Reading is good. Honest.

I have a pretty eclectic taste in reading materials. From travel writing to sci-fi and fantasy, via World War 2 history, political thrillers and much else besides. One of my favourite genres is food writing.

Many people I know - and I suspect a great deal I don't - tend to turn up their noses at this fascinating literary area. My own dear wife, Mrs.B, is particularly fond of poking fun at the fact I recently read a book called "Salt - A World History" by Mark Kurlansky. Why would you read a book called Salt?

Because food is interesting. I now know why Kosher Salt is called Kosher Salt, and what it's best used for. I also know the difference between Sel Gris, Maldon Sea Salt, Fleur de Sel and Table Salt. I know why black salt is black and red salt is red. I also know why some salt is iodized and what that really means. (It explains why so few people in the western world suffer from goiter, for a start.) And above all, I know that I will always be a source of amusement to Mrs.B.

I do so love to make her smile.

I haven't just read books on salt. I have some excellent books about coffee, tea, whisky (the Scottish kind) and whiskey (the American kind), cod, and the potato. (I haven't actually brought myself to read that one yet. Waiting for a long, cold Winter in California...) And there are some great books about the food industry itself.

Why am I telling you this?

The more you read and learn about food, the more you know. The more you know about food, the more you think. The more you think about food, the more you want to cook. And the more you cook, the more you experiment and play around using knowledge you've acquired. And the more you play, the better your skills become.

Of course you noticed I didn't say "the better your food tastes"! We have to add in a word about experience. If you follow the recipe, you'll get good food. If you mess with a recipe and it goes horribly awry, your food can taste bad. But how and why did the ingredient you changed cause such a catastrophe? The more you read, research and experiment, the more you're likely to understand what makes a good substitution and what makes a bad one, and what can be tweaked. And then your food tastes awesome! (At least to you.)

How do I know that bit? Because I've screwed up hundreds of times. Trust me. I'm not saying I'm a good cook, but I'm pretty confident that I've become so good at being a bad cook that I'm finally getting better.

So read, read, and read some more about the food you eat. If you ever wonder where cinnamon sticks come from and why they look like that, go find out. (Quite often it's not actually cinnamon...) Ever thought about how they get the caffeine out of coffee, and what they should have done to the guy who first tried it? Pick up that book. Do you wonder why Mrs.B looks particularly amused? California is probably going through a cold snap.

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm off to find out which part of Emeril they get the Essence from.