At 696 pages and close to 30 centimetres tall, The Complete French Cooking Course is not a cookbook to balance beside the hob. It is a culinary monument, the kind of volume that demands a clear stretch of worktop, a sturdy shelf and ideally, several years of use.
Produced by Ferrandi Paris, the professional school founded in 1920, the book approaches French cooking properly, that is, as a discipline to be learnt in the correct order. Its 143 recipes are supported by 147 illustrated techniques and more than 1,300 photographs, moving from equipment, ingredient seasonality and foundational sauces to fish filleting, meat cuts, mushroom identification and technically demanding preparations such as potato soufflé. Unlike other cookbooks, here one should follow the the structure, because it is set out to explain why things work and how competence is built.
The timing of this volume is also quite spot on. French food is firmly back in the conversation. Recent restaurant coverage has traced a return to bistros, brasseries and recognisable classics in Paris, London and New York, with diners again responding to proper sauces, pâté en croûte, roast meats, soufflés and the pleasures of a long meal. There seems to be a renewed appetite for craft, generosity and food that rewards technique and real savoir-faire in the kitchen.
A trio of recipes from The Complete French Cooking Course: lightly steamed John Dory with peppermint oil, shaved black truffle and asparagus; spring lamb stew with potatoes; and spiced poached pears.
As the primary co-author for the Ferrandi Paris school’s elite cookbook series, Michel Tanguy was tasked with He serves as the primary co-author and writer tasked with translating the legendary culinary school’s complex techniques into comprehensive masterclasses in print. Eric Fénot’s extensive photography performs the other half of the job, showing the physical details that recipes so often leave frustratingly vague.
The scale may intimidate beginners, and this is unlikely to be the book reached for when supper must be on the table in 20 minutes. However, for anyone with serious cooking ambition, I can’t think of anything closer to a comprehensive culinary degree at home. Furthermore, this is a book to show off. From the paper to the binding, The Complete French Cooking Course belongs in the realm of luxury print. I haven’t quite seen any other cookbook like it.
The Complete French Cooking Course by FERRANDI Paris is published by Flammarion on 8 October 2026, priced £50. Available to pre-order from Waterstones, Amazon, Foyles and other leading booksellers.
Author: Lina Ress
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