Is there a future for cookbooks? Do we need them anymore?

Question

With the web and recipe and cooking sites in abundance. Do we really need cookbooks anymore? 

I think they may have gone the way of the newspaper. While many people still read both, the number of people that do shrink every year, don't they?

Look I have a lot of books and many are cookbooks but I get most of my recipes nowadays off the web, I don't want to find them on the web every time I need them so i copy them into word format and save them on my hard drive. It is easy to modify for my needs and likes.

I was just wondering about other peoples comments on this. I hope I haven't offended any die hard cookbook fans.

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I feel like cookbooks have become a bit like cd's, you're mostly interested in a couple of recipes, and don't necessarily want to buy the whole book. And when you can get so many recipes online it's easy to print them off and collect them in a recipe book of your own. 

Having said that, I do think that there is still a market for cookbooks. There's the whole aesthetic aspect of it - like icecone says, the photos are nicer and you can easily just flick through the book without actually having to make any of the recipes. It's like food escapism. And if you want to make a recipe, you don't have to turn on the computer to find it. 

There are still loads of cookbooks being published, especially in the celebrity chef genre, and now food bloggers get the opportunity to publish their stuff too, so I definitely think cookbooks will be around for a good while.

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I, for one, find great value in cookbooks. I have found many great recipes online, but I am much more inspired by cookbooks. In addition to the aesthetic aspects others have noted, cookbooks provide valuable context that is hard to find on websites. Authors include discussions of techniques, ingredients, historical and cultural context, etc. that you're unlikely to find on websites that often offer recipes as discrete entities. Too, books on particular cuisines offer context and much education about that particular cuisine that is unusual to find on websites that may replicate some of the recipes. And consider that much of what one can find online, on blogs and on sites like Allrecipes and Recipe Zaar are recipes straight from cookbooks. If those cookbooks ceased to be released, there would be many fewer new and exciting recipes posted on the web.

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I'm much pickier about which cookbooks I actually buy anymore. But, I do buy cookbooks that are particularly useful, like Deborah Madison's Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone. I'm not even a vegetarian, which tells you something. But, it's been several years since I found a cookbook I felt absolutely compelled to purchase like I did with Madison's. Purchasing is more of a pleasure, indulgence, and convenience, I'd say. I'm one of those who takes cookbooks to bed or to the doctor's office to read. Computers just don't make as good a companion, IMO, and certainly aren't sleep inducing. Until we fully integrate computers into our homes, i.e. monitors in many rooms with wi-fi, I think cookbooks will continue to have a place.

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All of my home cooking and professional chef friends & family still enjoy rec'ing cookbooks as gifts and view food mags, food blogs, cooking videos, CD/DVD food sets and recipe cards supplements to the original published work ie: cookbook. It is true that the markets in all areas are changing and changing fast but original work is still treasured imho.

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Cookbooks you can pass down to future generations. How can you pass down websites?

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Cookbooks are (usually) well written, researched and edited. Many web sites are poorly written and often give wrong amounts, etc. It's the nature of the beast. A book is forever when it is printed and a lot of care is given to the final product. Web sites can change by the minute and therefore many people are not very careful about what they write since they know it can be easily fixed if someone brings it to their attention. Furthermore, a lot of content on web sites is written by nonprofessionals; cookbooks have professional authors, editors, fact checkers, etc., behind them. I find many recipe sites have errors running throughout. Of course these are general statements and I realize there are very good web sites and poorly written cookbooks. But I stand by my original statements as a rule. I am not tech-phobic in the least: I recently started reading most books (but not cookbooks! lol) on a kindle, for instance. I just love cookbooks.

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Now folks. I am advocating saving your recipes in Word format on your hard drive. I have hundreds of recipes divided up in categories. If I have one that I have modified I have a code in the title that it is mine. I back these recipes up and I also carry them on a thumb drive. 

If I have several recipes of the same type... say Beef Stroganoff, I have the recipes in tier 1 and tier 2 to know to check the tier 1 first. I suppose I will probably delete the tier 2 eventually.

This method seems easier to me for finding these recipes again. I hate to go through books and websites looking for a recipe I have been meaning to try. I do, however have a lot of cookbooks with colorful flags from post it on them.

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Not just cookbooks, but all books, magazines, etc. are an endangered species. 

It's a brave new world of iPads and Kindles ...

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Web sites and e-book cookbooks are ready for the computer, but is the computer ready for them? Maybe not. I know what one drop of merlot on my motherboard cost me. I keep my computer out of the kitchen. There go a lot of the advantages of electronic recipe collections.

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I collect cookbooks. I read them like regular books, cover to cover. Oddly enough, when I want to look up how to make something, I usually go to the internet for the rundown. Having so many cookbooks, it's hard for me to remember where I read something or to take the time to find it. 

