26 Julia Child Quotes That Make Us Love Her Even More

Julia Child Cooking — Photo: ABC Photo Archives/Getty Images

Julia Child is one of our biggest cooking icons of all time. The Queen of French Cuisine has been schooling us in matters of beef bourguignon, homemade vinaigrette, and perfect roast chicken for decades, but she's also a great source for life advice, too. As someone who lived fearlessly and fully until she passed at 91 years old, Julia Child shared endless wisdom with fans around the world over the years. These Julia Child quotes are a tiny drop of the knowledge we learned from her shows and books, but they're worth saving.

01 of 26

On Cookbooks

"A cookbook is only as good as its poorest recipe."

02 of 26

On Salad Dressing

"I don't believe in bottled salad dressing… why should you have it bottled? It's so easy to make. And they never use very good oil."

03 of 26

On Fat

"Fat gives things flavor."

04 of 26

On Legacy

"I don't think about whether people will remember me or not. I've been an okay person. I've learned a lot. I've taught people a thing or two. That's what's important. Sooner or later the public will forget you, the memory of you will fade. What's important is the individuals you've influenced along the way."

05 of 26

On Basic Cooking

"You don't have to cook fancy or complicated masterpieces—just good food from fresh ingredients."

06 of 26

On Letting Things Be Natural

"I would far prefer to have things happen as they naturally do, such as the mousse refusing to leave the mold, the potatoes sticking to the skillet, the apple charlotte slowly collapsing. One of the secrets of cooking is to learn to correct something if you can, and bear with it if you cannot."

07 of 26

On Presentation

"It's so beautifully arranged on the plate, you know someone's fingers have been all over it."

08 of 26

On Butter

"If you're afraid of butter, use cream."

09 of 26

On Cooking Solo

"Always remember: If you're alone in the kitchen and you drop the lamb, you can always just pick it up. Who's going to know?"

10 of 26

On Starting To Cook

"I was 32 when I started cooking; up until then, I just ate."

11 of 26

On What We Are Learning

"Well, all I know is this—nothing you ever learn is really wasted, and will sometime be used."

12 of 26

On Being Kind

"The sweetness and generosity and politeness and gentleness and humanity of the French had shown me how lovely life can be if one takes time to be friendly."

13 of 26

On Red Meat

"I believe in red meat. I've often said: red meat and gin."

14 of 26

On Love

"I think careful cooking is love, don't you? The loveliest thing you can cook for someone who's close to you is about as nice a Valentine as you can give."

15 of 26

On Fame

"Celebrity has its uses. I can always get a seat in any restaurant."

16 of 26

On Creating

"To be a good cook you have to have a love of the good, a love of hard work, and a love of creating."

17 of 26

On Diet Food

"The only time to eat diet food is while you're waiting for the steak to cook."

18 of 26

On Drama

"Drama is very important in life: You have to come on with a bang. You never want to go out with a whimper. Everything can have drama if it's done right. Even a pancake."

19 of 26

On Loving To Eat

"People who love to eat are always the best people."

20 of 26

On Trying New Recipes

"This is my invariable advice to people: Learn how to cook—try new recipes, learn from your mistakes, be fearless and above all have fun."

21 of 26

On Imagination

"The more you know, the more you can create. There's no end to imagination in the kitchen."

22 of 26

On Speaking Up

"Just speak very loudly and quickly, and state your position with utter conviction, as the French do, and you'll have a marvelous time!"

23 of 26

On Passion

"Find something you're passionate about and keep tremendously interested in it."

24 of 26

On Friendship

"Remember, 'No one's more important than people.' In other words, friendship is the most important thing—not career or housework, or one's fatigue—and it needs to be tended and nurtured."

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On Cooking More

"Really, the more I cook the more I like to cook."

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On Learning From Mistakes

"I don't believe in twisting yourself into knots of excuses and explanations over the food you make. When one's host starts in with self-deprecations such as 'Oh, I don't know how to cook...,' or 'Poor little me...,' or 'This may taste awful...,' it is so dreadful to have to reassure her that everything is delicious and fine, whether it is or not. Besides, such admissions only draw attention to one's shortcomings (or self-perceived shortcomings), and make the other person think, 'Yes, you're right, this really is an awful meal!' Maybe the cat has fallen into the stew, or the lettuce has frozen, or the cake has collapsed—eh bien, tant pis! Usually one's cooking is better than one thinks it is. And if the food is truly vile, as my ersatz eggs Florentine surely were, then the cook must simply grit her teeth and bear it with a smile -- and learn from her mistakes."

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