bad (pretty obvious from the smell alone, but again, CLUELESS) and how to hold a knife (my oldest is 21, and still holds his pencil the wrong way--and he wants to be a writer). They mainly want to cook eggs 20 different ways and have a few "go-to" dinner recipes that are simple and fool-proof. This fits the bill perfectly. Oh yeah, and the pictures will motivate them to actually do it!

I bought this for an ex-boyfriend after he called me once to ask how to make blue box mac and cheese. I read the book before gifting it to him and loved it so much I bought a copy for myself. The first time he cooked I supervised but otherwise, he did everything himself and plated up a dish that was totally Instagram-worthy. The mustard chicken is my go-to date night chicken dish, and the crispy garlic broccoli is a regular at my house. I use this as a reference if I'm unsure of a cooking method, temperature, or whatnot. The book gives you a few basic recipes in every category - from dips to dinners you could easily serve to your mother on a Sunday. A great book for beginners and experienced cooks alike.

You don't know how little you know about cooking until you are on your own and in college. I did not know how to boil water and as it turns out, I also do not know how to properly crack and egg. Or at least I didn't. This book more than prepared me for college so I could cook for myself and prevent myself from having to eat ramen noodles my entire college life which would have been boring and not very nutritional. The pictures, instructions, and recipes are very great and I found the meals delicious. I highly recommend this book for new cooks or people who have never cooked before.

This was a gift for a family member who needs to learn how to cook. I read through it before giving it over to make sure it's appropriate for her skill level (what skill is that?). It has super basic introductions and really explains the basic techniques - it's an awesome book for someone who just plain doesn't know how to cook eggs. Well done.

I bought this for my boyfriend because as much of a good cook that I am, I am so tired of cooking. I tried to teach him but I learned that I have no patience for that. This book really grinds down to the basics and teaches you everything from how to properly store your groceries to risotto! It has all the patience I lack. It is the perfect resource for anyone learning to cook/moving out for the first time.

Bought as a gag gift for Christmas for someone who can't cook and it's actually a super informative, well laid out cookbook. Starts at square one and goes over everything you could possibly need to know to get started in the kitchen.

I bought this for my husband for Christmas. He literally doesn't know how to boil water. This cook book teaches some basics, however many of the recipes are very complicated. I wouldn't buy this book for a total beginner in the kitchen but if you have an idea of what you are doing then it is wonderful and delicious !

So far I've made quite a few of the recipes out of this book and I've loved them. They are easy, use simple ingredients and have great tips. Perfect for anyone trying to teach themselves how to cook from the very beginning.