Thug Kitchen: The Official Cookbook: Eat Like You Give a F*ck (Thug Kitchen Cookbooks)

i recently received this in the mail upon ordering. I have amazon prime so i go ti t fast. Most of the reviews ive read before purchasing this book are mostly people complaining about the cursing, that they didn't know it was vegan and that the ingredients are too "fancy". so before i give my review i want to say to those people; who buys things without reviewing them?? and then complains about i t afterwards?? I mean the trailer and entire motto wrapped around this book is cursing. OBVIOUSLY its going to be cursing... how are you surprised? which leads me to another complaint ive seen which says they are offended by the term "thug". UHM, it isn't literally them supporting thugs.. its like a metaphor.. they are thugs in the kitchen, they toughen you up and motivate you in almost a boot camp sort of way. therefore they're they thugs in the kitchen telling you how to get that sh*t right.. Now as for the fancy ingredient complain.. one guy said smoked paprika was too fancy and hard to find... which is not.. at all.. it should be a staple in any cooks spice rack.. Aminos might be hard to find but i seen those even in low level market places and farmers markets or nurserys or co-ops.. health stores, nutritionists or a damn WHOLE FOODS! if you are motivated and want to change your diet you will find these and if you cannot then there's always online.. and how do you not know its vegan?? again, how do you buy a product...especially a COOKBOOK and not read detail info about it?!?! with all the gmo and crazy processes they're doing lately its surprising people aren't paying attention to minor details like that and then they complain about it like if the author set them up...*sigh* Now for my honest review; first Id like to say im Hispanic and raised with ethnic foods. Cuban to be precise. Much of the sides and Spanish dishes am familiar with and can use more spices and salt. but that's just my palette. If you are starting off on actual real food and moving away from fast food or just want to train your taste buds, these recipes are perfectly balanced! Many leftovers you can freeze for another time. They are delicious and i dont miss the meat. I do admit it takes prep time and cook time. sometimes i cook for 5 hours but im cooking like 3 different things plus dessert so its different. I'm trying to establish a routine where the most used items are already cutup and stored somehow for easy access.. perhaps when i do a week food prep. also lotsa beans in here which is awesome for slow cookers. I love the baked apple beans. I added 2 apples instead and its so damn good!!! you don't miss the meat at all... i do wish there were more recipes and more versatile breakfast ideas with more fruit but its still a good way to kick-start a detox or life style.. it weans you and really does motivate you if you don't mind the potty mouth. and from someone who curses a lot this isn't really a lot and its funny. sometimes i don't notice it. it truly speaks to me and it is educational as fu*k. definitely a good buy and a good read. not too exotic things on here that i saw.. i haven't tried their tempeh or tofu recipe but there really isn't much. Their sweet potatoes fried rice is also yummy and they have this peanut dipping sauce yum! you will have to switch up some of your spices and pantry items but that's what eating healthy is. Switching up what you've been raised to believe is healthy or even food. Think for yourself and bring your mind back to reality with real food and nourishment. Their grilled peach salsa is also yummy and i be putting it on everything. Some recipes i feel are missing something but maybe thats just my habits and culture that are used to different sides a big slab of meat. I feel like this would if anything be a good cookbook of healthy sides and good for introducing your infant to good food after their puree stage or even puree some recipes for baby. look up spices and baby food. make your own!! its cheaper and safer and more nutritious! Check out my pics!

