 3rd French edition (1923) | |
| Author | Louis Saulnier, Théophile Gringoire |
|---|---|
| Language | French |
| Subject | Culinary Arts |
| Genre | non-fiction |
| Publisher | Groupe Flammarion |
Publication date | 1914 |
| Publication place | United Kingdom |
| Media type | book |
| Pages | 240 |
| ISBN | 978-2082000192 (2010 edition) |
Le répertoire de la cuisine is a professionalreferencecookbook written byThéophile Gringoire [fr] and Louis Saulnier and published in 1914; it has gone through multiple editions and been translated into multiple languages. It summarizesLe Guide culinaire byAuguste Escoffier, and adds a significant amount of Saulnier's own material.
Louis Saulnier, a follower ofAuguste Escoffier, wrote theRépertoire as a guide to Escoffier'sLe Guide culinaire.[1] It is a standard reference for classical Frenchhaute cuisine and has been translated into English and Spanish.[2]
Its first edition was published in 1914 by the Maison Allard in London and its 32nd in 1976 by Flammarion.[3] Saulnier was achef entremetier[4] and the secretary of the Union des Cuisiniers, Pâtissiers et Glaciers Français de Londres;[5] Gringoire (a pseudonym forVictor Thomas [fr]) was a writer and the editor in chief ofLe Carnet d'Épicure (1911-1914), a gastronomic monthly in London under the auspices of Escoffier.[6]
The first English translation was by Édouard Brunet in 1924;[7] the 15th English edition was published in London in 1979.[citation needed] The 1976 American edition has an introduction byJacques Pépin.
The style ofLe Répertoire is highly condensed, even in comparison with the brevity of its inspiration; it is a sort ofaide-memoire for combinations of base ingredient, sauce, and garnish,[8] a codification of conventional or standardnames for the combinations used in classical cooking.[9][10][11]
The recipes provided are little more than simple descriptions of dishes, and assume a great deal of background knowledge, saying nothing about cooking techniques, timings, or proportions.
It follows the structure of Escoffier's original to simplify cross-referencing.[further explanation needed]
For example, this is the complete recipe for Poulet sauté Bonne-Femme (in the section on poulet sauté):
TheCulinary Institute of America instructor Uwe Hestnar mentionsLe Répertoire alongsideLarousse gastronomique and the works of Escoffier andCarême as required reading for anyone interested in classical French cooking.[12]
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