Charlie Trotter's Meat and Game

Chicago’s award-winning restaurant Charlie Trotter’s showcases its best recipes for chicken, duck, lamb, beef, pork and more—from classic plates to new traditions.


After nearly two decades of practicing his art, Charlie Trotter has established himself as one of the true visionaries of modern American cuisine. In the past two years alone, Trotter has received the Outstanding Chef and Outstanding Restaurant awards from the James Beard Foundation, and his Chicago restaurant was named best in the world by the Wine Spectator. His first cookbook, published in 1994, broke new ground with its stunning food photography, exquisitely wrought recipes, and deluxe format. With nine books and an award-winning PBS cooking show to his credit, Trotter hasn't looked back.

CHARLIE TROTTER'S MEAT & GAME finds the chef in top form and, like the wines from his restaurant's renowned cellar, perfectly paired with the feast at hand. Exotic meats like pheasant, duck, wild boar, and venison take their place alongside ever-versatile lamb, pork, and chicken; and such robust fare proves to be the ultimate platform for Trotter's synthesis of French technique, Asian minimalism, and improvisational verve. Start off with a classic refigured—French Onion Soup with Shredded Pork, Goat Cheese Brie, and Sourdough Croutons—and then segue to a study in color, texture, and aroma with the Smoked Squab with Israeli Couscous–Stuffed Tinker Bell Peppers and Chocolate Vinaigrette. Introduce pleasant hits of spice with a Cumin-Corriander-Scented Lamb Tenderloin, tempered by the cool, tangy finish of a Cucumber-Yogurt Sauce; and for those for whom one way, even two, is never enough, the Foie Gras Five Ways awaits.

Whether you put this book to work in the kitchen or admire it with your feet up, just don't take your eyes off Trotter—you may miss where American cuisine will be tomorrow.

• The fifth installment in Charlie Trotter's large-format cookbook series (over 200,000 copies sold).

• Features over 80 recipes, each beautifully rendered in full color by photographer Tim Turner.

• Chef Trotter's James Beard Award–winning cooking show, Kitchen Sessions with Charlie Trotter, is now in its second season on PBS.


















Awards2002 James Beard Award Winner
Reviews"Beautiful, stylish, over the top."
—Wall Street Journal

"Food porn at its most sizzling."
—The Birmingham News

"Breaks new ground in its explanation of wines and how they might accompany food."
—The Los Angeles Times

"One of the two or three greatest chefs working in North America. . . [a] stunning new book."
–The Washington Times

"Sumptuous. . . .signature Trotter. . . .[The photographs are] striking, making the book a pleasure to look through. . . [and the recipes] demonstrate Trotter's brilliance in pairing flavors."
—Restaurants & Institutions

“Wine collectors, traveling chefs and food lovers from around the world come here to experience the archetypal contemporary meal. They know that anyone who wants to understand American cuisine as it enters the 21st century must eat at Charlie Trotter's. . . . No restaurant in America comes closer to delivering a flawless total dining experience.”
—Wine Spectator

“This is a restaurant like Cape Canaveral is an airport."
—Chicago Magazine