Feast: Food of the Islamic World

by Anissa Helou

Overview

WINNER OF THE JAMES BEARD FOUNDATION INTERNATIONAL COOKBOOK AWARD

NAMED A MOST ANTICIPATED COOKBOOK OF SPRING 2018 BY BON APPETIT, FOOD & WINE, EPICURIOUS, TASTING TABLE, ESQUIRE, GLOBE & MAIL, and PUBLISHERS WEEKLY

"Helou's range of knowledge and unparalleled authority make her just the kind of cook you want by your side when baking a Moroccan flatbread, preparing an Indonesian satay and anything else along the way."— Yotam Ottolenghi

A richly colorful and exceptionally varied cookbook of timeless recipes from across the Islamic world

In Feast, award-winning chef Anissa Helou—an authority on the cooking of North Africa, the Mediterranean, and the Middle East—shares her extraordinary range of beloved, time-tested recipes and stories from cuisines throughout the Muslim world.

Helou has lived and traveled widely in this region, from Egypt to Syria, Iran to Indonesia, gathering some of its finest and most flavorful recipes for bread, rice, meats, fish, spices, and sweets. With sweeping knowledge and vision, Helou delves into the enormous variety of dishes associated with Arab, Persian, Mughal (or South Asian), and North African cooking, collecting favorites like biryani or Turkish kebabs along with lesser known specialties such as Zanzibari grilled fish in coconut sauce or Tunisian chickpea soup. Suffused with history, brought to life with stunning photographs, and inflected by Helou’s humor, charm, and sophistication, Feast is an indispensable addition to the culinary canon featuring some of the world’s most inventive cultures and peoples. A perfect resource for Ramadan recipes.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780062363039
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	05/29/2018
Pages:	544
Product dimensions:	8.70(w) x 10.60(h) x 1.60(d)

About the Author

Anissa Helou is a writer, journalist, and broadcaster who was born and raised in Beirut. She has published eight books, including Lebanese Cuisine, Mediterranean Street Food, and Feast, which won a James Beard Award and was chosen by the New Yorker as one of the ten best cookbooks of the twenty-first century. Helou has contributed to publications including Gourmet, the Chicago Tribune, and the Washington Post. She lives in London, where she has her own cooking school.

Editorial Reviews

For those who enjoy their food even more when there's a story behind it, Anissa Helou's Feast: Food of the Islamic World is the book of the spring…In some cases, the recipe headnotes are longer than the recipes themselves, which doesn't mean you're getting a book of simple dishes. Quite the contrary: These are exhaustively researched foods, culled from history books, family lore, even celebrity chefs…

The New York Times Book Review - Jenny Rosenstrach

Telling a genuine food story that covers a quarter of the world’s population is a mighty task...One person who can wrestle with such a challenge is Anissa Helou. Her range of knowledge and unparalleled authority make her just the kind of cook you want by your side.”
— Yotam Ottolenghi

“Helou’s recipes gracefully capture this world where food, religion, and culture are deeply intertwined, opening it to a broader audience and presenting it unfiltered.” — Taste

“...[D]ives deep into Islamic food culture and history... ’For a comprehensive selection, I would have needed more than one volume,’ and reading this engrossing book, one might wish she had more than one.” — Food & Wine

“Anissa Helou stops at nothing when it comes to research. Every recipe. . . is brought to life by its origin story and by Helou’s own experiences.” — Saveur

“Masterly...Helou captures the joy with which most Islamic communities regard food...Feast offers the perfect guide to the great cuisines of the Islamic world.” — Hidustan Times

“First an expert on Islamic art, then an expert on Islamic cuisine, world-class chef Helou’s book is part culinary revelation, part travel diary.” — Esquire

“Helou is both scholar and hedonist, which makes for the best kind of guide in the kitchen.” — Bon Appétit

“This substantial, meticulously researched cookbook is a gem, not only because of its in-depth and vast culinary information, but also because it includes an overview of Muslim world history, buttressed with helpful maps and stimulating stories.” — Forbes

“Weaving in culinary history, the author of Lebanon takes readers on a tour of Arab, Persian, and North African cooking.” — Publishers Weekly

“Don’t miss the history lessons and miniature profiles throughout: In Feast, Helou opens new doors in an area of the world that’s often figuratively or literally completely closed off.” — Eater

From the Publisher

Don’t miss the history lessons and miniature profiles throughout: In Feast, Helou opens new doors in an area of the world that’s often figuratively or literally completely closed off.

Eater

This substantial, meticulously researched cookbook is a gem, not only because of its in-depth and vast culinary information, but also because it includes an overview of Muslim world history, buttressed with helpful maps and stimulating stories.

Forbes

Helou’s recipes gracefully capture this world where food, religion, and culture are deeply intertwined, opening it to a broader audience and presenting it unfiltered.

Taste

Anissa Helou stops at nothing when it comes to research. Every recipe. . . is brought to life by its origin story and by Helou’s own experiences.

Saveur

Masterly...Helou captures the joy with which most Islamic communities regard food...Feast offers the perfect guide to the great cuisines of the Islamic world.

Hidustan Times

Telling a genuine food story that covers a quarter of the world’s population is a mighty task...One person who can wrestle with such a challenge is Anissa Helou. Her range of knowledge and unparalleled authority make her just the kind of cook you want by your side.”

Yotam Ottolenghi

Helou is both scholar and hedonist, which makes for the best kind of guide in the kitchen.

Bon Appétit

First an expert on Islamic art, then an expert on Islamic cuisine, world-class chef Helou’s book is part culinary revelation, part travel diary.

Esquire

...[D]ives deep into Islamic food culture and history... ’For a comprehensive selection, I would have needed more than one volume,’ and reading this engrossing book, one might wish she had more than one.

Food & Wine

Helou is both scholar and hedonist, which makes for the best kind of guide in the kitchen.

Bon Appétit