But, there's something charming about cookbooks. I will continue to collect them. 

When I do use a cookbook, I Xerox the page and take that into the kitchen, as to not ruin the whole book.

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While it's easy to jump on the computer to look up a recipe, I still like cookbooks even though I rarely buy them for myself. I do get nice ones as gifts though. Another thing is that not everyone is online these days. My mother (who is 66), for one, does not own a computer nor does she really have a desire to learn how to use them but she has a ton of cookbooks. So my answer is yes, I believe there is a future...

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I'm as plugged in as they come, but my cookbooks have a place that can never be replaced electronically. They're so much more contemplative and thoughtful, and the worst you can do to their pages is to stain them or occasionally stick them together. There's no way I'm getting an electronic screen near a citrus juicer or a bubbling sauce pan.

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The end of cookbooks would be the end of civilization. Oh, those lovely pages and their tell-tale food stains.

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I think cookbooks will eventually go the way of the dinosaur, at least cookbooks as we know them (Jennalynn raised the important point that BOOKS aren't dying, PRINT is dying). But, I think it will take some time--cookbooks are probably one of the few rosy sectors in the publishing business. A substantial portion of the population grew up with physical, hard copy books and frankly, until that population (and its discretionary income) dies out, physical books will be here. The younger population--the digital natives--aren't going to miss the physical books, because they use them less and less. Education materials are increasingly removed from being founded on print media, so kids grow up learning with emerging media and technologies. They will use cooking instructional materials on the web, YouTube, social networks, etc. Additionally, devices (e.g. Kindle, iPad and the like) will increasingly evolve to provide more enhanced booklike experiences, and we may see more "kitchen-friendly" computers. 

That said, I do love my many cookbooks and enjoy perusing them and holding them and yes, looking and drooling over the great photos!

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http://www.chow.com/videos/show/obsessives?tag=main_menu_videos;menu_videos#!/show/obsessives/11472/obsessives-cookbook-peddler

Mr. Waxman knows the value of printed cookbooks and makes a fantastic real authority for the vast place cookbooks have in our every day lives. Rock on, Mr. Waxman!

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i'm a bit puzzled as to why anybody would think cookbooks are passe.

My observations:

1. Frankly, the quality of recipes I get from the internet is rather a mixed bag. About three-quarters actually turn out a dish that "works"; somewhat fewer are of the quality I'm seeking; even fewer than that are, to use a "problem" word, "authentic," e.g., a risotto that would be recognizable to an interested Italian.

2. Authorial point of view is very important in the best cookbooks. The works of Lynne Rosetto Kasper, say, or Mark Biitman are compiled with a definite take on the topic. Chances are if I like one recipe in the book I'll like and try a lot of others.

3. it's not that easy to get a comprehensive set of recipes on the internet; "Mastering the Art of Chinese Cooking" would take you years to download. If I want to learn about a certain type of cooking -- ethnicity, technique, ingredient -- i'm going to find the right cookbook rather than slog my way through the 'net. if I want to learn about Jewish food (and currently, I do), I'll buy Claudia Roden's book on that topic. 

4. I like the "package" of a cookbook -- the feel, the design, the pictures, the permanence of the thing. it does far more for me than a series of printed internet pages.

5. I don't have a computer in the kitchen. My island is a bare, working island and it's easier for me to lay a cookbook on the counter than to do anything else.

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I own several cookbooks, in fact, I just received a couple out of the mail box. I bought them on the internet at a severe discount which is the only way I buy a cookbook or any book for that matter. 

When I find a recipe I like in one of those cookbooks, I can usually find it on the web from that chef. I copy it into word. Set it up in the format I like and save it to my hard drive. I very seldom have to hand enter the recipe out of the book.

I still like having the recipes on my hard drive so I can find it. Besides, there are very few recipes I don't end up modifying. If I am in a vastly respectful attitude I make my changes and change the file name slightly so I still have the original. Sometimes I just modify the existing recipe because i am the only one that has to be pleased by the recipe. I sometimes add in notes at the end about possible variations or things that might go well with it.

When I want to cook the dish I print it out and at the end of the meal, whether it has a gravy stain on it or not, I throw it away. 

Sometimes I will take the same technique or even the same general recipe and change ingredients because if I can steam/saute green beans in a covered saute pan with butter and water, I can steam/saute carrots or broccoli. 

I will say this about the cookbooks I buy. I usually only find 5-6 recipes in a book I am interested in trying to duplicate.

Consequently, I think the printed cookbook as well as the printed newspaper and the printed phone book are going are going the way of the dinosaur and the dodo bird.

