Korean Fried Chicken from the "Serious Eats" cookbook. Robyn Lee/Clarkson Potter Publishing

The quirky and fun food site, “ Serious Eats“, now has it’s very own cookbook.   The site, which covers everything from the best restaurants to recipes now has a cookbook that encompasses just that.  No matter where you are in the United States, this cookbook has a restaurant you have to check out.  Read what Ed Levine, the founder of Serious Eats, has to say about the site’s first cookbook.

1.  How did the “Serious Eats” community influence your decision to write this book?  Did they offer advice or favorite places you had to try?

The community informs everything we do at “Serious Eats.”  We often depended on both contributors and the community for advice about where and what to eat in a particular city.

2.  I love how you include recipes as well as restaurants in your book.  Why did you feel it was important to include recipes in a book that is a guide of American restaurants?

We wanted the book to reflect our sites. Our sites feature reviews, conversations, photos, and recipes, and the book reflects that.

3.  With all of this traveling, do you have time to cook?   What’s something you’ve cooked lately?

I cook mostly on weekends. My wife and I often cook the turkey burger recipe that is in the book. It’s yummy. The secret ingredient: marmite.

4.  How long did it take to travel and put the book together?

With all of these places, it looks like it must have taken a long time! A year from start to finish. I bought all the “Serious Eats” editors, including me, All You Can Jet Jet Blue passes last September, which meant we could fly anywhere on the Jet Blue system during that month for $499. Alas, they don’t offer that deal any more.

5.  What’s the one food in the book you can’t live without, that everyone MUST try when they visit?

Pie at Hoosier Mama in Chicago.

Check out this amazing recipe for Korean Fried Chicken from the “Serious Eats” cookbook.