If you are allergic, or don't like seafood, don't buy this book. It's very heavily weighted to seafood. There are also a number of ingredients that are either very hard to come by in North America, or some that I couldn't even figure out what they were! Of the other recipes, some of them are much too obvious and easy, such as fajitas...

I've always loved watching how Gordon Ramsey makes rustic, simple dishes amazing.....he doesn't use 20 ingredients to make a great dish.
As a new mom, I need fast recipes that are easily layed out and this has been working great for me. The ingredients are fresh, and I have actually been able to substitute some ingredients I can't find (such as balsamic vinigar for sherry vinigar, etc, or a different cut of meat) and they still taste great.

Wow, this book is great. Only if you want gourmet food. I was hoping this stuff (ingredients) would be easily available, not so. I was looking forward to items I see on hells kitchen and other shows on bbc. Sure, its Gordons best all the time.

The single most benefit I have found from this cookbook is learning new and unusual flavor combinations that I would never have thought of. This isn't a technical manual for cooking, meaning that you should be somewhat experienced with cooking. For example, some recipes call for you to simply "cook" the meat on both sides until golden brown; it's up to you to determine the heat setting and length of time. That being said, I'll go into my likes and dislikes now.

Likes:
*Great and unique methods of combining just a few simple ingredients to make restaurant-quality meals.
*Most of the recipes take 30 min. to an hour (including prep time).
*Some of the recipes use many of the same ingredients and go well together so that you don't end up buying a large package of some ingredient just to use a little bit and throw the rest away.
*There's a full appendix on how to make your own sauces and stocks.
*He has provided both individual recipes and full-length menus for various seasons/events/themes.

Dislikes:
*The only things I don't like are the recipes calling for creme fraiche--something I can't buy where I live. I will try to make my own, though, so I won't get discouraged. And although some of the other ingredients in the book may seem exotic, many can be found at smaller ethnic markets around town.

Conclusion:
If you're comfortable with basic elements of cooking (e.g. sauteeing, deglazing and reducing a pan to make a sauce, etc.) then you will love this book.

This is the second Ramsey book I've bought. The first one was a real disappointment, and I'd hoped that was just a fluke. This one has little to offer any normal cook or chef, seemingly aimed at people who have an unlimited access to seldom seem ingredients and a larger budget for food than most of us. A real disappointment. I thoroughly enjoy his several TV shows, but won't be buying any of his cookbooks again...

This book is going on my shelf with the half dozen or so cookbooks I intend to keep till I'm carted out of the house feet first.

With a few storecupboard exceptions such as canned beans, canned tomatoes, and bottled ready-roasted peppers, all of the main ingredients for the recipes are fresh. The recipes are indeed easy and fast, and really, really appetising. Unlike my experience with most cookbooks.

Like most English cookbooks, there is a reasonable number of seafood recipes, which I guess reflects the high proportion of coastline to land area in the UK, and that fact that transport of fresh fish inland is quick (and the fish therefore reasonably good) because of the short distances involved. However, there are twice as many 'main' recipes based on meat, poultry, cheese, eggs, vegetables or grains, so even if you don't like fish or can't access very fresh seafood, there's still plenty of choice.

There isn't a high proportion of esoteric ingredients required - this isn't one of those books where every single recipe seemingly requires another few exotic ingredients to be bought.

The recipes are suitable for home use and for entertaining.

Love Gordan Ramsay! and this book is no exception, great, easy, quick recipes that even the modest chef can achieve. I did however find too many fish recipes, maybe its the state of meat in Europe, but would have hoped for some more meat and vegetable dishes. Otherwise great book!

This shouldn't be your first -- or your only -- cooking book. It just ain't a comprehensive everyday kind of tome. But it is a great book for people that want to create high-end food that is fresh and modern -- and do it quickly. I've already cooked several of the recipes, including breakfast eggs, dinner lemon chicken and spiced pan-roasted apples/pears. All have been a real treat. Using fresh ingredients and quick cooking you end up with real tasty stuff. Many of the recipes have a long-ish list of ingredients, but none are very hard to prepare. You will impress anyone you are cooking for with this book.

Good stuff: Covers large range of meals, soup to seafood to meat to vegetable sides to amazing fruit desserts. Excellent photographs. Clear directions. Quality of the finished products. Lack of TV star chef fluff. Originality of the dishes. American kitchen measures. For cooking several of the recipes together as an integrated dinner he includes a really useful timeline listing what to do in what order to make the whole dinner. Brilliant!

Not perfect: Would like more of Gordon's wisdom in picking out the best fresh ingredients. Gordon is British and trained in France, so some things slipped through US editing, like using crème fraîche or Calvados. This is not a diet book.

Overall: Yum! Fancy dishes sure to delight. Cooked Fast. Tasting Fresh. All the better because they are real cooking. I'm off to make sautéed scallops with corn salsa followed by caramelized banana split. It will all be ready in 40 minutes, guessing half an hour the second time I do it . . .

This shouldn't be your first -- or your only -- cooking book. It just ain't a comprehensive everyday kind of tome. But it is a great book for people that want to create high-end food that is fresh and modern -- and do it quickly. I've already cooked several of the recipes, including breakfast eggs, dinner lemon chicken and spiced pan-roasted apples/pears. All have been a real treat. Using fresh ingredients and quick cooking you end up with real tasty stuff. Many of the recipes have a long-ish list of ingredients, but none are very hard to prepare. You will impress anyone you are cooking for with this book.

Good stuff: Covers large range of meals, soup to seafood to meat to vegetable sides to amazing fruit desserts. Excellent photographs. Clear directions. Quality of the finished products. Lack of TV star chef fluff. Originality of the dishes. American kitchen measures. For cooking several of the recipes together for an integrated dinner he includes a really useful timeline listing what to do in what order. Brilliant!

Not perfect: Would like more of Gordon's wisdom in picking out the best fresh ingredients. Gordon is British and trained in France, so some things slipped through US editing, like using crème fraîche or Calvados. This is not a diet book.

Overall: Yum! Fancy dishes sure to impressive. Cooked Fast. Tasting Fresh. Because they are real cooking. I'm off to make sautéed scallops with corn salsa followed by caramelized banana split. It will all be ready in 40 minutes, guessing half an hour the second time I do it . . .