I purchased this cook book as a gift for my husband - he does the majority of cooking in our house. We are meat eaters but love good food of all kinds. This appeared under "people who purchased this book also purchased..." recommendations. I have to say, the beautiful photos of the food grabbed me, and I checked out their website to see what the recipes were like and loved it. The gangsta theme was funny but to be honest, now having made multiple recipes from this cook book (yes, I'm so enthused, I'm the one making most of them!), I don't even notice it any more. Good food is good food! This is a vegan cook book and obviously no animal products are used. What has turned me off from vegan recipes in the past (I have had to be milk protein free for about 12 months in my lifetime so have looked at quite a few), is the use of weird substitutes - vegan cheese for instance. The most unusual this book gets for substitutes is coconut milk, almond milk, and nutritional yeast (which you don't even really need in the recipes it is in). There are a couple tofu based recipes which we haven't tried and might just leave the tofu out of when we try. The recipes we have tried and loved so far have been Smoked Almond and Chickpea Salad Sammies (like a fake egg salad sandwich - very delicious), Sweet Corn and Green Chile Baked Flautas (yummy), Wedding Soup with White Bean Balls and Kale (I hate greens in soups and thought this was excellent), Cumin-Spiked Pinto Bean Dip, Baked Spicy Plantain Chips (spicy as advertised but really made enough for 2, not 4-6), Fire-Roasted Salsa (we thought this would be mild and were pleasantly surprised it was a bit hotter), Blueberry Walnut Lavender Scones (my one deviation - no lavender and thus I modified to make into Lemon Blueberry and turned out great - only made about 9 scones, not 12). We have many more recipes tagged to eat soon. I can tell you what we love: the photography, and that the food turns out as beautiful as their pics; the tastes - great flavors; not having to worry how well something is cooked or about cross contamination without animal products; easy to follow directions. What has taken some getting used: most of the "serves (number) people" have been close, but can be off a bit; fresh veggies and fruits take a bit more time to prepare to use in recipes (chopping) so prep times are longer than with our usual meals (and we cook from scratch almost nightly so we are pretty used to it); just because this is vegan doesn't mean all of these meals are low calorie (the scone recipe that I got 9 scones out of had 269 calories per scone (better than Starbucks though - they are ~440 per scone) and the wedding soup which legitimately serves 6 has 441 calories per serving (seems crazy, but I calculate my recipe calorie amounts using myfitnesspal and double checked that one a few times....); the one thing that irked us was a couple recipes have cooking spray used which seems so strange for a book full of fresh and healthy foods (we don't even have it in the house and used crisco instead (ha, not much better)). Maybe there is some vegan cooking spray we know nothing about. :-) As far as the language, people appear to have varying opinions - my take on it: if it's a gimmick, it worked and got me to purchase the book. I don't even notice it now because the recipes are so fabulous. Very pleased and am a fan of their website now - cannot wait to try more!

