Name: The Flavor Thesaurus
ISBN: 9781608198740

Niki Segnit

A career flavor scientist who has worked with such companies as Lindt, Coca-Cola and Cadbury organizes food flavors into 160 basic ingredients, explaining how to combine flavors for countless results, in a reference that also shares practical tips and whimsical observations.

A Compendium of Pairings, Recipes and Ideas for the Creative Cook

The Flavor Thesaurus

Unique, beautifully written and ceaselessly imaginative, The Flavor Thesaurus is a completely new kind of food book—inspired, as author Niki Segnit explains, by her over-reliance on recipes. "Following the instructions in a recipe is like parroting pre-formed sentences from a phrasebook. Forming an understanding of how flavors work together, on the other hand, is like learning the language: it allows you to express yourself freely, to improvise, to cook a dish the way you want to cook it." The Flavor Thesaurus is the inquisitive cook's guide to acquiring that understanding—to learning the language of flavor. Breaking the vast universe of ingredients down to 99 essential flavors, Segnit suggests classic and less well-known pairings for each, grouping almost 1,000 entries into flavor families like "Green & Grassy," "Berry & Bush" and "Creamy Fruity." But The Flavor Thesaurus is much more than just a reference book, seasoning the mix of culinary science, culture and expert knowledge with the author's own insights and opinions, all presented in her witty, engaging and highly readable style. As appealing to the novice cook as to the experienced professional, The Flavor Thesaurus will not only immeasurably improve your cooking—it's the sort of book that might keep you up at night reading. Cooking is an art, like writing or painting, and great cooks are artists. And although the ultimate source of creativity remains elusive, all painters have their color wheel, all writers their vocabulary. And now, in the form of this beautiful, entertaining and exhaustively researched book, cooks have their own collection of essential knowledge: The Flavor Thesaurus.

Laura Mauler



Ever wondered why one flavour works with another? Or lacked inspiration for what to do with a bundle of beetroot? The Flavour Thesaurus is the first book to examine what goes with what, pair by pair.

The book is divided into flavour themes including Meaty, Cheesy, Woodland and Floral Fruity. Within these sections it follows the form of Roget's Thesaurus, listing 99 popular ingredients alphabetically, and for each one suggesting flavour matchings that range from the classic to the bizarre.

You can expect to find traditional pairings such as pork & apple, lamb & apricot, and cucumber & dill; contemporary favourites like chocolate & chilli, and goat's cheese & beetroot; and interesting but unlikely-sounding couples including black pudding & chocolate, lemon & beef, blueberry & mushroom, and watermelon & oyster.

There are nearly a thousand entries in all, with 200 recipes and suggestions embedded in the text. Beautifully packaged, The Flavour Thesaurus is not only a highly useful, and covetable, reference book for cooking - it might keep you up at night reading.

The Flavour Thesaurus

Amro Gebreel

A very well written, innovative and extremely useful book. Very highly recommended for anyone who's interested in food.

The Flavor Thesaurus A Compendium of Pairings, Recipes and Ideas for the Creative Cook

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