Classic/Essential cookbooks

[OrganicAlchemy]

Currently house hunting and have started thinking about my dream cookbook shelf!

I would like recommendations for books you consider to be an essential or classic - thinking of the usual Nigella/Mary/Delias but would love to be introduced to some others! Any cuisine as I love to try new things :D

Thanks!

A Cook’s Book: The Essential Nigel Slater
Jamie Oliver 5 Ingredients
The Roasting Tin
Mary Berry's Complete Cookbook
Ottolenghi Simple

Elizabeth David, I have a box set of Penguin editions. I read for her writing about culture of meals. It gives me ideas then go to others for actual recipes, Delia usually or Rick.
Keith Floyd on France has good recipes.

Every grain of rice - Fuschia Dunlop
The ultimate curry bible - Madhur Jaffrey

easily my most used. Go tos for Chinese & Indian (obviously you can go deeper and more regional if you want). Simple, informative, delicious.

Il Cucchiaio d'Argento, or its English-language offspring The Silver Spoon, is the Best Italian cookbook ever. A classic.

You'll get lots of fancy pants answers OP but the reality is

Delia
Rick Stein
Nigella
Jamie Oliver

These are the real stalwarts of unpretentious, basic skills and ideas and teaching and easy to obtain ingredients and kitchen equipment needed.

The next lot are for branching out
Ottolenghi
Roasting Tin series
Persiana

In my view

For a bit of everything and techniques - Prue Leigh Cookery Bible
For curry - Madhur Jaffrey
Middle Eastern flavours - Ollengetti and Tony Kitous
Just because you are probably British - https://be-ro.adareinternational.com/products/be-ro-recipe-book

Meera Sodha .. East or Made in India

Pinch of Nom - any of them

Go to the library or charity shops and flick through things. Get a feel for what you enjoy cooking and eating.

I’ve been cooking for decades and have loads of cookbooks. I use Nigel Slater and Jamie Oliver’s books a lot. Most cookbooks I just use 5-6 recipes from. Except Nagi’s. They have blown me away.

Nagi Maehashi is Australian and was an accountant for years before setting up the RecipeTinEats website. She has tested every recipe to death and boy does it show. I have both her cookbooks:
Dinner
Tonight

Tonight I only received yesterday but can already tell I will cook 4/5ths of the recipes in it

Dinner I have cooked about half and they are all banging.

'Roast Chicken & Other Stories' by Simon Hopkinson is brilliant and has been voted the most useful cookbook of all time.

I love Nigella's 'How to Eat' beyond reason.

Rose Prince's 'Kitchenella' is wonderful.

'Appetite' by Nigel Slater is, I think, his best work and less pretentious than some of his other (more recent) books can be...

I have several hundred food books, but those are my current top four, I think

I've got most the cookbooks people are saying - 90% bought at charity shops or amazon sales.
Only books I have bought are phaidon cookbooks but these aren't for everyone IMHO. Personally though, I love them! Especially the classic silver spoon.
Like someone said, charity shops and flick through. I have ridiculous amounts of cookbooks because they were £1 or £2 and I don't feel bad sticking those page thingies into it for faves etc or writing my own notes on post it's or pen in the books. Charity shops for sure!

Agree with this, re RecipeTin Eats. I haven’t got her new book yet but Dinner is a definite favourite and her website is amazing. We are now at the point where if I cook something new and it’s good my boys automatically ask if it’s from her blog / book (and every time they’ve been right, it is!)

River Cafe Easy's a good one for Italian classics - not sure if it's still in print but pops up in charity shops all the time. The Good Housekeeping Step by Step Cook Book - mine's from 1984 but is still so useful for authoritative basics (like a really reliable scone recipe). And the River Cottage ''Family and 'Meat' books have both been very useful over the years. Also Fay Ripley's various cook books - surprisingly great for family meals.

Dishoom.

If only for the best way to cook onions for curries. Very slowly until they totally caramelise. The step by step instructions are a game changer.

Crank's

No idea if it's still in print.

Anna del Conte and Marcella Hazan for Italian.

Darina Allen for everything.

My go to's are:

Nigel Slater
Delia
Pru Leith's Cookery Course
Elizabeth David
Rose Elliott
Reader's Digest "The Cookery Year"

I have shelves of others but those above are the ones I go to again and again. For some reason I've never got on with Jamie Oliver's recipes/books. I have a collection of M&S Cookery books circa 1977 to about 1983. Some recipes are well thumbed favourites others, and some of the books, are variously funny or alarming. So much aspic!

My cooking was set in the 80s and when I retire, I intend to update it. I am not a baker.

Love Darina and Elizabeth David.
Stephanie Alexander
Charmaine Solomon’s Complete Asian.
constance Spry and Rosemary Hume.
Marcella is v good for Italian.

Larousse.

Mireille Johnston's Complete French Cookery Course - was connected to a TV programme in the 80s/early 90s.
Top 100 pasta sauces - Diane Seed
Becky Excell if you want gluten free
The dinner lady books and Tana Ramsey family books if feeding children.
Roux - senior and junior for when I have more time.

I have shelves of books plus also years of BBC Good Food Magazines but now I tend to get a lot of recipes directly from the internet but I like reading the books for inspiration.

Diana Henry, Simple, Food from Plenty, A Bird in the Hand
Anything by Sabrina Ghayour
Roasting tin books
Sarah Raven Food for Friends and Family
And Delia