This expression means to falsify business accounts. It originally appeared as the past tense 'the books have been cooked' in a report referring to the conduct George Hudson (1700-1771), the so called 'railway king', under whose chairmanship the accounts of Eastern Counties Railways were falsified. Today the term has a wider meaning, extending to any kind of 'creative' accounting.

Übersetzung:

die Bilanzen/Bücher fälschen

Gegenteil(e)

The opposite of "to cook the books" is "to balance the books".

Synonym(e):

You could also say: to falsify business accounts.