Looking for Some Reading from the Best Food Writers?10 Best Book on Food that Will Whet Your Appetite (2021)

Many of us like to cook, and indeed it may even be our hobby. But can we be confident that we know the finer nuances of the ingredients we use to create the perfect mix? Each dish has its own history too. A recipe book typically informs you about the various steps to take while cooking your favourite recipes. But understanding deeper about the techniques used, the spices and the ingredients can give a better appreciation of the dish.

The article discusses some of the best books on food and cooking and how they can help.

The thoughts on the book were initiated when the friends of the author's brother requested for few Indian recipes. It was then that she reached out to her relatives spread globally for the recipes. The cookbook has several recipes from the Sood family placed in different parts of the world. As the family grew in diversity and size, the three-ring binder moulded into this cookbook.

Aparna Jain brings several recipes from Thai, Sindhi, Punjab, Bengali, Pahadi, Swiss cuisines, etc. The book gradually became a memoir of love and provided different kinds of food that you can have when you wish. You can eat healthy by choosing from the cuisines in the book. The book has recipes on chutneys and grogs too. The book is ideal for large Indian families who love to stay and eat together.

The book covers the recipes from the author’s maternal grandmother that covers several South Indian recipes. It provides various guidelines on kitchen practices that will be helpful for novices. It offers detailed guidelines to make pickles, extract coconut milk, tamarind water, etc. There is information about Tamil staples like sauteed vegetables (poriyal), payasam, rice dumplings with coconut and jaggery fillings (kozhukattai), aviyal, etc.

There are records from an expert who has fed several generations. The recipes are present as an authority and show the passion for food that has stayed on for ages. The recipes and ingredients highlight the memory of Pankajam. The book has healthy and simple recipes that anyone in their kitchen can cook. You can enjoy delicious South Indian food at home.

The book is among the best-sellers and is loved by those who love curries. It covers curries that are suited for people of varied skill sets. The author currently owns several premier London-based restaurants. She shares her favourite regional recipes and provides tips to cook authentic curries. The book also has an illustrated culinary map of India that is bound to draw attention.

The author includes dishes from across the country and features the philosophy of Indian food. She discusses using herbs, spices and chillies and suggests menus while planning an Indian meal. The book covers delicacies like Sindhi curry, madras-style lamb curry, Goa lamb vindaloo, yogurt curry, etc.

The author writes the book as a memoir that shows how food is associated with various preconceptions. What is surprising about the book is the trivia that provides a dash of fun too. The trivia is informative as well. The book is ideal for readers who have various cultural allusions.

Nandita shows her journey as she finds the answers posed to the various controversies surrounding what we eat. She writes how food provided the awareness of nationalism from the Nehruvian era onwards.

She further writes about her encounter with refugees in Iraq and Burma and sharing food with them. The book also won an award at the Gourmand Awards in 2019 in the Cookbook for Peace and Food Writing category.

This book, written by Deepa Awchat, is about the recipes from Goa Portuguesa. It covers the veg and non-veg recipes from the restaurant, and the reader can also have a free trip through the rich history of Goa and its traditional cuisine. The book breaks the stereotype that Goa food is only about non-veg, as the author provides ample space for vegetarian food.

There are simple recipes that are easy to prepare in your kitchen. There are several seafood recipes too that is famous at the restaurant. There is also reference to the contribution from the Portuguese for the Goa recipes. The book contains typical Goanese cuisine like Cafreal, Buffalo, Vindaloo, Assado, Guisado, Sorpotel, Caldinho, and Bebinca.

Only a few vegetarian recipes are prepared without dairy products. This book from Richa Hingle discusses the vegan recipes that are prepared using plant-based food. The author also writes about various gluten-free foods apart from exquisite desserts like coconut balls and popsicles. The recipes can also be prepared for your dinner parties.

She covers savoury breakfast recipes along with dals, flatbreads, snacks and various rich curries. Some of the unique recipes include potato quinoa patties, spicy tofu scramble and Goan tempeh curry. Food enthusiasts can get hold of this book that can please your senses. You can also find the replacement spices that are usually unavailable in other books.

The paperback edition is priced at Rs. 658 on Amazon.

