Launch price 08:00:00 Both books $29
Two books by Chef Tony Ricci

You were never a bad cook. Nobody told you why.

Volume I gives you 100 dishes with the exact measures. Volume II gives you the 90 techniques underneath them. Cook the recipe tonight, learn why it worked, and you can cook the ones we never wrote down.

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  • 367 pages across two books, 100 recipes, 146 ingredients pictured
  • Every measure in cups and grams, every temperature in °F
  • An honest “if it went wrong” after every recipe
A recipe page from Chef Tony’s Recipes Chef Tony’s Recipes, book cover The 5-Star Method, book cover
100dishes, with
the measures
Eggs in Purgatory
Onion Soup
Carbonara
Baked Ziti
Lasagna
Osso Buco
Chicken Thighs and Peppers
Stuffed Peppers
Shrimp in Garlic and Oil
Baked Macaroni and Cheese
Whole Roast Chicken
Shepherd’s Pie
The Meatball Sandwich
Meatballs
The Sunday Sauce
Ricotta Cheesecake
Eggs in Purgatory
Onion Soup
Carbonara
Baked Ziti
Lasagna
Osso Buco
Chicken Thighs and Peppers
Stuffed Peppers
Shrimp in Garlic and Oil
Baked Macaroni and Cheese
Whole Roast Chicken
Shepherd’s Pie
The Meatball Sandwich
Meatballs
The Sunday Sauce
Ricotta Cheesecake

These are 16 of the 100 dishes in Volume I. Every one is photographed, and every one comes with the measures and the sign that tells you it worked.

No guessing at the shop

Every ingredient in the book is photographed.

All 146 of them, beside the measure in cups and grams. You see what guanciale looks like before you go looking for it, and what “a pinch” actually means.

Garlic
Lemon
Eggs
Butter
Olive oil
Tomatoes
Basil
Hard cheese
Onion
Peppers
Spaghetti
Rosemary
The collection

Take one, or take both for $9 less

Two books, sold separately or together. Both are PDFs, both arrive the moment you pay, both are yours forever.

Chef Tony’s Recipes
Volume I

Chef Tony’s Recipes

What to cook tonight, with the measures.

  • 100 recipes in 12 chapters, 214 pages
  • Every dish photographed, every ingredient pictured
  • Cups and grams, °F on every recipe
  • An “if it went wrong” after each one
$19
Get Volume I
Most people take this
Chef Tony’s Recipes The 5-Star Method
Volumes I + II

The Complete Collection

The dishes and the reasons underneath them.

  • Both books, 367 pages together
  • 100 recipes and the 90 techniques behind them
  • Every recipe cross-referenced to its technique
  • $9 less than buying them separately
$38$29
Get both books
The 5-Star Method
Volume II

The 5-Star Method

Why it works, so you stop needing the recipe.

  • 90 techniques in 12 chapters, 153 pages
  • Heat, salt, fat, acid, browning, time
  • Real numbers, checked against the sources
  • A printable recap closing every chapter
$19
Get Volume II

One payment, no subscription. Payments handled by Stripe.

100recipes in Volume I
367pages, the two books together
146ingredients pictured in Volume I
90techniques in Volume II
What is in the two books

24 chapters. One tells you
what to cook, the other why.

From a Tuesday omelette to Sunday lunch, and the heat, salt, fat and acid running underneath all of it. Here is every chapter of both books, side by side.