Smoked Paprika. You need this. I s*** you not. Now ... First off, let me say I don't cook because it's fun and I enjoy it, I cook to eat. Growing up in a rural area, my Mom pretty much always used the basic seasonings: salt, pepper, margarine, and bacon grease. When she could afford to buy butter, she'd use that. I'll spare you the details, but we ate kinda poor. Simple, plain, filling, cheap. I'm sure some of you know what I'm talking about. Things got better as us kids got older, and Mom expanded her repertoire by adding more herbs and spices, and somewhat better cuts of meat. That's how I learned to cook. I always liked it, and continued to cook the same way after I got married--to Mr. Pickypants McFuss-a-lot. (How did *that* happen?) Been married a long time, been cooking a lot longer and it gets boring, monotonous, tedious. I ask *him* what he'd like to have for dinner, and he invariably says, "Spaghetti" or "meatloaf." *sigh* You know what I'm saying. Despite him, I have tried to change it up over the years. Dropped bacon grease *years* ago. I really miss it sometimes. Um, yes. Thug Kitchen is a recipe book of vegan dishes. Don't be like my husband and sneer at me, "It's not going to work." {see me rolling my eyes?} Don't be stupid. I am not trying to turn anyone into a vegan. I am a card-carrying, dyed-in-the-wool, affirmed and declared Non-Vegetarian. Check the snippy, dogmatic attitude at the door. I've been cooking for a really long damn time (started back when my mother broke her back when I was about 10), and get sick of it. However, I rather enjoy eating (obviously). It's one of the few pleasures I have left. I don't cook for fun or because I like playing with food, I cook to eat. Unfortunately, I happen to like most of my own cooking. And chocolate. Anyhow, I saw the trailer/ad for this cookbook, thought it was freakin' hilarious, and pre-ordered one. ($14.61 for the hard back edition in October 2014. I love books, too.) When it arrived, I tried a few of the recipes, laughing through each one as I read them, and bought five more to give as Christmas gifts. Hell! I just read through it because it was so entertaining! One of the many things I like about it is it doesn't come across with that self-righteous, holier-than-thou, stuck up, I'm-better-than-you-because-I'm-a-vegetarian-and-you're-a-murderer attitude. The *only* thing that kept me from giving more as gifts was the explicit language. Which I find to be funny as H*ll, but other people could be offended. I kind of started to not care about that part. But then I said, "Screw it!" and bought four more. Anyhow, here's the tough part. For you avowed meat-eaters like myself, don't think of it as a vegan cookbook, crank back on the narrow minded, pigheaded-ness and think of it as a book of SIDE DISHES. I know, right? (Don't forget about the snacky stuff. Mm, mm, good!) Fry your pork chops and have some 5-Spice Fried Rice (page 68) on the side. Or, cube those pork chops, or chicken, or beef, and throw it all *in* the fried rice. Try to use your imagination. Like, I couldn't find arugula at the grocery store, so I substituted a mixture of spinach and arugula bag o' salad. Substitutions--you can do that. Radical idea. Speaking of pork chops, the Smoky Maple Marinade (page 77) is *so good*. So far, my daughter and I have decided that Spiced Chickpea Wraps with Tahini Dressing (page 32) is our absolute favorite. That stuff is delicious! I've made it several times and we tear it up. (I leave out the cayenne pepper for her.) Of course, the husband simply refuses to even try it. His loss, our gain. It means more for us! And I don't feel as if I'm a low-life cretin for using canned beans. You can use canned or cook your own. They give instructions for cooking your own, if it's that important to you. Novel concept, eh? I recommend doubling the Tahini Dressing right off the bat. Take a walk on the wild side and make the Pumpkin Chili (page 97). It would have never entered my mind to use canned pumpkin in that way. I was amazed. Of course, you could add meat if you like. It won't explode. I swear. Shoot! Go ahead and top it with cheese and sour cream, or slather it on your hot dog! Who can't use a little beta carotene with their nitrates? In some cases, I've had trouble finding a few of the ingredients called for in the recipes I've tried. (The writers make substitution suggestions, or you can substitute your own. Go figure.) There just *are* no Asian or other ethnic-non-whitish type, Non-American-ish markets here like some folks have in more populated areas; or the local grocery stores (there are two) just don't carry it. Like smoked paprika. Not a really exotic thing, but it's just not available in the stores here. Bought it online. LOVE it!!! On the Thug Kitchen website is a recipe for Frosted Gingerbread Bites. To die for! The husband did eat them, but I hid the recipe and got rid of the coconut milk can so he wouldn't see it and make those faces. He did not drop to the floor, curl up into the fetal position, and scream, "I'm melting. I'm melting!" (total Drama King. He got it honest.) 0_o As with other good cookbooks, there are tips, tricks, suggestions, lots of "how-to" instructions, and guides for what primary (and inexpensive) kitchen tools to have. There's even a guide for stocking your pantry with some basic items so you always have something to eat in the house (if your picky, fussy, meat-n-potatoes hubby will eat it). And no, I don't have anything to do with the cookbook writers or publishers, I just like it. Enjoy the book and the food you make. Eat some damn vegetables. Smoked paprika. I bought some here on Amazon. (McCormick 8.5 ounce for $12.99. Then I bought more of that deliciousness to give as Christmas gifts.) I'm just sayin'. Unlike some other delicate flowers, I am *not* offended by the book being written by white folks, even though I'm an old, fat, white broad who should *not* cuss like a sailor (but I do). I happen to be old enough to remember when "thugs" were just punks, bad guys, dirtballs, and hoodlums of any ol' variety or color. I *would* say that some of the colorful language is slightly overdone, but I didn't sit down and read the book cover to cover. I flipped through it, looked at the pretty pictures and graphics, thumbed through the index, scanned some recipes, etc., and have enjoyed it bit by bit. There is a table of contents. It's called "The Track List." Most of you will probably enjoy it, too. Rick - MizzRick - GeezerWench

