Tell me someone in this world who doesn’t love food? I bet there would be none. It is because of the fact that food has played a vital role in everybody’s lives. There is nothing better than eating the food you love with the people that make your day brighter. Food is also a big part of a place’s culture, tradition, and literature. Every country in the world has its own delicacies and special dishes. That said, those dishes also have their rich history aside from their delightful tastes, inspiring literature to create works based on those delectables.
Not all books about food are recipe books; there are also works that are inspired by a person’s favorite food, a place’s signature dish, or both. If you want to know more about food, memories, and everything in between through literature, then here are some of the most amazing books for you to check out!
The Food Lab by J. Kenji Lopez-Alt
W.W. Norton & Company published The Food Lab by J. Kenji Lopez-Alt in September 21, 2015. This cookbook has won multiple awards, such as the 2016 IACP Cookbook of the Year and 2016 James Beard Foundation General Cooking Cookbook Award. The Food Lab is comprised of almost 300 wholesome recipes of the American cuisine. The author made use of the scientific method in writing the book in order to develop the infamous recipes of the said cuisine, as well as to elaborate the science of cooking. The book came into view after 5 long but worth it years. The author described The Food Lab as a book that is intended for individuals who desire to learn the methods and reasons behind cooking; thus, it is not a recipe book at all.
Remembrance of Meals Past by Anita Legsdin
In 2018, Westwood Books Pub LLC published the book by Anita Legsdin titled Remembrance of Meals Past. The book encompasses subjects that are important in every person’s life not just as a citizen but as a person in general. The common subjects that are tackled by Remembrance of Meals Past are cooking, ethnicity, relationship, and life as a whole. The book is an anthology of short stories that focuses on different things, such as the food and the memories that are related to the wide array of dishes that were being served. Are there any foods that suit your taste or have disappointed your taste buds based on your previous experiences? If there are, then you will be to agree to the opinions and sentiments with each of the characters in the tales.
On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of The Kitchen by Harold McGEE
Harold McGee published his book titled On Food and Cooking: The Science and Loreof the Kitchen under Scribner in U.S. and Hodder & Stoughton in UK. The first edition was published in 1984 while the second edition was in 2004. The novel lays down a guide to the scientific comprehension and preparation regarding food. Alton Brown even referred to the book as “the Rosetta stone of the culinary world,” while Daniel Boulud referred to it as a “must for every cook who possesses and inquiring mind.” Furthermore, the book is split into parts where each chapter revolves around the ingredients supplying the foundation for the author to think on the history of staples, groceries, and cuisine, as well as the molecular attributes of the different flavors of food.
Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel
Like Water for Chocolate is a critically-acclaimed classic novel. It is originally written in Spanish, where it was called Como Agua para Chocolate, by Laura Esquivel. The book was published by Doubleday in 1992 in Mexico while by Perfection Learning in 1995 in US. It is under the genres romance, magical realism, and tragedy. You probably wondered what the connection of this book and food is, well that’s what we are going to tackle. That said, food is among the significant topics that are discussed in the story. Food was being utilized throughout the tale in a creative way in order to symbolize the emotions and situations of the characters. The magical essence of food created literal impacts on the individuals consuming it, which were transmitted to both minds and hearts of people who ate it.
The Happy Hammock 