The 10 Best Cookbooks Chosen by Goodreads Readers

There are many metrics that make the best cookbooks so valued. Readers love learning new techniques, trying new ingredients, and discovering recipes that they’ll want to return to again and again. For me, personally, I’ve been recently obsessed with Alison Roman‘s two latest cookbooks, Nothing Fancy and Dining In as well as Mandy Lee‘s tome, The Art of Escapism Cooking. However, I realize that cookbooks are highly subjective. I wanted to discover a metric of sorts to share with you the best cookbooks as voted by a large set of readers and not just my personal tastes.

Thankfully, Goodreads came to the rescue as it has collected ratings of the most beloved cookbooks of all time. It includes some new classics like Chrissy Teigen‘s Cravings and classic-classics like Julia Child‘s Mastering the Art of French Cooking. If you’ve ever wondered what America’s favorite cookbooks are, you’re in luck because Goodreads has the goods. Shop the best cookbooks below and take an adventure to flavor town!

Shop the Best Cookbooks That Home Cooks Have Rated Well Time and Again.

Cravings: Recipes for All the Food You Want to Eat by Chrissy Teigen

$21.40 at the time of publication.

The winner of the 2016 Goodreads Choice Awards for Best Cookbook, Chrissy Teigen’s first cookbook is a slam dunk. It’s filled with no-frills recipes from around the world that are accessible but, most importantly, delicious. In the book, she stresses a connection between love and feeding your family that should appeal to most parents today. It’s one of the younger entries to make the list of the top ten best cookbooks. Go, Chrissy, go!

Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book by Better Homes and Gardens

$19.99 at the time of publication.

First published in 1930, the Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book has been a trusted manual in kitchens across America. The 17th edition is fully updated and revised to show both the best of today’s food trends and time-tested classics. With more than 1,000 recipes and a photo for each one, the book covers both traditional dishes such as Brownies and new favorites like Cold Brew Coffee. This cookbook has been going strong for almost 100 years, they must be doing something right.

The Moosewood Cookbook: 40th Anniversary Edition by Mollie Katzen

$30 at the time of publication.

The Moosewood Cookbook has inspired generations to prepare simple, healthy, and seasonal foods. A classic listed as one of the top ten best-selling cookbooks of all time by the New York Times, this 40th-anniversary edition of Mollie Katzen‘s seminal book will be a treasured addition to the cookbook libraries of fans old and new.

Jerusalem: A Cookbook by Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi

$19.39 at the time of publication.

If you’ve never cooked a Yotam Ottolenghi recipe, you’re sorely missing out. He brings the flavors of the Middle East to tables around the world. This stunning cookbook features 120 recipes from the authors’ unique cross-cultural perspective, from inventive vegetable dishes to sweet, rich desserts. With five bustling restaurants in London and two stellar cookbooks, Ottolenghi is one of the most respected chefs in the world today. It’s not the only one of his books to make Goodread’s top 10 best cookbooks, however.

Plenty by Yotam Ottolenghi

$17.99 at the time of publication.

Rated slightly better than the previous book we shared with you, Plenty made Ottolenghi a superstar chef. The best part: it’s all about veggies! Plenty highlights vegetarian restaurant-caliber recipes that every home cook can make. A vibrant photo accompanies every recipe in this visually stunning Ottolenghi cookbook. Essential for meat-eaters and vegetarians alike! Discover one of the best cookbooks of all time, in this treasured collection of recipes.

 The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook by Deb Perelman

$17.14 at the time of publication.

Deb Perelman is the mastermind behind the fabulous cooking blog of the same name, Smitten Kitchen. The book features the perfect recipes for quick weeknight dinners to special date-night options that are certain to wow. It’s one of the best cookbooks to land on the NYT’s bestseller list. Perelman has a unique perspective because she does not come from a restaurant background, instead, she pursues recipes on her own terms discovering helpful techniques to share with you.

How to Cook Everything: Simple Recipes for Great Food – Twentieth Anniversary Edition by Mark Bittman

$18.99 at the time of publication.

For over twenty years, Mark Bittman’s How to Cook Everything has been the definitive guide to simple home cooking. It has contained 1,000 pages of excellent instruction to a generation of home cooks. This new edition has been completely revised for today’s cooks while retaining Bittman’s trademark minimalist style of easy-to-follow recipes and variations, and tons of ideas and inspiration. If you’ve ever used the NYT cooking app or gotten recipes from the outlet, chances are Bittman had a hand in shaping it in one form or another. It’s been one of the best cookbooks trusted by home cooks for decades.

Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Volume I: 50th Anniversary Edition by Julia Child

$27.39 at the time of publication.

Hands down one of the best cookbooks with useful resources for Americans who want to recreate French cuisine at home, Julia Child’s seminal Mastering the Art of French Cooking is a must-have. I own the two-volume set but the first volume is all you really need to get cooking. We will say that these recipes are mostly weekend-style, highly involved ones that present you with real projects. Most professional chefs have either read or referenced this classic as it is still as relevant today as ever before.

Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat: Mastering the Elements of Good Cooking by Samin Nosrat

$16.65 at the time of publication.

If you have not seen Netflix’s cooking series of the same name, do so, and you will instantly want to purchase this absolutely genius cookbook. Samin Nosrat writes earnestly about good cooking but does so with the skill of a sage instructor. The book was first published in 2017 and that same year it made nearly every publication’s top books of the year list. It’s both a New York Times Bestseller and Winner of the coveted 2018 James Beard Award. The book walks readers through 100 recipes and teaches a variety of techniques to make you the best cook you can be. It’s easily one of the best cookbooks I’ve ever read. And, it’s clear from Goodreads and elsewhere that I’m not alone.

Joy of Cooking by Irma S. Rombauer

$17.49 at the time of publication.

20 million copies of this book have been sold since Joy of Cooking was published in 1931. Chances are you saw it in your kitchen growing up. It’s got thousands of classic recipes that have changed little through the years but the updated version was the project of Irma S. Rombauer‘s grandson. According to Goodreads, it’s one of the best cookbooks and the one to beat among readers past and present. Generations of home cooks have learned to love cooking thanks to this tome as it’s written with warmth and plenty of humor.

There you go! Did any of the best cookbooks surprise you? We hope you found some that you’d like to flip through and try something new.

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