The Whole Fish Cookbook is the bestselling cookbook that has changed the way we think about fish. Jamie Oliver called Josh Niland one of the most impressive chefs of a generation and Yotam Ottolenghi voted the book one of his favourites – ever. Add to that a swag of awards, including: Two James Beard awards in 2020 – Restaurant and Professional and the prestigious Book of the Year; André Simon Food Book Award 2019; and The Australian Book Industry Association's Illustrated Book of the Year in 2020. The Whole Fish Cookbook was also shortlisted as debut cookbook of the year in the Fortnum & Mason food & drink awards in 2020 and longlisted as Booksellers' choice in the adult non-fiction category by the Australian Booksellers' Association. As well, photographer Rob Palmer won the Australian National Photographic Portrait Prize in 2020 with a stunning photo of Josh from the book.
'My cookbook of the year.' – Yotam Ottolenghi, The Guardian
'A mind-blowing masterpiece from one of the most impressive chefs of a generation.' – Jamie Oliver
'Josh Niland is a genius.' – Nigella Lawson
We all want to eat more fish, but who wants to bother spending the time, effort and money cooking that same old salmon fillet on repeat when you could be trying something new and utterly delicious?
In The Whole Fish Cookbook, Sydney's groundbreaking seafood chef Josh Niland reveals a completely new way to think about all aspects of fish cookery. From sourcing and butchering to dry ageing and curing, it challenges everything we thought we knew about the subject and invites readers to see fish for what it really is – an amazing, complex source of protein that can, and should, be treated with exactly the same nose-to-tail reverence as meat.
Featuring more than 60 recipes for dozens of fish species ranging from Cod Liver Pate on Toast, Fish Cassoulet and Roast Fish Bone Marrow to – essentially – the Perfect Fish and Chips, The Whole Fish Cookbook will soon have readers seeing that there is so much more to a fish than just the fillet, and that there are more than just a handful of fish in the sea.
Josh Niland is the chef/owner of Saint Peter, a fish restaurant that opened in Sydney to widespread critical acclaim in 2016. In doing so, Niland started a conversation around boundary-pushing seafood, as well as winning every significant award in Australia for his world-leading approach to using the whole fish and wasting nothing. In 2018, Josh opened The Fish Butchery – Australia's first sustainable fishmonger – which sells dry-aged, cured and smoked fish and offal to an eager public as well as supplying a number of Sydney's best restaurants. In 2019, his work was also recognized by the inaugural World Restaurant Awards, where he was shortlisted in the ethical thinking category. The Whole Fish Cookbook is his first book.
'There's no other chef in the world that I would rather have scale me with his knife, dry-age me, roast me, glaze me, rest me, slice me, serve me than this powerful spirit! Thank you Josh for paying attention and caring the way you do! You are a shining light!' -Matty Matheson, chef and author
'Josh Niland is a genius.' -Nigella Lawson, author
'If you love cooking fish, this book will be a revelation. You'll learn about dry-ageing to concentrate flavour and using every part but the bubble from the fish's mouth!' -Rick Stein, chef and author
'I have followed Josh for such a long time and adore him and his use of every part of a fish - what a trailblazer he is . this book is for home cooks as much as chefs and I applaud it.' -Maggie Beer, author
'To desire simplicity is a very complex exercise. Josh Niland is an inspiration to our profession. In The Whole Fish Cookbook he offers us a wealth of enjoyment and enthusiasm. In a compelling way, he shows us that with time and patience you can discover the real depth of flavour.' -Bo Bech, chef and author
'Josh Niland can coax deliciousness from fish eyeballs, swim bladders and even fish blood with confidence and elegance ... his endeavours, sometimes hauntingly visceral, other times plainly cheeky, [are] always beautiful and restrained. His approach is going to change the way the world thinks about cooking and eating seafood.' -Melanie Hansche, Food Wine
'Well that was a smack around the head! This book is a game changer! Josh has basically taken all the old ways of fish prep and cookery and thrown the bad ones out the window then turned what remains on its head. This book is such an eye opener for me personally and at the same time makes so much sense when Josh explains how he thinks about the world of seafood. This is a very, very special book and in many years to come, I will look back at this moment in time and say to myself, "Remember that time when Josh from Saint Peter brought that book out and we all had to rethink the way we prepared and cooked fish and seafood forever?" Thanks Josh and to all the team at Saint Peter for sharing this knowledge with us!' -Nathan Outlaw, chef and author
'I have been racking my brain trying to think of an American restaurant that comes close to the inventiveness and deep consideration that seafood is afforded at Saint Peter, to no avail ... Saint Peter is proof that when it comes to the modern dedicated seafood restaurant, Australia does it best.' -Besha Rodell, The New York Times
'Josh Niland's uncompromising discipline combined with his unique scale-to-tail, sustainable seafood philosophy has led to a revolution in the way we think, feel, prepare and eat seafood.' - Kylie Kwong, chef and author
'Here's one of those rare books that teaches you the basics. An inspiring read, and something to return to again and again - these pages are sure to be worn down quick.' -Rene Redzepi, chef and author
'A mind-blowing masterpiece from one of the most impressive chefs of a generation.' -Jamie Oliver, chef and author
'Equal parts comprehensive technical manual and a giant porthole into creativity, chef Niland's honest and pure approach to all things fish is inspiring. The Whole Fish Cookbook beautifully articulates the entire animal approach while methodically opening the reader's mind to how responsibility and innovation coexist.' -Grant Achatz, chef and author