I only began following the “Thug Kitchen” blog shortly before this book was released, but what I’d seen on the blog previous to the book dropping was enough to get me pretty damn excited. As soon as the book came out I picked up a copy and I haven’t been even slightly disappointed thus far. I simply love this book, it’s the funniest, and most fun cook book I’ve ever owned! I die laughing at nearly every recipe. The authors are pretty hilarious, and have a random/weird sense of humor that I can appreciate since it matches my own. Now, before I continue with the actual recipes you must be warmed - apparently since a lot of people seemed to miss this pretty obvious fact before purchasing - this book contains bad language, and a whole lot of it. I mean, F-words and S-words, and Mother-F###er’s in every recipe, both introductions and directions. Personally there is very little in this world that offends me, and I use a lot of bad language myself, I don’t find words offensive. Words only have as much power as we give them, and any word can be used for humor or offense depending on your context and inflection. I do not think the ‘bad-words’ detract from the recipes, but others will probably disagree. It’s my experience that people in general are uptight, but if you’re not easily offended, and you like a good laugh now and again I think you’ll enjoy this book. So, that being said, a few things I loved about the book - besides the humor - are the photographs which all look lovely, and certainly inspire me to cook the recipes. Some of the pictures are especially mouth-watering. I also like the books clean and easy to read layout. Most recipes are one per page with easy to read font. Most of the ingredients list are not especially long, and all the directions are perfectly clear and easy to follow. I would not consider these recipes to be complicated, though some might be time-consuming, so make sure you read a recipe though and plan ahead if need be. I like that the recipes rely - for the most part - on healthy, whole foods ingredients, simply fruits, vegetables and grains. There are not especially strange ingredients, and most of the spices used are common ones. Anything that might seem out of the ordinary for the ‘common pantry’ is explained and the authors bestow a lot of basic cooking/ basic vegan knowhow on you throughout the book. That being said recipes are not labeled gluten-free, soy-free, grain-free, sugar-free, oil-free etc, though a quick read-through will tell you that many of them are, or can easily be made that way. Also the recipes do not contain nutritional information which may be a ‘deal-breaker’ for some people so you should be aware of that. Overall I think this book is fantastic, in fact I think it’s the first cook book I’ve owned in which I’ve literally read every page! Normally I skip the introductory chapters as my cooking skills are far beyond needing to re-read the basics, but this book was just fun. I wish that I’ve had more time to actually cook from it but so far I’ve made the following, Quinoa Oatmeal - Loved it Breakfast Greens - Loved it Tofu Scramble Tacos - Loved it Whole Wheat Banana Pancakes - Loved it Maple Berry Grits - OMG AMAZING! Almond Caesar Salad with Homemade Croutons - OMG AMAZING Roasted Potato Salad with Fresh Herbs - Loved it Savory Tempeh and Carrot Sandwiches - Loved it Smokey Black Eyed Peas with Roasted Sweet Potatoes and Collards - Loved it Creamy Peanut Slaw - AMAZING Cold Citrus Noodles with Cucumber and Carrots - Loved it Yellow Split Pea and Green Onion Lettuce Wraps - AMAZING! Wilted Greens - Loved it Lemony Red Lentil Soup - Loved it Warm the F##k Up Minestrone - Good but not my favorite Minestrone recipe Potato Leek Soup - Loved it Chickpeas and Dumplings - OMG AMAZING Wedding Soup with White Bean Balls and Kale - OMG AMAZING Cumin-Spiked Pinto Bean Dip - Loved it Sweet Corn and Black Eyed Pea Dip - AMAZING Fire-Roasted Salsa - Pretty good Blended Earl Grey Lattes - OMG AMAZING Roasted Beer and Lime Cauliflower Tacos with Cilantro Coleslaw - Loved it Tempeh Peanut Noodles with Blanched Kale - Loved it White Bean and Red Lentil Burgers - AMAZING Blueberry Walnut Lavender Scones - AMAZING Based on how good the recipes are, and how funny the book is I wouldn’t hesitate to buy this book for a vegan or vegan curious friend who isn’t easily offended by bad language. This is a most welcome addition to my extensive cook book collection, and I can’t wait to try more recipes in the future!

