Roy's cookbook great side dish to TV show

By Wanda A. Adams
Advertiser Food Editor

"Hawaii Cooks" by Roy Yamaguchi delves into the chef's thoughts on flavors. 'Hawaii Cooks with Roy Yamaguchi' New season 7:30 p.m. Wednesdays, PBS Hawaii, through June (repeats 5:30 p.m. Saturdays)

In the preface, Roy explains in a very cogent manner his palate preferences: salty rather than sweet, the importance of a touch of bitterness, that elusive "umami" effect that ratchets up the appeal.

In a valuable opening chapter on the pantry, he again employs tastes — salty, sweet, sour/tart/acidic, bitter, hot and spicy, "oceany" — as a way of organizing the material. He is teaching the way he thinks about a dish, that amazing ability that skilled chefs have to think their way into a dish and know how the various flavors will interact.

But, of course, the heart of any cookbook is its recipes, and it's particularly convenient to have all of the dishes from a season bound in one place. Yamaguchi here admits that his recipes can be daunting at first glance, but he rightly points out the wisdom of reading the whole recipe through, breaking each dish into its sub-recipes, and taking an organized approach.

This, Yamaguchi's second book, is worth the investment.