Shirley Corriher is a
food scientist and the person who many of the
famous in the world of food
preparation turn to when they are stumped
about the hows and whys of cooking.
A graduate of Vanderbilt University, Shirley and her former husband
ran a boarding school called Brandon Hall for eleven years. Shirley
spent those three years cooking three meals a day and getting a good
deal of practical experience in the kitchen. She later taught others
to cook and became famous for her quick wit and voluminous knowledge
about the hows and whys of cooking.
Corriher has published one book called Cookwise: The Hows and Whys
of Successful Cooking and it is a must for any kitchen. It answers
such age old questions as will a copper bowl really help you to whip
egg whites ( the answer is yes; it has to do with ions) and
gives you a blow by blow account of which fat to use in your cookies
to get the desired result, whether it is butter for flat and
crispy or shortening for fat and chewy). The book makes for easy
reading for the serious chef or the casual cook. It will be followed
up this year with a second book called Bakewise, which will attempt
to unlock the mysteries of baking.
Corriher keeps very famous company in the culinary world. She worked
with the late chef and teacher James Beard and also works with
such giants as Julia Child. She has been a semi-regular on
Alton Brown's Food Network show Good Eats and has appeared
on any number of other Food Network programs.