Most vegan cookbooks are funny in the sense of looks and smells but this one is the good kind of funny. The best way to describe this book is that it's like a coffee table book for your kitchen. I like the fact that it makes vegan recipes, which can be daunting, more fun and accessible. Also, it definitely helps bring the guys more into the mix who, if the men in your life are anything like mine- are major carnivores. As soon as my husband realized it was a meat free, vegan cookbook he put it down, but once I started making juicy, charred, and sauce slathered portobello burgers and other recipes he quickly came around. Here's the thing to remember though, this is a book meant for adults. While the recipes would be fun to make with children, having them ask you to pass the "F***ing pepper mill" might not be. Personally, I've never been offended by language, its all creative license as far as i'm concerned, but I'm also grown and don't have kids yet so...keep that in mind. It lost a star because, although this book will make you giggle, it can get a little repetitive and sometimes you just want to read a short simple recipe without a s*** load of extra stuff in between, but that might just be me. PROS: Fun, Easy Recipes, Makes Vegan Food With Men In Mind, Varied and Tasty Recipes CONS: Humor Can Get A Bit Repetitive, Swearing (if that bothers you), Can't Make With The Kids TIPS: Challenge the grill master in your life to making a portobello burger taste as good as possible, if he doesn't like it- it's just a mushroom! So toss it and throw on a steak, but so far we haven't thrown any out! *** Did you find this review helpful? I hope so! Let me know if you have questions by using the comments section below ***

OUTSTANDING BOOK! For those of us who know that we've needed to improve the content of our food, but didn't know yet how to put things together that taste good; this book is the solution. The process of getting set up for these recipes is like going on an adventure into a new experience. A learning experience that expands your knowledge of ingredients, basic ingredient preparation/processing and other nutrition knowledge. Most ingredients in this book, I can purchase from my local supermarket, Winco. There are a few select items I have to get from natural food store; like aero root powder, tamari soy sauce and lavender. For the most part, the ingredients are things you can buy at big box stores. I barely spend about 25% more a week, $20/week more, to eat like I do from this book, versus the processed garbage trash from cans and bags I used to eat. That costs NOTHIN' to gain the health benefits I have and this food tastes better. Even with the SMALL increase in grocery price, you cant put a price on your health and its a lot cheaper than medical bills or becoming so fat that you lose your mobility. The recipes are sparring when it comes to salt, so while the food tastes great, it doesn't give me heartburn and diarrhea. NO VEGATABLE OIL, butter or animal product. I plan on buying their other books. I can go on and on about this cookbook. I've integrated these items into my weekly diet. The biscuits and lintel gravy, the pinto bean flauntas (burritos), broccoli millet pilaf are among my easy to make favorites. The plantain chip and the black bean dip and an AMAZING combination. When it comes to desserts, the chocolate covered millet peanut butter drop things are easy to make and taste great. The banana custard cream pie IS TO FREAKING TO DIE FOR. You'll become faster and more proficient the more times to prepare this food. A lot of us millennial were never even taught how to cook beyond macaroni on the stove or microwave crap food. So this is also functioning and 'Cooking 101 Class' for a lot of us. Keep that in mind if you fall into that category. Its an investment of time throughout and money (mostly in the beginning when you build a pantry up for the 1st time) BUT its worth it!