Volume IChef Tony’s Recipes · 100 dishes
  • 1 Eggs and BreakfastThe restaurant omelette, slow scrambled eggs, eggs in purgatory
    9 recipes
     In a store$13
  • 2 Soups and the Pot That Keeps GoingOnion soup, lentil soup, chicken stock done properly
    9 recipes
     In a store$13
  • 3 Beans, Rice and GrainsRice and beans, pasta e fagioli, chickpeas with rosemary
    8 recipes
     In a store$11
  • 4 Pasta and SauceMarinara, cacio e pepe, carbonara, bolognese, lasagna
    10 recipes
     In a store$13
  • 5 Cheap Cuts, SlowBeef stew, osso buco, short ribs in red wine, braised oxtail
    10 recipes
     In a store$13
  • 6 The Skillet DinnersSausage and peppers, chicken cutlets, stuffed peppers
    9 recipes
     In a store$13
  • 7 Greens and VegetablesBraised collards, broccoli rabe, caramelized onions, actually
    8 recipes
     In a store$11
  • 8 The Oven and the CasseroleBaked macaroni and cheese, whole roast chicken, potato gratin
    8 recipes
     In a store$11
  • 9 Sandwiches and LunchThe meatball sandwich, the Italian sub, grilled cheese
    7 recipes
     In a store$9
  • 10 SundaySunday roast beef, meatballs, braciole, the Sunday sauce
    8 recipes
     In a store$11
  • 11 Leftovers, On PurposeFried rice from last night, pasta frittata, hash from the roast
    7 recipes
     In a store$9
  • 12 Bread, Sides and the Sweet EndNo-knead bread, garlic bread properly, ricotta cheesecake
    7 recipes
     In a store$9
    • 12 chapters, bought as books$136
    Volume IIThe 5-Star Method · 90 techniques
  • 1 Heat and the PanAlmost every problem people ask me about is a heat problem
    9 techniques
     In a store$13
  • 2 Salt, in LayersNot one decision at the end, but small decisions all the way through
    8 techniques
     In a store$11
  • 3 FatNot the thing you cook in. The thing that carries flavor into the food
    7 techniques
     In a store$9
  • 4 AcidFor when a dish tastes like something is missing and you cannot name it
    7 techniques
     In a store$9
  • 5 Browning and the FondEverything brown in the pan is flavor you were about to wash away
    8 techniques
     In a store$11
  • 6 Time as a TechniqueThe only ingredient that costs nothing, and the one people refuse to spend
    7 techniques
     In a store$9
  • 7 MeatWhy it goes tough, why it goes dry, and the two ways back
    8 techniques
     In a store$11
  • 8 EggsThe most forgiving ingredient in the kitchen, and the least forgiving
    8 techniques
     In a store$11
  • 9 VegetablesGetting color and getting them cooked are two different jobs
    7 techniques
     In a store$9
  • 10 Pasta and StarchThe water, the timing, and finishing in the pan
    7 techniques
     In a store$9
  • 11 SaucesFour mothers, and how far you can push each one
    7 techniques
     In a store$9
  • 12 What Is LeftStock, fat, crust, rind. The kitchen that throws nothing away
    7 techniques
     In a store$9
    • 12 chapters, bought as books$120

    The same shelf, one chapter at a time, runs about $256

    Counted at what a single-subject cookbook costs new in paperback, $9 to $13 depending on size. There are 24 chapters across the two volumes.

    You pay today
    $38$29
    Get both books
    Look inside

    Real pages. This is exactly what you download.

    A real page from the book
    Volume I · The contents. 100 dishes across 12 chapters, in the order a kitchen works.
    A real page from the book
    Volume I · A chapter opens on a full page, with the one idea that runs through it.
    A real page from the book
    Volume I · A recipe page. Every ingredient has its own photograph, with the measure in cups and grams.
    A real page from the book
    Volume I · Every recipe gets a full page for the dish itself, before you read a word.
    A real page from the book
    Volume I · Numbered steps, the one decision that matters, and an honest “if it went wrong”.
    A real page from the book
    Volume I · The sweet end, laid out exactly like everything before it.
    A real page from the book
    Volume II · The introduction, which opens by saying there are no recipes in this book.
    A real page from the book
    Volume II · Every technique starts with the mistake, described without judgment.
    A real page from the book
    Volume II · Each chapter ends in a recap laid out to be printed and kept by the stove.
    A real page from the book
    Volume II · The sources page. Where each mechanism in the book comes from.
    A real page from the book
    Volume II · The page that says plainly that Tony is a fictional, AI-generated presenter.
    The part nobody tells you

    Cooking was made to look complicated, so you would keep paying somebody else to do it.

    The recipe

    It tells you what to do and never why. So the one night your pan runs cooler or your onions are bigger, you have nothing to fall back on, and you blame yourself.

