Read, watch, listen: May-June 2022

Read

For the traveller

MI COCINA: Recipes and Rapture from My Kitchen in Mexico

Take a trip to Mexico with Rick Martínez through this book, reminiscent of a love letter to the cuisine of the country. Travel with this cook and food writer across 32 states and 156 cities and recreate some his favourite experiences on this journey. Whether you’re new to Mexican cuisine or experienced with some of its delights, this book will add to your repertoire in the kitchen with dishes such as tender sweet corn tamales packed with succulent shrimp, chillies and roasted tomatoes from Sinaloa on the west coast.

For beginners

THE COOK YOU WANT TO BE: Everyday Recipes to Impress

Dive into Andy Baraghani’s debut cookbook with essays and 120 recipes. If the name seems familiar, it’s because it is: he’s the chef behind many of Bon Appetit’s famous recipes. With the heritage of his Iranian parents’ immigrant upbringing behind him, he’s grown into a culinary figure that creates flavour with unexpected ingredient combinations. Recipes you’ll love in this book include roasted beetroot with mint and sesame, caramelised sweet potatoes with browned butter harissa and pomegranate-glazed chicken legs with buttery almonds.

For foodies

KOREAN AMERICAN: Food That Tastes Like Home

More than just a cookbook, this is a labour of love dedicated to being Korean American and all the stories that come with it. Written by New York Times staff writer Eric Kim, who is a popular creator on NYT Cooking’s YouTube Channel, he shares stories of what makes a Korean pantry, meals while growing up in Atlanta as a first-generation family and much more. With recipes like caramelised kimchi baked potatoes, gochugaru shrimp and grits, and much more, this book will delight anyone looking to be introduced to Korean cuisine.

Watch

IS IT CAKE?

You can find an endless supply of memes borne out of TV shows and movies. This fun reality TV competition flips the switch and has created an entire show out of the ‘Is it cake?’ meme that started in 2020. Saturday Night Live’s Mikey Day hosts this fun baking contest where the premise is simple: bakers create cakes that look like entirely different objects (from hamburgers to purses and more) and a panel of celebrities have to guess what is cake and what isn’t.

All 8 episodes of Season 1 of Is it Cake are now streaming on Netflix.

Listen

THE AMATEUR GOURMET PODCAST with Adam Roberts

We love this podcast for keeping it real. If you love to cook but don’t always get it right, this is a great listen. Adam Roberts, aka The Amateur Gourmet and author of three books, hosts this weekly podcast featuring interviews with famous chefs, writers, actors and cookbook authors connected to a particular theme. Paid subscribers also get access to twice-weekly recipes, essays, bonus podcast material (including Ten Feisty Food Questions with that week’s

guest) and more.

Find The Amateur Gourmet podcast wherever you find your podcasts, like Apple Music and Spotify.

Old favourite

Time to feast

Daniel Newman completed a translation of a 15th century cookbook, titled The Sultan’s Feast by Egyptian scholar Ibn Mubarak Shah. We find out more… What can people expect when they read this book?

It’s a cookery book from 15th century Egypt, which contains 332 recipes, most of them for dishes, both savoury and sweet, but there are also instructions for pickling, condiments and even a few perfumes, breath sweeteners and anti-nausea remedies. In short, everything one needs to enhance the meal experience.

Read the full interview below.