Professional Chefs Suggest Tossing Old Cookbooks — Here's Why

The hallmark of a good kitchen is a good cookbook collection. They run the gamut — from cookbooks from your favorite restaurants, vintage books made by beloved brands, baking-specific cookbooks, and more. However, if you're holding on to cookbooks that are dated or otherwise worn out, you could be taking up valuable real estate on your shelf. Tasting Table spoke to chef experts about some of the kitchen items worth throwing away, and dated cookbooks were at the top of the list. 

"As chefs evolve, so should their reference material," Rohit Yadav, executive chef at Marriott Executive Apartments Bengaluru UB City, said. As such, you may want to invest in books that use modern measuring methods or preparation techniques, or all-in-one books that combine classic recipes and new-age ones under one title. But that's not to say you have to get rid of all your cookbooks. 

"A practical cookbook collection should reflect how you actually cook — trusted authors, cuisines you enjoy, and books you revisit often," Pankaj Singh Panwar, executive chef at The Westin Resort & Spa, Himalayas, said. If you have a beloved book passed down for generations or one that you constantly reference, by all means, keep it. But if your cookbook collection is serving as a dust magnet rather than a culinary guide, you may want to consider purging what you don't use. 

Besides cookbooks that are dated in terms of information, you may also want to get rid of cookbooks that look a little worse for wear. If the edges are tarnished, covered in who-knows-what, or dog-eared to no end, you may want to consider turning your cookbook into a fun craft project or repurposing it in a way that's useful. 

After making sure it's not one of the vintage cookbooks that are worth a fortune, cut up the pages of your cookbook and stick the snippets into a scrapbook, picture frame, or turn them into a cute meal planner. You'll be reminded of them every day, and it's an easy way to give them use besides just tossing them in the recycling bin. 

You may also want to consider donating your cookbooks or selling them so some other home cook can make use of them. It's even more meaningful if you've added your own notes in the margins, advising the book's new owners on some of your old favorite recipes.