Heston Blumenthal has made his name creating such original dishes as Snail Porridge and Nitrogen Scrambled Egg & Bacon Ice Cream at his internationally acclaimed restaurant, The Fat Duck. In this book, a single-volume edition of the bestselling Perfection books, Heston focuses his creative talent on reinventing some of our most well-known (and most abused) dishes. He travels around the world in search of definitive versions of sixteen classic dishes: Roast Chicken & Roast Potatoes, Pizza, Hamburger,Bangers & Mash, Fish Pie, Steak, Spaghetti Bolognese, Risotto, Fish & Chips, Chilli Con Carne, Chicken Tikka Masala, Peking duck, Black Forest Gateau, Treacle Tart & Ice Cream, Trifle and Baked Alaska. Among the many adventures on his quest, he travels to Delhi and makes an MRI scan of the marinated chicken in his Tikki Masala; he discovers the secret to the ultimate crispy duck in Peking and experiments at home by inflating a Gressingham on a foot pump; he walks the Dickensian streets of Lambeth and learns how to capture the essence of a fish and chip shop in a perfume bottle, and he explores the Willy Wonka-esque Tate & Lyle factory and tastes some seventy-year-old syrup that proves an inspiration for the flavour of his treacle tart. Total Perfection is an original, inspiring and fascinating voyage around the culinary globe.

Heston Blumenthal has quickly made a name for himself as one of the world's most innovative and revolutionary chefs and is best known for remaking even the most basic meals into truly delectable entrees. In this intriguing volume, Heston investigates every aspect of eight classic dishes: Trifle, Baked Alaska, Fish Pie, Hamburgers, Peking Duck, Chicken Tikka Masala, Risotto, and Chilli Con Carne. Along with helpful tips on how to select ingredients and cook each meal to perfection, information on the cultural traditions and history surrounding them is also provided. Lavishly illustrated and filled with insightful information from both in and out of the kitchen, this is a unique and tasty treat for aspiring culinary perfectionists.