Paleo Cookbook Review: The Ancestral Table by Russ Crandall
Book Title: The Ancestral Table: Traditional Recipes for a Paleo Lifestyle
Author:
Russ Crandall
This is a cookbook fit for a Michelin-starred chef! It’s detailed, in-depth, overflowing with professional photos, and features recipes inspired from all across the globe.
The ingredients are all in line with the Perfect Health Diet (PHD) that Paul Jaminet wrote about in his book by the same name. It’s very similar to Paleo, but PHD recommends a small amount of “safe starches” to be eaten with each meal. In particular, white rice, sweet potatoes, white potatoes are all considered safe starches. So, the book features recipes like shepherd’s pie (topped with mash potatoes) and sticky rice (made from glutinous rice). Dairy and tapioca starch are also used in many recipes.
What’s special about this cookbook?
The meat section is quite extensive, and there are recipes from roasting your perfect turkey to coq au vin, lechon asado (Cuban roasted pork), gamjatang (a traditional Korean soup made with pork neck), and kalua pig. I got hungry just by looking at the contents page!
My favorite recipe:
Lamb Tagine
Something Extra:
In addition to the very extensive meats section of the book, there’s a detailed description of grilling and smoking meats! The instructions for each recipe are also very detailed with a lot of focus on cooking technique.
You can purchase The Ancestral Table on Amazon here.
Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book for free for review purposes. I received no other compensation, and this review is based on my own opinion. Note that some links on this page (and throughout this website) are affiliate links.