Mastering the Art of French Cooking
Cover of Volume 1, original 1961 edition
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| Author | Simone Beck, Louisette Bertholle, Julia Child |
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| Illustrator | Sidonie Coryn |
| Cover artist | Paul Kidby |
| Country | United States/France |
| Language | English |
| Subject | Culinary Arts |
| Genre | non-fiction |
| Publisher | Alfred A. Knopf |
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Publication date
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1961 (vol. 1), 1970 (vol. 2) |
| Media type | book |
| Pages | 726 |
| ISBN | (40th anniversary edition) |
| OCLC | 429389109 |
| LC Class | TX719 .C454 2009 |
| Followed by | The French Chef Cookbook, Simca's Cuisine |
Mastering the Art of French Cooking is a two-volume French cookbook written by Simone Beck and Louisette Bertholle, both of France, and Julia Child of the United States. The book was written for the American market and published by Knopf in 1961 (Volume 1) and 1970 (Volume 2).
The book was the result of a collaboration among Beck, Bertholle, Child (listed alphabetically), illustrator Sidonie Coryn, and Paul Cushing Child (Child's husband), and was the impetus for Child's long and successful career as a pioneering television chef. Julia Child's goal was to adapt classic French cuisine for mainstream Americans. The collaboration of this cookbook proved groundbreaking and has since become a standard guide for the culinary community.Mastering Volume 1 () was originally published in 1961 after some early difficulties (which are recounted in great detail in Julia Child's memoirs My Life in France as well as Child's introduction to the 2003 edition). Volume 1 was a broad survey of French flavors and techniques, and grew out of the work the three women had done for their Paris cooking school, "L'École des trois gourmandes" (whose logo Child wore as a badge throughout the production of her first TV series, The French Chef). Mastering Volume 2 (), released in 1970, this time a collaboration between Julia Child and Simone Beck but not Louisette Bertholle with whom the professional relationship had ended, expanded on certain topics of interest that had not been covered as completely as the three had planned to in the first volume (particularly baking and charcuterie). Taken together, the two volumes are considered one of the most influential works in American cookbook history. Child has long been accorded near-universal respect in the cooking world, in part due to the influence of these books.
Beck had wanted to create a volume 3, but Child, with her TV career doing well, was less interested; they severed their writing partnership and Beck's work for volume 3 became her first published book in English, Simca's Cuisine.
Volume 1 covers the basics of French cooking, striking as much of a balance between the complexities of haute cuisine and the practicalities of the American home cook. Traditional favorites such as beef bourguignon, bouillabaisse, and cassoulet are featured, as are extensive instructions on how to prepare vegetables in a manner more appetizing than that of the 1960s American kitchen. This volume has been through many printings and has been reissued twice with revisions: first in 1983 with updates for changes in kitchen practice (especially the food processor), and then in 2003 as a 40th anniversary edition with the history of the book in the introduction. The cookbook includes 524 recipes.
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