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I wonder about this. OTOH, my wife, who has several smart phones, and a voice actuated automobile, still buys cookbooks and uses them. Maybe it's the thought of hot grease spattering onto her laptop?

Time will tell.

Hunt

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When I need the best recipe for a certain dish that I have in mind, or when I want a step-by-step tutorial, I turn to the Internet.

When I want someone's ideas or point of view, I like to look at a cookbook. I think of it as more of a trusted source. I also enjoy flipping through my cookbooks -- often I'll get an idea from that and then look on the Internet for a better recipe or variations. I don't care whether I'm looking at a printout from epicurious.com or my spattered copy of Joy of Cooking when I'm actually in the kitchen, but when I'm looking for inspiration, I like a cookbook.

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Post deleted.

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It could very well be that future generations no longer see the need for hard copies of cookbooks - or any other books for that matter. Frankly, I don't want to be around to see that. Nothing can replace the feel of a book in my hands, the experience of turning the pages, enjoying a well-designed layout, the quality photo reproductions in a high quality book etc. And on top of the physical experience there is the experience of enjoying a well-written cookbook as an emotional and literary experience - the voice of the author, the way the recipes are tied together, the stories that the author tells about each recipe etc. I can be transported to all kinds of places and times in a way I never am on the computer. It's just not the same as getting a stand alone recipe off of the web. Some day they will have to pry my cookbook collection from my cold, dead fingers.

That said, I was having trouble really USING most of my books. I was getting a little overwhelmed when faced with the hundreds of cookbooks in my collection and I wasn't using them as much as I should have been to justify their purchase - a huge source of personal guilt for me. I still read them, but when it came time to actually MAKING something, I would too often surrender to the reality of time limitations and turn to the web instead of leafing through book after book after book trying to find just the right recipe. 

Interestingly though, with the advent of the website, "Eat Your Books", I find myself back to using my collection much more often now rather than pulling a recipe off of the internet. I love that a website has enabled me to use my collection so much more efficiently and easily.

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If I have ingredients (things I bought on sale) and need a recipe, I can find a plethora by looking online. Google three ingredients and 3000 recipes show up.

I love cookbooks and have them on my bookshelves-not in the kitchen- because they are history. 

I collect the group ones written/typed in the 40's and 50's. Those are history. The exotic "alligator pears" (avocadoes) used in recipes...and aparently back then, Brazil Nuts were *the* nut to use in recipes (much like macadamia nuts were *the* nut in the 80's and cashews and almonds are in everything now). Little things, like terminology (some say 'use a hand mixer if you have one or beat with a fork until no lumps')...signatures of the writers "Mrs. Joe Smith"-not "Mary Smith" and a few precursors to what have become 'convenience' items now (adding half a package of pudding mix into a box of cake mix in a 1974 church cookbook I was just reading)...

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Of course, there will be a place for cookbooks. Even though the Internet has cropped up an abundance of blogs, websites and recipe locators, there will always be those old "go to" recipes that won't appear in the new cookbooks. You know what I'm talking about -- Kentucky Hot Browns, Strawberry Cake, that recipe from Grandma's vintage 1953 Maui Cookery book that doesn't appear on the Internet. Cookbooks are expensive but there are ways to make them inexpensive. Some of you have the right idea -- library sales, tag sales, garage/estate sales, craigslist, talking with friends, neighbors, relative and colleagues. Lots of places online to purchase good quality, used cookbooks with fabulous recipes that won't appear on the Internet. It's also great to actually MAKE a cookbook of your family favorites. I'm in the process of doing that and everyone is telling me they want a copy. I've added pictures, stories and presently editing for accuracy. I look at the Internet as an "enhancement" to my ability to find and locate recipes and culinary related websites but not as a replacement for my much beloved cookbooks.

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I still haven't found a cosy way to read a computer in bed....they hurt my eyes and they don't smell like a book. And i *read* my cookbooks...

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The entire world doesn't have Internet. And for those who do have Internet, not all have high-speed Internet. Until that changes, cookbooks will still be needed.

Additionally, there are still many, many recipes that are simply not available online in any form yet. I'm thinking specifically about Sri Lankan cuisine. While there are some recipes online, it's barely scratching the surface. I have two Sri Lankan cookbooks, both published before 1970, and both contain recipes that I would not be able to find online if my life depended on it.

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yes

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I would say that people who use only online cooking references are missing out on a lot. I get an occasional recipe from an online source, but my cookbooks contain much more than recipes. My classics by Beard and others contain much kitchen wisdom which is worth reading even when not actually cooking. I don't know if Beard's books are available in online editions, but if they are, does anyone go online for anything but a recipe from them? For that matter, is there any modern food writer who publishes in online form only? Perhaps, but no one I've ever heard of.

