Michael Ruhlman’s groundbreaking New York Times bestseller gets at the very “truth” of cooking: it is not about recipes but rather about basic ratios and fundamental techniques.

Ratios are the simple proportions of one ingredient to another. Knowing a culinary ratio is not like knowing a single recipe; it’s instantly knowing a thousand.

Why spend time sorting through millions of cookie recipes online or in cookbooks? Isn’t it easier to remember 1:2:3? That’s the ratio of ingredients that consistently make a basic, delicious cookie dough: 1 part sugar, 2 parts fat, and 3 parts flour. From there, add anything you want—chocolate, orange zest, walnuts, cinnamon, almond extract, or peanut butter, to name a few favorite variations. Replace white sugar with brown for a darker, chewier cookie. Add baking powder and/or eggs for a lighter, airier texture.

Biscuit dough is 3:1:2—or 3 parts flour, 1 part fat, and 2 parts liquid. Vinaigrette is 3:1, or 3 parts oil to 1 part vinegar, and is one of the most useful sauces imaginable, giving everything from grilled meats and fish to steamed vegetables or lettuces fabulous flavor. Change its ratio and bread dough becomes pasta dough; cakes become muffins become popovers become crepes. Once you know the ratio, you no longer need a recipe.

Ratio also helpfully teaches readers how the fundamental ingredients of the kitchen—water, flour, butter and oils, milk and cream, and eggs—work together. In a world full of overly complicated recipes, award-winning author Michael Ruhlman delivers an innovative, straightforward book that makes the cooking easier and more satisfying than ever.