Dirt

Adventures in Lyon as a Chef in Training, Father, and Sleuth Looking for the Secret of French Cooking

By: Bill Buford

Narrated by: Bill Buford

“You can almost taste the food in Bill Buford’s Dirt, an engrossing, beautifully written memoir about his life as a cook in France.” (The Wall Street Journal)

What does it take to master French cooking? This is the question that drives Bill Buford to abandon his perfectly happy life in New York City and pack up and (with a wife and three-year-old twin sons in tow) move to Lyon, the so-called gastronomic capital of France. But what was meant to be six months in a new and very foreign city turns into a wild five-year digression from normal life, as Buford apprentices at Lyon’s best boulangerie, studies at a legendary culinary school, and cooks at a storied Michelin-starred restaurant, where he discovers the exacting (and incomprehensibly punishing) rigueur of the professional kitchen.

With his signature humor, sense of adventure, and masterful ability to bring an exotic and unknown world to life, Buford has written the definitive insider story of a city and its great culinary culture.

©2020 Bill Buford (P)2020 Random House Audio

Wonderfully Delicious

A master storyteller. Although I’ve never been to Lyon I feel like I can taste it’s food and culture.

even if you don't cook

an adventure told with passion, insight and honesty. I think I will try to cook a chicken.

Exquisite

Buford navigates his subject with impressive ease, instilling a joie de vie based on humor, adventure, family, food, and history. Many thanks Bill

Buford is a great storyteller!!!

Buford is a great storyteller!!! He speaks with enthusiasm.
An impressive account of Lyon and French cuisine.

Heartwarming story of adventures in culinary quests

Loved this book and the authors narration with so much personality! The adventure he embarked upon with his family was a bold move by any means and they seemed to take much of it in stride. Bill’s love of learning the French culture and cuisine seethed thru all the chapters with plenty of detail and I delighted in listening to each next challenge. A great listen inspiring to take a visit to Lyon!

Lyon, a beautiful place to visit.

Such descriptions only a trained chef could relate! Maybe a vegetarian would not enjoy how to kill or raise meat of any kind. As a baker of breads and cakes, I loved his quest for a certain flour. He loved and expressed very well his research of ages old recipes.

An enjoyable title

Buford writings are interesting for me as someone who was raised in the industry. It is entertaining listening to his reaction to the experience of coming to understand the ego of the chef archetype. Enjoy

delightful

If you are interested in France, cooking or just fun, this book is sheer joy.

Best book ever!

I bought this book through Audible and I'm so glad to have been able to listen to the author read it himself. His spoken words brought the story to life . I could picture every detail described . I am a culinary instructor of more than 45 years as well as a longtime caterer in Los Angeles. I have had students study at both the CIA in New York and the French Culinary Institute. I have attended fundraising meals for the Bocuse d'Or. And following in the footsteps of Julia Child, I've taken classes at The Cordon Bleu in Paris and I have taught at the one in Pasadena. I come with an understanding and deep appreciation of good food and the effort and attention in its creation. I am that person who will bring real maple syrup to a restaurant that serves good pancakes but sadly with and artificial syrup. Therefore I truly appreciate the author's pilgrimage to the city of Lyon and beyond in order to study, and learn and seek out the flour and the miiller who create a bread whose taste will forever reside within one's memory. I laughed out loud at the description of the kitchen just before service, with all of its chaos and personalities. He captured it all.I will buy this book in paperback and read it again, this time with the ability to underline key passages and pages. I will read these to my culinary students and I will say to them " this is what passion about food is all about." Bill Buford I thank you for one of the most enjoyable books ever about food, France, and the family of chefs and cooks who make it all happen.

Very long but interesting story

The author lives out his passion for his enjoyment of authentic food flavor found in French cuisine. He apprenticed himself to restaurant kitchens in Lyon France to gain the secret to producing the flavors he seeks to find. He tells us his story speaking rapidly in a dramatic, exclamatory style as he narrates conversations he had with coworkers and other chef wannabes in the kitchen brigades or teams. Listening to these conversations go on and on was tedious. I wanted him to stop, take a breath and slow down.
I got some good ideas about food prep that I will use in my cooking.