The Soul of a Chef: The Journey Toward Perfection by Michael Ruhlman

  • Duck terrine with shiitake mushrooms and orange ginger sauce

    from The Soul of a Chef: The Journey Toward Perfection The Soul of a Chef by Michael Ruhlman

    • Categories: Appetizers / starters
    • Ingredients: whole duck; pork butt; shiitake mushrooms; shallots; Madeira wine; pork back fat; duck livers; heavy cream; oranges; fresh ginger; marmalade; chutney; dry sherry; ground ginger; honey; dry mustard; ground cayenne pepper
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Notes about this book

  • nelleke on July 15, 2011

    Michael Ruhlman is a fantastic writer. He is able to get you very much involved in the exams of the Certified Master Chef. This book is much, much more then a cookbook. You have to read it. Put it besides your bed.

Notes about Recipes in this book

  • Poulet sauté Stanley

    • Shelmar on September 05, 2019

      Very good, basic repeatable technique, though scaling down to one chicken makes the sauce awkward. "Serves ten" is closer to twenty.

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Reviews about this book

  • Amateur Gourmet

    Ruhlman, who’s a master at weaving a compelling food narrative, reveals in this book a world of pulsing intensity and fanatical dedication to the craft of cooking.

    Full review

Reviews about Recipes in this Book

  • ISBN 10 1483002047
  • ISBN 13 9781483002040
  • Published May 13 2014
  • Format Misc. format
  • Page Count 370
  • Language English
  • Countries United States
  • Publisher Blackstone Audiobooks
  • Imprint Blackstone Audiobooks

Publishers Text

In 1997, journalist and cook Michael Ruhlman observed incognito the certified Master Chef examination at the Culinary Institute of America, one of the most grueling competitions in the gastronomic world. In his critically acclaimed The Making of a Chef, which Peter Kamisky of The New York Times hailed as well-reported and heartfelt, Ruhlman offered a vivid and unique portrait of this unique world.


This book combines Ruhlman's masterful storytelling with his immense love of food to reveal the men and women whose main goal is to serve food of perfection. Through working and talking with three of the most talented young chefs in the business, Ruhlman takes the reader on a journey past the dark heart of the profession toward the soul of a chef - a journey that takes him into the kitchens of the finest restaurants from the Napa Valley to the Hudson Valley. Here he reveals the collective experience of these men as they all strive to achieve their own level of perfection.


This is a satisfying and fascinating immersion into the hearts and minds of those who undertake the grueling, but richly rewarding pledge to serve only the best. It is a must for gastronomes, prospective chefs and all lovers of great food.

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