The book was written by food historian Colleen Taylor Sen. The book also describes the climate across the country, and there is a grid that shows the food names and various pulses. There are culinary culture stories and broadens our culinary horizon by looking at the history of cuisine in the sub-continent.

It also speaks about the origins of vegetarianism in the country with the evolution of spices across medicinal and culinary areas. There is a comprehensive overview of Indian food and also explores the history of Indian gastronomy. The book helps to shatter the various stereotypes and put forward the different cultural practices in the country.

The author has travelled across the country and the world. She depicts variations in the traditional cuisine and shows the memories that had accompanied her journeys. According to her, the memories around culinary experiences can last a lifetime. She showcases her experiences during British rule and narrates a combination of modern and traditional cuisines.

The author Rukmini Srinivas is an accomplished cook apart from being a brilliant storyteller. She takes the reader through a gastronomical adventure. The book also deals with the openness to know and the experience that made her family absorb the different cultures across the country. She also introduces us to various menu pairings and provides various tips and options suitable for the reader.

All of us love to have chutneys, and it becomes difficult to have food without them. They can be in different flavours, like spicy, tangy, sweet, bitter, etc. They can also be mushy, while some others may be liquid. The book allows us to learn about various chutneys from a traditional Andhra household.

Various chutneys can add the much-needed zing to your taste. The book has fifty traditional South Indian chutneys that have been passed down over the generations. There are different food memoirs in the book too. The book preserves the culinary delights and places in a traditional Andhra household with tangy recipes. You will need ordinary ingredients to cook the spicy dips and chutneys.

The author has learnt several shortcuts of Indian cuisine and has shared them with the readers. She is a first-generation Indian American who destroys the myth that Indian food takes time to prepare. It is an award-winning book that shows authentic Indian cooking takes much less time. It is mainly targeted at an American audience.

Shubhra has collated some of the best 100 recipes and has provided a simple format. The book also has several pictures that add value to the reader. The author shows a hassle-free cooking style that creates several Indian flavours and shows how various North and South Indian dishes can be prepared quickly. The book has a friendly tone and helps the readers prepare Indian food speedily but with a wonderful taste.

The author Sadia Dehlvi carefully depicts how food was wrapped with the culture of Delhi. The book travels around the city and goes through the bylanes where you can have various mouth-watering delicacies, like aloo poori, jalebi, nihari, Dahi Bhalla, mithai, etc.

It also shows the original tales of the familiar dishes that we all like to eat, like Shammi kebab, kofta, kheer, qorma, biriyani, etc. The book also covers cuisines that can cater to specific festivals and seasonal specialties. It also shows how our lives are layered in history, and there are food images from some of the popular eateries in the city.

The country is benefitted from unique culinary traditions across all its states. The book is about the authentic delicacies from God's Own Country – Kerala. The cuisine is usually coconut-based and includes several spices too. It covers the diversity of cooking in the state, including vegetarian dishes and Syrian Christian delicacies. The author writes about the thorns, aviyams and appams.

The book covers different popular dishes like deep-fried meat, duck curry, spicy chicken curry, stir-fried crab, etc. It proves to be an authentic guide for Malayali cuisine and is categorised into various sections, like meat-based dishes, veg, snacks, sweets, etc.

Cooking may not sound too simple as it seems. It also does not require you to take regular cooking classes to become a better cook. You must act smarter to become a better cook. We will discuss some tips that you can use for smarter cooking. You must divide the vegetables you buy into smaller portions before putting them in the freezer. Also, invest in a better-quality chef's knife, and it can save some time in cutting the ingredients.

Are you aware that sea salt has a better taste than ordinary salt? Also, add salt according to taste and not how the recipe says. During cooking, you must not put in too many ingredients when sautéing. It can lead to letting out steam and lowering the temperature when you cook. You can also add a small amount of citrus juice or vinegar to the vegetables or any meat dish that can lead to a better taste.

The best cooks use quality and fresh ingredients when cooking. It is also essential that you use only seasonal produce when cooking. The chances of them remaining fresh are higher. It is also suggested that you use a timer when baking. Else, there could be chances of them getting burnt. It will also help to bake with precision, especially when lighter baking is needed.