The Kitchen without Borders: Recipes and Stories from Refugee and Immigrant Chefs

by The Eat Offbeat Chefs, Penny De Los Santos (Photographer), Siobhan Wallace (Editor)

Overview

Refugees by status, chefs by calling.

The Kitchen Without Borders is a special kind of cookbook. In it, chefs from around the world – all part of Eat Offbeat, a catering company staffed by immigrants and refugees who have found a new home and new hope through cooking- offer up to 70 authentic, surprising, nourishing recipes. The food has roots that run as deep as its flavors, celebrating the culinary traditions of Syria, Iran, Eritrea, Venezuela, and more. Discover Iraqi Biryani, a rice dish combining vegetables and plump dried fruits with warming spices. Chari Bari, hand formed meatballs simmered in Nepali- spiced tomato and cashew sauce. Iranian rice with garbanzos, Sri Lankan curry dhal, and Manchurian cauliflower straight from the Himalayas. More than a collection of delicious foods from around the world, this inspiring cookbook- with its intimate chef profiles and photographic portraits-offers a glimpse into the journey of displaced people and highlights the profound link between food and home.

*From March 1, 2021, to March 1, 2022, (including any preordered copies that ship during this period), Workman Publishing will donate 2% of the cover price for every copy of The Kitchen without Borders cookbook sold in the United States and its territories, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and European Union member states, to the IRC, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to providing humanitarian aid, relief and resettlement to refugees and other victims of oppression, conflict, or disaster with a minimum contribution of $25,000 USD. For more information, visit rescue.org/cookbook and https://www.workman.com/kwob. No portion of the purchase price is tax-deductible. For additional information about the IRC, see rescue.org.

 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781523504046
Publisher:	Workman Publishing Company, Inc.
Publication date:	03/02/2021
Pages:	232
Sales rank:	200,515
Product dimensions:	7.60(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

Eat Offbeat is a catering company in New York that features new, off-the-beaten-path cuisines and creates quality jobs for refugee and minority immigrant home cooks. Eat Offbeat, which was founded by Manal Kahi and Wissam Kahi in November 2015, has been featured in major media outlets in the US and abroad, including The Guardian, Fast Company, Forbes, Newsweek, the Huffington Post, and CBS News. 

Table of Contents

KITCHEN WITHOUT BORDERS
Working Table of Contents
 
INTRODUCTION by Manal and Wissam
 
APPETIZERS AND DIPS
Momos (Rachana—Nepal)
Kibbeh Two Ways: Dhuha’s Potato Kibbeh (Dhuha—Iraq)
Kibbeh Two Ways: Diaa’s Beef Kibbeh (Diaa—Syria)
Fatayer (Dhuha—Iraq)
Cachapa (Hector—Venezuela)
Kuku Sabzi (Nasrin—Iran)
MEET CHEF NASRIN
Hummus (Manal—Lebanon)
Musabaha (Diaa—Syria)
Mirza Ghasemi (Nasrin—Iran)
Kashke Bademjan (Nasrin—Iran)
Baba Ghannoush (Dhuha—Iraq)
Borani Esfenaj (Nasrin—Iran)
Zeytoon Parvardeh (Nasrin—Iran)
 
SALAD AND SOUP
Sumac Salad (Dhuha—Iraq)
Salad Shirazi (Nasrin—Iran)
Edamame Salad (Rachana—Nepal)
MEET CHEF RACHANA
Fattoush (Diaa—Syria)
Katahar Salad (Rachana—Nepal)
Tabbouleh Salad (Dhuha—Iraq)
Heart of Palm Salad (Hector)
Lentil Soup (Rachana—Nepal)
Red Pepper Soup (Larisa)
MEET CHEF LARISA
Ma’areena Soup (Diaa—Syria)
 
RICE AND GRAIN
Couscous (Bahia—Algeria)
MEET CHEF BAHIA
Shanthi’s Cous Cous (Shanthi—Sri Lanka)
Biryani (Dhuha—Iraq)
Jollof Rice (Edafe)
MEET CHEF EDAFE
Poulet Gras (Minata)
Mujaddara (Diaa—Syria)
Adas Polow (Nasrin—Iran)
Red Rice (Dhuha—Iraq)
Rooz (Nasrin—Iran)
Vermicelli Rice (Diaa—Syria)
Lafiri (Minata)
Vegetarian Rice (Dhuha—Iraq)
Bazella Rice (Diaa—Syria)
MEET CHEF DIAA
Chari Pulao (Rachana)
Kabuli Pulao (Bashir)
 