    The restaurant

    What you are paying for is a cook who understands four or five things about heat, salt, fat and time. Those things fit in a book. They always did.

    The gadget

    The air fryer, the sous vide, the pan that costs $300. None of them fixes a cold pan or unsalted water, and those are what went wrong.

    If your steak came out gray or your sauce split, it was never your fault. Nobody showed you the plain reason.

    Chef Tony Ricci at the pass of his kitchen
    Why these books exist

    I spent years doing it the hard way, because nobody said it out loud.

    I cooked professionally for a long time, and the thing that surprised me most was how few decisions actually separate a good plate from a bad one. Not talent. Not equipment. Heat, salt, fat, acid, time. Five things, and the order you put them in.

    Nobody teaches that at home. You get handed a recipe, you follow it, and when it fails you have no idea which step betrayed you. So I wrote down both halves: the dishes with the exact measures, and the reasons under them.

    Cook from Volume I tonight. Read Volume II on a Sunday. After that you can cook something neither book mentions and still get it right, which is the whole point.

    Tony

    One correction in every recipe

    What you were told, and what actually happens in the pan.

    Six of them.

    You were told

    Get the pan screaming hot before the meat goes in.

    What actually works

    Hot enough that a drop of water skates instead of sizzling. Past that, the fat breaks down and the crust turns bitter before the inside cooks.

    Chapter 1 · Heat and the Pan
    You were told

    Season at the end, to taste.

    What actually works

    Salt in layers, a little at each stage. Salt added at the end sits on the surface and tastes sharp. Salt added early goes in, and tastes like the food.

    Chapter 2 · Salt, in Layers
    You were told

    Rinse the pasta so it does not stick.

    What actually works

    The cloudy water is the sauce. A ladle of it and the fat and the cheese bind into something glossy, instead of splitting into oil and grit.

    Chapter 10 · Pasta and Starch
    You were told

    Scrub the brown bits off the pan before you make the sauce.

    What actually works

    That brown layer is the flavor of the entire dish. A splash of liquid lifts it off the metal and into the sauce in about 20 seconds.

    Chapter 5 · Browning and the Fond
    You were told

    Cook it until it looks done.

    What actually works

    Cook meat to a number, then rest it. Color lies, the clock lies, and a cheap thermometer is the only honest witness you have.

    Chapter 7 · Meat
    You were told

    If it tastes flat, add more salt.

    What actually works

    Often it needs acid, not salt. A squeeze of lemon or a spoon of vinegar at the end wakes up a dish that more salt would only make salty.

    Chapter 4 · Acid
    The book underneath

    Volume II has no recipes in it. It has the 90 techniques that make them work.

    Every one opens with the mistake, then the reason, then the method with real numbers, then the sign that tells you it worked.

    The water drop test
    Salt is a schedule, not a final step
    Season the water, not only the food
    Smoke point picks the fat
    Cold butter, off the heat
    Deglazing is acid doing the work
    Maillard is not caramelization
    Sugar accelerates browning
    Toast the tomato paste first
    Against the grain, and how to find it
    The thermometer is the only honest tool
    Scrambled: low heat, constant motion
    Whipping whites: fat is the enemy
    Blanch and shock, and when not to
    Finish the pasta in the pan
    Reduce instead of thickening
    The water drop test
    Salt is a schedule, not a final step
    Season the water, not only the food
    Smoke point picks the fat
    Cold butter, off the heat
    Deglazing is acid doing the work
    Maillard is not caramelization
    Sugar accelerates browning
    Toast the tomato paste first
    Against the grain, and how to find it
    The thermometer is the only honest tool
    Scrambled: low heat, constant motion
    Whipping whites: fat is the enemy
    Blanch and shock, and when not to
    Finish the pasta in the pan
    Reduce instead of thickening

    These are 16 of the 90 techniques in Volume II, each one photographed in the book.

