Basic cooking tips, techniques, and shortcuts, with full-color photography throughout—perfect for beginner cooks. The Starter Cook  is the perfect quick culinary reference, a learner’s manual to that sometimes intimidating room: the kitchen. With its plethora of helpful tips and a step-by-step guide to every major technique, it helps beginner home cooks connect the dots as they learn their way around the kitchen. Linda Johnson Larsen covers all the basics—from understanding food storage and preparation to perfecting knife skills to learning to poach chicken—and then some, like covering all special preparations needed for each specific food group. Peppered throughout are quick tips on maintaining the budget, safety rules, and shortcuts to make life in the kitchen a little bit easier. With  The Starter Cook,  the beginner home cook—whether a recent college grad, a newlywed, or simply someone looking to brush up on culinary skills—can become a more confident cook. Linda Johnson Larsen is the author of many cookbooks, including Knack Quick & Easy Cooking (Globe Pequot Press) and The Joyce Lamont Cookbook , and she is the Guide for Busy Cooks at About.com. Linda has created and tested recipes for major food companies since 1987.