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I agree with the book lovers. And, only books make a GREAT gift. Gifting a recipe link, nah. :- )

Electronic formats are fine for reference, I print out plenty of notes and quick links but they don't replace the food photographs, the feel and share a book provides or the experience a really wonderful cookbook is.

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Regarding the "end of print": I know so many people who still like the feel of a book or magazine in their hand that I really don't think (and I hope I'm right) that the printed hard copy will ever be entirely replaced by electronic books.
There was a time when frozen tv dinners were thought to entirely replace home cooking, and yes, in some households, that's the case. But all they did was increase the choices of the person responsible for preparing meals. If ebooks were totally replacing regular books, the bookstores would be ghost towns. But there are ALWAYS people there, and always a line to check out.
The internet allows us to broaden our scope of research, but there's inspiration to be had in the printed word. I've gotten more ideas for dishes flipping through a cookbook or a food magazine than scrolling down a screen (and it's much easier on my eyes).

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of course, we still need paper cookbooks

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I have stopped buying cookbooks. I tend to Google certain recipes and ingredients, then print them off. 

If they are any good, then they get added to my "scrap book" which is one of those folders with plastic sleeves. 

I was given a large celeraic yesterday. I found a suitable recipe for soup (one from River Island) and will use that. 

Additionally I often change a recipe. With a cookbook I have to write on a post-it pad and place it on the page, with a print-off, I can scribble it on the page.

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It's interesting how many people are insisting that "print is dead." If it ever does die, we will have lost the most unfailingly permanent way of preserving information. There are works on paper over 2,000 years old, while any known electronic memory device has a much shorter lifespan than most of its users. Then there's the matter of turning all those exes and ohs into something we can read … and if you think we've finally got something that will still be current a hundred years from now, I've got some twenty-year-old SyQuest and Zip disks for you to read.

There is simply no more durable medium than writing or printing on paper. Flood and fire can destroy it, of course, but barring that all you need to do is keep it safe and dry, and make sure the paper is a good one. You don't even need climate control (at least in a non-jungle climate), though it helps; some of the oldest books in any known language are in Oxford's Bodleian, which I remember being described as about as cozy and comfy as a stone barn. 

Yes, most of the recipes on this hard drive and the backup are from Google searches, and some others are pulled from email feeds I subscribe to. But with going on 700 cookbooks in the next room and downstairs, there's always both good reading and a lot of recipes handy when I want them, and the added fun of simply leafing through and finding some new treasure from simple serendipity. That used to be why I loved perusing the card files in libraries, and why I was so enraged when they were all dumped in favor of computer files: sometimes I don't know what I'm looking for, and won't until I trip over it, while other times I'll be looking for this thing and suddenly encounter that. With the dogged single-mindedness of most computer searches (especially with Windows machines) that can't really happen.

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I'm pretty plugged in, in fact, I write a recipe blog, and it's one way I "save" some of my favorite recipes. I also have a Kindle (Multiple Kindles in our house. 3. Plus an iPad. Yes, it's getting embarrassing) and I've transitioned almost entirely to reading on the Kindle (mostly because the library process is SO EASY with e-books). But I still prefer cookbooks. When I know what I want to cook, it's about the same between finding a recipe on the web or in one of my cookbooks (particularly with Eat Your Books, which is great), But when I'm looking for inspiration, I'd much rather thumb through a cookbook than search the web, where the proportion of wheat to chaff is much lower.

That said, I've had just as many problems with print cookbooks as I have with web recipes. You find authors/publishers to trust either way. Most publishers aren't providing any testing budget to cookbooks these days, which means authors are paying for testing (and photography) out of (already pretty meager) book advances, if at all.

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I adore printed cookbooks (someone mentioned the laying on the sofa - thumbing through, it is a joy), though as someone on a low income I do balk at the price of brand new. I get them as presents or buy in charity shops. My favourite cook books have sections with information on ingredients, cuisines and techniques.

Many of my recipes do come from websites, though. I rewrite them with my substitutions and adapt to my kitchen, cooking style and in the case of US recipes, measuring system. They then go in my own blank recipe book.

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In another thread, a poster categorized cookbooks as either recipe books or coffe table cookbooks. I agree that with the advent of the internet, the availability of recipes/sites provides one with the ability to save (in case a site goes away) a highly personal collection of recipes. Personally, a notebook full of carefully selected recipes in plastic sheet protectors is ALOT more useful than the old box of 5x8 cards and odd pieces of paper one would collect over the years. The tactile feel of a cookbook, obviously, cannot be duplicated, as would be with a coffee table cookbook, but that kind of book, the visual appeal rates almost as high as the recipes, IMHO. Every now and then, there IS a site (Italianfoodforever.com) that seems to combine both aspects very well.

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