    1. 1Heat and the Pan Almost every problem people ask me about is a heat problem wearing a costume. 9 techniques
    2. 2Salt, in Layers Salt is not one decision at the end. It is small decisions all the way through. 8 techniques
    3. 3Fat Fat is not the thing you cook in. It is the thing that carries flavor into the food. 7 techniques
    4. 4Acid For when a dish tastes like something is missing and you cannot name it. 7 techniques
    5. 5Browning and the Fond Everything brown in your pan is flavor you were about to wash down the sink. 8 techniques
    6. 6Time as a Technique The only ingredient that costs nothing, and the only one people refuse to spend. 7 techniques
    7. … and 6 more chapters Meat, eggs, vegetables, pasta and starch, sauces, and what to do with what is left. The full contents page is the first thing you see when you open the book. 44 techniques

    Volume I tells you what to cook tonight. This one tells you why it works, so the next dish does not need a recipe at all.

    From the comments

    What people write under Tony’s videos.

    Real comments from the YouTube channel, quoted word for word. They are about the videos. The books are new.

    These books are for you if…

    • You have followed a recipe exactly and it still came out wrong.
    • You want dinner to be cheap, real, and on the table on a weeknight.
    • You would rather understand why something works than memorize it.
    • You cook for people you love and want them to ask for more.
    • You are standing in the kitchen with nobody to ask.

    Probably not if…

    • You want restaurant plating and tweezers.
    • You are looking for a diet or a meal plan.
    • You never plan to turn on the stove.
    7DAYS

    Cook from them for 7 days. If nothing about your cooking has changed, write to us and you get every cent back, and you keep the books. We would rather that than have you feel taken.

    Questions

    Answered honestly, before you decide.

    What exactly do I get?

    Two PDFs. Chef Tony’s Recipes, 214 pages with 100 recipes, and The 5-Star Method, 153 pages with the 90 techniques behind them. If you buy a single volume you get that one. The download appears the moment you pay, and the link also arrives by email.

    Is this a printed book you mail me?

    No. Both books are digital. Nothing is shipped. You open them on your phone, your tablet or your computer the moment you pay. You can print any page you like at home, and the chapter recaps were laid out to be printed and kept by the stove.

    I am not a confident cook. Is this for me?

    It is written for somebody standing at the stove with nobody to ask. Every technique opens with the mistake, described without judgment, because Tony made all of them himself for years. Then the reason, then the method with real numbers, then the sign that tells you it worked while you can still act on it.

    Do I need special equipment or ingredients?

    No. A heavy pan, a sharp knife and a stove. A few techniques mention a thermometer and say so plainly. Nothing here needs a specialty shop.

    Cups or grams? Fahrenheit or Celsius?

    Both, on every recipe. Weights in ounces and grams, volumes in cups and milliliters. Temperatures are given in Fahrenheit, which is stated on the contents page so there is no surprise.

    Why two books instead of one?

    Because they answer different questions. Volume I tells you what to cook tonight, with the measures. Volume II tells you why it works, so you can cook something it does not cover and still get it right. Most people take both, which is why the collection costs $9 less than buying them separately.

    Is Tony Ricci a real person?

    Tony Ricci is the presenter of the 5-Star Chef channel, and he is generated with AI. That is said openly inside the books as well, on their own page. You should hear it here rather than find out later.

    The techniques are not generated. Every one comes from published food science and professional kitchen practice, and every number was checked against those sources. There is a sources page at the back of Volume II.

    Will you charge my card again?

    No. One payment, one time. No membership, no monthly anything, no trial that turns into a bill.

    What if it is not for me? How do I get my money back?

    Write to hello@cheftony5star.com within 7 days. Tell me the email you used at checkout and the date you bought, and that is all I need. You do not have to explain yourself and you do not have to send anything back.

    The refund is sent the same day I read it. It leaves straight away on our side and usually shows up on your card in 5 to 10 business days — that part is your bank, not us. And you keep the books. Better that than have you feel taken.

    Start tonight

    Heat one pan properly. Everything else follows from there.

    Most people cook something from Volume I the same evening they download it, and taste the difference in the first bite.

    Get both books $38 $29 →
    Instant download · yours forever
    The 5-Star Chef Collection 2 books · 100 recipes · 367 pages
    Get it $38 $29