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Matty Matheson1 book reviewed
Matty Matheson
Home Style Cookery
by Matty Matheson
LuvemBooks Verdict
Best for
Home cooks with some existing kitchen confidence who want a single, occasion-spanning anchor cookbook — especially those who connect with Matheson's personality and his ethos of cooking as an act of generosity for family and friends.
Worth it if
You regularly cook for others, want to expand your repertoire across pantry staples, weeknight dinners, and special-occasion showstoppers, and value a book that blends personal storytelling with practical, approachable recipes.
Skip if
You're a complete beginner looking for a gentle, structured introduction, or a specialist seeking exhaustive depth in a single cuisine or technique — the book's broad global scope means individual areas receive lighter treatment than a dedicated specialist volume would provide.
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- Is it worth reading?
- For the home cook with some kitchen confidence who wants a single volume capable of covering most occasions, Home Style Cookery makes a compelling case for itself. It arrived as a New York Times bestseller, was named one of Men's Health's Top 10 cookbooks of 2020, and Cookbookreview.blog awarded it five stars while calling it 'even better' than Matheson's already celebrated debut. One reviewer noted it is 'well worth reading, especially if you love reading about food and the processes of cooking' — a nod to the narrative dimension that sets it apart from a purely technical reference. The honest caveat, as Cookbookreview.blog notes, is that it does not aim to be the only cookbook you'll ever need, and its breadth means some individual cuisines or techniques receive lighter coverage than a specialist volume would.
- Who should read this?
- Home Style Cookery is designed for the home cook who already has some kitchen confidence and wants to expand their range — specifically, someone who cooks for family and friends regularly and is ready to move beyond a small repertoire. The publisher frames it explicitly as a guide for cooks who want to 'be more creative and ambitious.' Readers who connect with Matheson's personality and his approach to cooking as an act of generosity will get the most from the book's blend of practical recipes and personal storytelling. Fans of his debut, Matty Matheson: A Cookbook, will find this second volume the more practically useful of the two.
- Similar books
- Readers who respond to Home Style Cookery's blend of chef personality, accessible recipes, and broad scope will find strong company on this page. Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat by Samin Nosrat shares the mission of making home cooks more confident and creative through foundational thinking rather than rigid recipes. Cook This Book by Molly Baz and Knife Drop by Nick DiGiovanni both bring a personality-forward voice to practical, occasion-spanning cooking in the same spirit as Matheson. From Crook to Cook by Snoop Dogg and The Tucci Cookbook by Stanley Tucci are fellow celebrity-chef volumes where personal identity is as central as the food itself — much like Home Style Cookery's framing as a window into Matheson's life. Anthony Bourdain's Appetites: A Cookbook is another close comparison for readers drawn to the unapologetically personal, cook-for-people-you-love ethos.
- What's his connection to The Bear?
- Matty Matheson serves as an executive producer and actor on Hulu's Emmy Award-winning series The Bear, which has significantly raised his profile beyond the food-media world. Home Style Cookery predates his prominent role on that show — it was published in September 2020 — but readers discovering Matheson through The Bear will find the cookbook consistent with the culinary sensibility and personality he brings to the screen. The book is a standalone home-cooking guide rather than a tie-in to the series.
- How was it received by critics?
- Home Style Cookery earned strong critical reception across mainstream and food-media outlets. It became a New York Times bestseller — matching the distinction of Matheson's debut — and Men's Health named it one of the Top 10 cookbooks of 2020, signalling appeal well beyond food-media insiders. Cookbookreview.blog awarded it five stars and called it 'even better' than an already celebrated first book, describing Matheson as 'one of the most exciting and original voices to have emerged on the cookery scene in the last five years or so.' The same source noted the honest caveat that it does not aim to match the exhaustive scope of the most comprehensive single-volume cookbooks.
- What's the physical book like?
- Home Style Cookery is a substantial physical object — at nearly 370 pages and over three pounds, it is not designed for the cramped kitchen shelf or a quick-reference role. The book is accompanied by photographs of both the dishes and Matheson's farm, contributing to its character as a cookbook that is also a window into the chef's life. Cookbookreview.blog notes that at 368 pages, Matheson 'has packed a lot in,' making the book feel comprehensive in hand as well as on paper.
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Age & Reading Level
Recommended age
Adult
Reading level
Adult
Skip if you want exhaustive, encyclopedic coverage of a single cuisine or cooking technique.
Editorial Review
A New York Times bestselling follow-up to Matheson's debut cookbook, Home Style Cookery delivers 135 recipes spanning pantry fundamentals through showstopping roasts, shaped by the Canadian chef's personality and his belief that cooking is both practical and personal.
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