James Beard Quotes

A gourmet who thinks of calories is like a tart who looks at her watch.

Goodness, how much there is to learn about food!

Too many simple green salads suffer from a lack of imagination.

I believe that if ever I had to practice cannibalism, I might manage if there were enough tarragon around.

Good cheese needs good companions.

The secret of good cooking is, first, having a love of it ... If you're convinced that cooking is drudgery, you're never going to be good at it, and you might as well warm up something frozen.

Too few people understand a really good sandwich.

I have had, in my time, memorable meals of scrambled eggs with fresh truffles, scrambled eggs with caviar and other glamorous things, but to me, there are few things as magnificent as scrambled eggs, pure and simple, perfectly cooked and perfectly seasoned.

I'm really enamored of the potato in all its guises.

Be simple. Be honest. Don't overcook and don't undercook, but it's better to undercook than overcook.

There is absolutely no substitute for the best. Good food cannot be made of inferior ingredients masked with high flavor. It is true thrift to use the best ingredients available and to waste nothing.

The roe of the Russian sturgeon has probably been present at more important international affairs than have all the Russian dignitaries of history combined. This seemingly simple article of diet has taken its place in the world along with pearls, sables, old silver, and Cellini cups.

I'm going to break one of the rules of the trade here. I'm going to tell you some of the secrets of improvisation. Just remember - it's always a good idea to follow the directions exactly the first time you try a recipe. But from then on, you're on your own.

If I had to narrow my choice of meats down to one for the rest of my life, I am quite certain that meat would be pork.