This manual equips students with a working knowledge of the nature of ingredients and how they function in particular foods. A wide range of exercises -- addressing topics from food preservation to frozen desserts, measuring techniques to fats and emulsions, fruit selection to egg cookery, breads and pastry to meat and poultry -- guide students through standard recipes, with clear and complete directions for handling ingredients and cooking foods. Throughout, vocabularies introduce technical words essential to understanding food products and preparation. Questions testing students' knowledge follow each exercise.

The text also includes discussion of laboratory procedures, sanitation in the kitchen, emergency substitutions, identification of meat cuts, the safe storage of food, and the care and cleaning of small appliances.