Every product was carefully curated by an Esquire editor. We may earn a commission from these links.
courtesy of publication
1
Koreaworld: A Cookbook
Now 38% Off
In their follow-up to 2016’s stellar Koreatown, Deuki Hong and Matt Rodbard cover the revolution of Korean cuisine in America. Accompanied by Alex Lau’s vivid photography, the recipes come from chefs and home cooks across the country. Koreaworld is a dizzying visual treat sure to make your mouth water. Yes, the Kim Jong Grillin’ Pickled Mango and Kimchi Hot Dog are incredible, and yes, the Oi Muchim sweet-and-sour pickled cucumbers (with 7-Up!) are addictive. But beyond a slew of intriguing dishes, it’s the stories that give this volume its emotional lift and depth.
2
Islas: A Celebration of Tropical Cooking―125 Recipes from the Indian, Atlantic, and Pacific Ocean Islands
Now 20% Off
Can a cookbook open your mind and spirit to cultures you may not have authentically appreciated, yet still make you want to try every recipe it offers? Von Diaz’s latest achieves just that, as she writes about not just one but several island cuisines and cultures, including those of Puerto Rico, Madagascar, Guam, and Vanuatu. Islas is a mash-up of cultures both distinct and connected, and this book, thoughtfully written with approachable, clear-to-follow recipes, is a delight and wonder. Seriously, I’ve stoped earmarking pages. I’ve never been inclined to Julie & Julia a book until now. I just want to make everything. Irresistible.
3
Pizza Night: Deliciously Doable Recipes for Pizza and Salad
Now 20% Off
For close to two decades, Alexandra Stafford has been a fixture in the food blogosphere, offering us beautifully photographed, approachable recipes that are a cut above. Devoted to making pizza at home, Stafford’s second cookbook continues to showcase her knack for presenting us with unpretentious food that’s surprising, comforting, and fun. The recipes are carefully considered, nothing fussy. Just a trove of invention and enjoyment for anyone with a hankering for pizza.
Advertisement - Continue Reading Below
4
Le Sud: Recipes from Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur
Now 23% Off
If you can’t be in the South of France—specifically Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur—this book is the next best thing. Illustrated with sensual photographs of the good, simple life, it may just make your heart break with envy. But then you start cooking Rebekah Peppler’s food and you feel as if you can capture the region’s essence at home. Her celery-and-fennel salad has already become a staple in my home, and my copy of this lovely book has more than a dozen Post-it notes marking the recipes I look forward to making during the rest of the year and beyond.
5
Health Nut: A Feel-Good Cookbook
Now 43% Off
Who says health food can’t taste good? “I am not a nutritionist,” writes Jess Damuck. “I am not a wellness influencer. I am just a classically trained chef who has a nostalgia for the sticky shelved health food stores that are becoming increasingly hard to find.” She’s also a hell of a writer, smart, engaging, with a winning sense of humor. This is a health-conscious cookbook made for people who love to cook. From the asparagus, pea, and crispy leek frittata to the planet-bliss mesclun salad with fried tofu croutons, these dishes aren’t the least bit intimidating. Damuck is ridiculously good company, and this hospitable book makes eating healthy something to aspire to.
6
Zaytinya: Delicious Mediterranean Dishes from Greece, Turkey, and Lebanon
Now 40% Off
From the master chef and social activist José Andrés comes a book devoted to his longtime Washington, D.C., restaurant Zaytinya, steeped in the cuisines of Greece, Turkey, and Lebanon. From the lemony greens salad to the shawarma spice roast chicken to Turkish coffee chocolate cake, these lush recipes can be made effectively at home. Looking for a Mother’s Day gift? This should top your list. And beyond the holiday, it has a rightful place on any self-respecting home cook’s shelf.
Advertisement - Continue Reading Below
7
Anything’s Pastable: 81 Inventive Pasta Recipes for Saucy People
Now 31% Off
In the 1970s and 1980s, Marcella Hazan was to Italian cookbooks what Julia Child was to French cuisine: the reigning goddess of delight. Also discipline. There is no doubt that Marcella, rigorous and unyielding in her spartan approach, would recoil at Dan Pashman’s modern mash-up of Italian cuisine. But everyone has their lane, and Pashman, inventor of new, fantastic shapes of pasta, earns his place as a remix artist. He’s no hack but rather a cook with an expansive, liberal sense of what can be done in the kitchen. This book surprises and delivers, time and again. It’s ideal for family cooking (pasta pizza, anyone?) or for anyone with a pulse, a sense of creativity, and an appetite.
8
My Life in Recipes: Food, Family, and Memories
Now 41% Off
From the OG of Jewish-cookbook authors comes this gorgeous remembrance from Joan Nathan, replete with delicious recipes, stories, and evocation of a life in the kitchen. In 1986, Nathan interviewed M.F.K. Fisher, regarded as the greatest of all food writers, for The Washington Post. An excerpt of the original article, along with Nathan’s memories of her time with Fisher, gives us this: “If you have a glass of water and a crust of bread with somebody and you really share it,” Fisher said, “it is much more than just bread and water. I really believe that.” Dayenu. Food, family, belonging, and love suffuse this wonderful volume.
9
The Food of Southern Thailand
Now 34% Off
The Food of Southern Thailand is where cultural reportage, evocative photography, precise recipe making, and overall design combine into something memorable. Austin Bush’s deep dive into the people and culture of southern Thailand would be attractive enough as a piece of writing. Add a thorough introduction to its cuisine and this elegant, hefty book is an impressive accomplishment—a must for anyone interested in Thai cooking.
Advertisement - Continue Reading Below
10
The Farm Table
Now 36% Off
Don’t blame us for being leery of another farm-to-table book; the term, regrettably, has become a cliché. However, the notion behind it remains a true and essential approach to cooking. In this handsomely designed book, Julius Roberts does not disappoint. Organized by seasons—again, perhaps a rote concept but one that still makes too much sense to resist—The Farm Table gives us luscious and inspiring variations of home cooking: Puy lentils with spinach and pancetta, a ratatouille galette with anchovy and ricotta, and rhubarb-and-custard tartlets that are to die for. Loveliness, from soup to nuts.
Watch Next
Advertisement - Continue Reading Below
Advertisement - Continue Reading Below
Advertisement - Continue Reading Below
ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7pr%2FQrqCrnV6YvK57xKernqqklravucSnq2ian6S4tHvGbW1ycWNqhHV7wZ6qrWWTpLysrs6ooqxlYmV%2FdXs%3D