MEET ROSE
FEATURE STORY: A DAY IN THE EAT OFFBEAT KITCHEN
 
VEGETARIAN DISHES
Shanthi’s Dhal (Shanthi)
MEET CHEF SHANTHI
Dhal 1 (Rachana)
Dhal 2 (Rachana)
Adas (Mitslal)
MEET CHEF MITSLAL
Manchurian Cauliflower (Rachana)
Paneer and Peas (Rachana)
Subrecipe: Paneer
Nepali Pizza (Rachana)
Katarica Curry (Shanthi)
Bhindi (Bashir—Afghanistan)
Mitslal’s Dolma (Mitslal)
 
MEAT DISHES
Chicken Karahi (Bashir—Afghanistan)
MEET CHEF BASHIR
Fesenjan (Nasrin—Iran)
Chari Bari (Rachana)
Squid Curry (Shanthi)
Chu La (Rachana)
Carne Mechada (Hector)
MEET CHEF HECTOR
Kebab with Pomegranate and Roasted Tomato Sauce (Bashir—Afghanistan)
Narges Kebab (Bashir—Afghanistan)
Mnazzaleh (Diaa—Syria)
Egyptian Moussaka (Mitslal)
Chicken Cilantro (Mariama)
Chari Curry (Rachana)
Chicken Shawarma (Dhuha—Iraq)
Chicken Yassa (Mariama)
MEET CHEF MARIAMA
 
FEATURE STORY: THE CHEFS’ FAVORITE FOOD TRADITIONS ON HOLIDAYS
 
DESSERT AND DRINKS
Eat Offbeat’s Morning Coffee
Three Ways to Tea
Doogh: Nasrin’s Version (Nasrin—Iran)
Doogh: Bashir’s Version (Bashir—Afghanistan)
Degué (Minata)
MEET CHEF MINATA
Cake Baklava (Nasrin—Iran)
Baklava (Dhuha—Iraq)
Puff Puff (Minata)
Date Balls (Dhuha—Iraq)
Sumac Brownie (Dhuha—Iraq
Sarujen’s French Toast
 
APPENDIX


Resources
Eat Offbeat House Bases & Pantry Items
Ingredient Sourcing, Substitutions & Resources
Index (including global menus, recipes through the menu, ingredients, etc.)
 

Editorial Reviews

12/02/2019

Founded in 2015, Eat Offbeat is a New York City catering company with revolving menus created by immigrant and refugee chefs, whose eclectic and inventive cuisine is showcased in this delightful collection of 70 flavor-packed recipes. Dishes range from the familiar (samosas, hummus, and fried plantains) to such ingenious riffs as Nepali Pizza (a flatbread-like dish with bell peppers, cheese, and a hot and sweet chili sauce atop a spice-laden semolina crust); a sumac salad (tomatoes, cucumbers, and red onion dressed in an herby lemon-sumac vinaigrette); and two takes on classic baklava (as an Iranian cake, and in the form of a jelly roll, from Iraq). Each entry is described in detail (and with ingredients likely found in the cupboard), ensuring readers have an understanding of a dish’s flavors, as well as its cultural significance. Biographies and photos of many of the book’s contributors, from Iran, Algeria, Sri Lanka, and Eritrea, are included, adding depth and insight into the immigrant and refugee experience. Informative and engaging, this volume is sure to inspire home cooks. (Apr.)

Publishers Weekly

New horizons open in 'The Kitchen Without Borders,'... It’s home-cooking at its best." – The New York Times

“[A] delightful collection of 70 flavor-packed recipes… informative and engaging, this volume is sure to inspire home cooks.” – Publishers Weekly

"With such rich variety, this collection of recipes is sure to provide both familiar and novel delights to any reader." –  Booklist

"Family recipes are more than just food—each of the dishes collected in The Kitchen without Borders: Recipes and Stories from Refugee and Immigrant Chefs comes from someone's beautiful memory of home. With bold flavors—from Syrian pomegranate molasses to spice blends like Venezuelan achiote to insanely spicy Scotch bonnet peppers—this is food for both the body and soul."  – Newsweek  
 

From the Publisher

01/01/2021

New York catering company Eat Offbeat was "born out of the desire to give life to the special food memories our chefs brought with them." The International Rescue Committee refers chefs from different countries to work at Eat Offbeat, and their varied recipes and stories are shared here. Readers will notice the rich range of traditions first off in the pantry, which features fenugreek, jackfruit, and jimbu, among other flavors. Standout dishes include poulet gras (Guinean chicken, cabbage, and carrots), adas (pureed lentils with berbere spices from Eritrea), cachapas (corn cakes with melted butter from Venezuela), and potato kibbeh from Iraq. Standards like hummus and baba ghanoush also make an appearance. Beautiful color photos whet the appetite and a conversion table is offered at the end. Most of the recipes are tied to family and place, and a desire to re-create the taste of home. For a limited time, some of the proceeds of this book will go to the International Rescue Committee. VERDICT An enjoyable look into different cultures via memorable recipes.—Barbara Kundanis, Longmont P.L., CO

Library Journal