This is the only vegan cook book you will ever need, unless you want to get the others made by this chef. I cook from this cookbook every night. I recommend it to anyone and everyone whether they are vegan or not. It’s a good way to create delicious healthy meals at home. There is no need to swap ingredients or find alternatives. This book tells you everything you need and where you can find it in the grocery store. The directions are simple, and the commentary is hilarious. Cooking can sometimes be stressful and this book will always make you laugh and makes it a little more enjoyable. Not to mention every single recipe is delicious! I follow the exact directions and it always turns out great. Usually I find bland vegan recipes online and I have to add my own spices to give it the flavor that I like. Not with this cookbook. Every recipe is already loaded with spices and flavorful ingredients. Plus the food is so good that you could give it to a non vegan and they would not complain. They probably wouldn’t even ask or notice that it’s vegan. The meals are so well rounded that you don’t miss the meat. And honestly I began to prefer cooking at home rather than going out to eat, because these recipes are restaurant worthy. Finally this book pressures you to try and prepare new foods. It also teaches you to give foods that you may not like a new chance, because it offers better ways to prepare them. Like tofu or peas for example. It’s not just a cookbook, it’s a whole cooking experience book from start to finish. I think it will help anyone gain confidence in their cooking and decision to become vegan.

I started a plant-based lifestyle about a year ago and it lasted two months because the time commitment involved just wasn't working with my work schedule (I put in a LOT of hours). However, I had never, in my entire life, felt as fantastic as I did when I was eating only plant-based food. So I know that, for me at least, it's absolutely the way to go. I've finally gone back to it and am working on some ways of short cutting that time commitment during the week (making soups ahead on Sundays, chopping veggies that can be chopped and stored and bagging them up for the recipes that week - I'm planning on purchasing a food saver to help ensure they last through the week, etc.). The reason I mention that is that the majority of the recipes in this book WILL take a lot of prep time. That's just the nature of eating a plant-based diet. I'm also a terrible cook in the sense that I have no concept of how to "throw something together". I have to have recipes to follow. If a recipe calls for shallots and I don't have any, I have to call my mom or foodie friends to ask what I can use instead. I don't know what flavors go well together and have never successfully learned, despite coming from a family of fantastic cooks. This book is slowly changing that. There are tips all through it on those exact kinds of things - what veggie cuttings you should/shouldn't save for making your own vegetable broth (I wouldn't have known you shouldn't use broccoli!). What types of vinegars compliment what kinds of dishes so you can substitute if you are out of a particular kind. That kind of stuff that for some of us, doesn't come naturally. I've also found the recipes to be, so far, excellent. There are some small tweaks I'd make to some of them, but thanks to what I'm learning in this book, I'm actually confident enough to try tweaking a recipe for the first time in my life. :) I also find the humor in the recipes themselves engaging and they never fail to crack me up as I'm cooking. The cookbook I primarily used before (one of Dr. Furhman's) had much more complicated recipes, in general and many of them were disappointing to a new vegan's palate. Maybe because I've tried this type of lifestyle before, I am not experiencing that this time around, but so far, I find the dishes to be really tasty! But you know, if you do find them a bit bland, even the recipe says "you do you." Throw a bit more salt or lime juice in there - maybe a touch more vinegar (or if you overdo the vinegar, a bit of sweetener to offset). This is the first book that I feel like is teaching me how to experiment to become a better cook.

**~ bored with your fiction or nonfiction books? Well. Try this one for a change. I love this book and the language it’s been written on.its a change for a mood. The recipes are awesome and easily understandable. The hardcover is strong and is sturdy. It’s written with ease so that an amateur can easily understand what the recipe is asking for. The book gives you the clear direction of what is to be bought and what needs to be done. I’m not a vegan but there are some really good recipes in there which everyone should try.

Tiene buen contenido

It's not easy to find some of the ingredients in Italy, however I tried several recipes and they are awesome. I'm not even vegetarian, but these foods help me to eat tasty and healthier (and ethic).

Amazing recipes. Hilarious book. A staple in our kitchen. Use it at least once a week.

Love this book x