PRESERVING: CONSERVING, SALTING, SMOKING, PICKLING
Ginette Mathiot
When it comes to French home cooking, late Ginette Mathiot was, and still is, an institution. Born in 1907 and passed away at 91, she taught three generations of French foodies how to cook and wrote over 30 books, the most famous of which, ‘Je sais cuisinier’, sold more than 6 million copies. Her natural predilection for traditional cooking methods, explained with a simple and effective writing style, appealed to young housewives and renowned chefs alike.
Bringing back to life her book ‘Je sais faire les conserves’, originally published in 1948, ‘Preserving: conserving, salting, smoking, pickling’ features classic French preserving techniques, updated for a modern audience and revised according to the latest food safety regulations.
Full of common-sense advice, the original edition came out right after the war, in a time where food rationing was still in place and housewives had the duty of ensuring that food was never wasted. While making preserves is no longer needed, it can still be regarded as a healthy practice, one based on a simpler relationship to everyday ingredients.
