Description

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Award-winning chef Marc Vetri wanted to write his first book about pasta. Instead, he wrote two other acclaimed cookbooks and continued researching pasta for ten more years. Now, the respected master of Italian cuisine finally shares his vast knowledge of pasta, gnocchi, and risotto in this inspiring, informative primer featuring expert tips and techniques, and more than 100 recipes.

Vetri’s personal stories of travel and culinary discovery in Italy appear alongside his easy-to-follow, detailed explanations of how to make and enjoy fresh handmade pasta. Whether you’re a home cook or a professional, you’ll learn how to make more than thirty different types of pasta dough, from versatile egg yolk dough, to extruded semolina dough, to a variety of flavored pastas—and form them into shapes both familiar and unique. In dishes ranging from classic to innovative, Vetri shares his coveted recipes for stuffed pastas, baked pastas, and pasta sauces. He also shows you how to make light-as-air gnocchi and the perfect dish of risotto. 

Loaded with useful information, including the best way to cook and sauce pasta, suggestions for substituting pasta shapes, and advance preparation and storage notes, Mastering Pasta offers you all of the wisdom of a pro. For cooks who want to take their knowledge to the next level, Vetri delves deep into the science of various types of flour to explain pasta’s uniquely satisfying texture and how to craft the very best pasta by hand or with a machine. Mastering Pasta is the definitive work on the subject and the only book you will ever need to serve outstanding pasta dishes in your own kitchen.

About the Author

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Marc Vetri is the chef and founder of Philadelphia’s Vetri Family of Restaurants, which operates a collection of the country’s most critically acclaimed Italian restaurants: Vetri, Osteria (Philadelphia and Moorestown, NJ), Amis, Alla Spina, Pizzeria Vetri, and Lo Spiedo. Classically trained in Bergamo, Italy, Vetri is known the world over for bringing a bold, contemporary sensibility to classic Italian cooking. He is a member of Food & Wine magazine’s 1999 “Best New Chefs” class and the 2005 winner of the James Beard Award for “Best Chef Mid-Atlantic.” He is also the author of two cookbooks, Il Viaggio di Vetri and Rustic Italian Food. Outside the kitchen, Vetri is the driving force behind the Vetri Foundation, a non-profit organization whose mission is to help kids experience the connection between healthy eating and healthy living. He lives in Philadelphia with his wife, Megan, and their three children. 

David Joachim has authored, edited, or collaborated on more than forty cookbooks, including the multi-award-winner The Science of Good Food and million-copy bestselling series A Man, A Can, A Plan. He writes a column for Fine Cooking magazine called “The Science Of . . .” and his writing and recipes have appeared in numerous magazines such as USA Today, Men’s Health, Better Homes & Gardens, Cooking Light, Women’s Health, Cook’s Illustrated, Fine Cooking, and Bicycling. He is also the co-founder of Chef Salt, a line of artisanal salt seasonings. Joachim lives in Center Valley, PA, and his favorite cooking tool is a leaf blower.

Praise For…

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“In my mind, Marc Vetri is one of the best pasta chefs on the planet. This is the pasta bible, written in the most beautiful way. Everyone needs a copy of this book on their shelf.”—Jamie Oliver, chef, restaurateur, cookbook author, and media personality

“Marc Vetri is not your Nonna, but he’s the next best thing, marrying Old World technique with New World flavors. A thoroughly modern and mouthwatering pasta master class.”—Dan Barber, chef and co-owner of Blue Hill and Blue Hill at Stone Barns

“Mastering Pasta is a true ode to one of the most beloved foods in the world. This is a cookbook that captures Marc Vetri’s passion for his craft and talent as a chef.”—Nathan Myhrvold, author of Modernist Cuisine

“When it comes to pasta I have never had any better than those that come from the hands of Marc Vetri—and that includes dozens of trips to Italy.  I have said it for years that if there is one chef that could cook my last meal it would be Marc, and although I adore all his food, I think I would ask for ten courses of pasta because it is just that transcendent.  This book will become the bible of all things pasta and help all of us continue to understand the perfect marriage between different flours that help create its magic.  I'm sure Marc is not only proud of this masterpiece but also happy that chefs from around the globe will stop calling, texting, and emailing him for his fantastic recipes, techniques, and insight on all things pasta, since he put all the secrets right in this book!”—Michael Symon, chef, restaurateur, television personality, and author

“I love Italian food but I am kind of a bozo in the kitchen. Marc’s cookbooks have been great guides for me and I know this book will help me step up my pasta-making skills. Alright, that’s enough. Quit reading this and go eat pasta!”—Aziz Ansari, actor and comedian

“Early on in Mastering Pasta, Chef Vetri tells us that recipes need cooks. True, but as cooks we need chefs like Marc to push us in an uncompromising pursuit to fully understand, and ultimately find, the beauty in our food. He does that page after page.”—Dr. Stephen Jones, director of the Bread Lab, Washington State University