Lifestyle

Explore the heart of Japanese daily life through its iconic convenience stores!

For any visitor to Japan, it becomes immediately clear how central the convenience store (or ‘konbini’) is to everyday life. Different to our understanding of the convenience store in the US, Japan’s three huge chains – 7 Eleven, Family Mart, Lawson – are the beating heart of the nation.

Locals will pop into the konbini multiple times a day for household items, umbrellas (during those summer storms), manga and, of course, food — in all its forms. From instant snacks, onigiri, lunch bento, steaming oden, the fluffiest cheesecake slices and pot noodles.

Through more than 110 recipes, this book celebrates the sometimes odd, always delicious offerings through recipes and stories, as well as delving into the history of this peculiarly Japanese cultural icon.

Hardcover | Smith Street Books  | 256 pages

Gyoza: The Ultimate Dumpling Cookbook

50 Recipes from Tokyo's Gyoza King - Pot Stickers, Dumplings, Spring Rolls and More!

Author: Paradise Yamamoto

Whether eaten in an exclusive restaurant or at a humble street stall, gyoza dumplings are the ultimate Asian comfort food.

Dumplings are surprisingly easy to make once you learn a few basic techniques. Step-by-step instructions, photos, and helpful tips show you how to wrap dumplings like the "Gyoza King," Paradise Yamamoto, himself--even if it's your first try.

This book contains 50 delicious dumpling recipes, including:

• Shiitake and Pork Potstickers
• Waygu Beef Dumplings
• Bacon and Egg Carbonara Dumplings
• Lamb Gyoza with Coriander
• Many more traditional and playful recipes (including dessert dumplings)

With a wide array of shapes, fillings, and customizable options, these recipes are sure to please picky eaters and gyoza connoisseurs alike! Impress friends and family with these satisfying and easy-to-make morsels.

Paradise Yamamoto is the known as the "Gyoza King" and his exclusive Tokyo-based, members-only, reservations-only hideout known as Mamgyoen (Vine Garden) operates at an undisclosed location and serves a maximum of six diners each night at a single table. Big-name celebrities are among the fans of his irresistible dumpling creations. When he's not preparing outrageously delicious Gyoza for his exclusive clientele, Paradise fulfills his role as Japan's first official World Santa Claus Congress representative, visiting children's hospitals and homes and appearing on TV and radio broadcasts during the holiday season. He is also a mambo artist and creator of "mambonsai" (a term he coined); a pop-culture riff on the traditional Japanese art of bonsai, where miniature plant scenes are supplemented with fanciful or kitschy figurines.

Hardcover |  Tuttle  | 120 pages

Juke Joints, Jazz Clubs, and Juice: A Cocktail Recipe Book

Cocktails from Two Centuries of African American Cookbooks

Author: Toni Tipton-Martin

Discover the fascinating history of Black mixology and its enduring influence on American cocktail culture through 70 rediscovered, modernized, or celebrated recipes, by the James Beard Award–winning author of Jubilee.

Juke Joints, Jazz Clubs, and Juice spotlights the creativity, hospitality, and excellence of Black drinking culture, with classic and modern recipes inspired by formulas found in two centuries’ worth of Black cookbooks. From traditional tipples, such as the Absinthe Frappe or the Clover Leaf Cocktail, to new favorites, like the Jerk-Spiced Bloody Mary and the Gin and Juice 3.0, Toni Tipton-Martin shares a variety of recipes that shine a light on her influences, including underheralded early-twentieth-century icons, like Tom Bullock, Julian Anderson, and Atholene Peyton, and modern superstars, such as Snoop Dogg and T-Pain.

Drawing on her expertise, research in historic cookbooks, and personal collection of texts and letters, Toni Tipton-Martin shows how these drinks have evolved over time and shares the stories of how Black mixology came to be—a culmination of generations of practice, skill, intelligence, and taste.

Hardcover | Clarkson Potter/Ten Speed | 256 Pages

An essential update of the perennial bestseller.

Charcuterie exploded onto the scene in 2005 and encouraged an army of home cooks and professional chefs to start curing their own foods. This love song to animal fat and salt has blossomed into a bona fide culinary movement, throughout America and beyond, of curing meats and making sausage, pâtés, and confits. Charcuterie: Revised and Updated will remain the ultimate and authoritative guide to that movement, spreading the revival of this ancient culinary craft.

Early in his career, food writer Michael Ruhlman had his first taste of duck confit. The experience “became a fascination that transformed into a quest” to understand the larger world of food preservation, called charcuterie, once a critical factor in human survival. He wondered why its methods and preparations, which used to keep communities alive and allowed for long-distance exploration, had been almost forgotten. Along the way he met Brian Polcyn, who had been surrounded with traditional and modern charcuterie since childhood. “My Polish grandma made kielbasa every Christmas and Easter,” he told Ruhlman. At the time, Polcyn was teaching butchery at Schoolcraft College outside Detroit.

Ruhlman and Polcyn teamed up to share their passion for cured meats with a wider audience. The rest is culinary history. Charcuterie: Revised and Updated is organized into chapters on key practices: salt-cured meats like pancetta, dry-cured meats like salami and chorizo, forcemeats including pâtés and terrines, and smoked meats and fish. Readers will find all the classic recipes: duck confit, sausages, prosciutto, bacon, pâté de campagne, and knackwurst, among others. Ruhlman and Polcyn also expand on traditional mainstays, offering recipes for hot- and cold-smoked salmon; shrimp, lobster, and leek sausage; and grilled vegetable terrine. All these techniques make for a stunning addition to a contemporary menu.

Thoroughly instructive and fully illustrated, this updated edition includes seventy-five detailed line drawings that guide the reader through all the techniques. With new recipes and revised sections to reflect the best equipment available today, Charcuterie: Revised and Updated remains the undisputed authority on charcuterie.

Hardcover | W.W. Nortan & Company | 320 pages

Experience the vibrant cuisines of West Africa any night of the week with 80 easy, accessible recipes

This is West African food for every kitchen, a generous, warm welcome to its delicious, irresistible culinary mainstays and rhythms. If you already cook with ingredients like hearty greens, yams, black-eyed peas, and okra, or have enjoyed Southern staples like jambalaya and gumbo, you have tasted the deep culinary influences of this interconnected region that spans Senegal, Ghana, Côte d'Ivoire, Cameroon, Nigeria, and more.

Now, in Simply West African, celebrated chef and West African cooking authority Pierre Thiam unlocks the region’s essential tastes for the everyday home cook. With helpful tips and tricks that teach readers the basics of the cuisine, Pierre shows how seamlessly these flavorful, easy-to-execute dishes can become weeknight staples or the star of your table for weekend gatherings. Introduce family and friends to:

• Familiar dishes with a distinctly West African vibe: Chicken Yassa Tacos; Saucy Shrimp and Fonio Grits; Maman's Crispy Herb-Crusted Chicken; Blackened Salmon with Moyo Sauce
• One-pot crowd pleasers: Root Vegetable Mafe; Chicken Stew with Eggplant; Tomato, and Ginger; Braised Beef and Collard Greens
• Hearty vegetables and starchy soak-em-ups: Roasted Eggplant in Peanut Sauce; Double Coconut Rice and Peas; Smoky Black-Eyed Pea Mash

Hardcover | Clarkson Potter/Ten Speed | 240 pages

Hardcover | Clarkson Potter/Ten Speed | 288 pages

Hardcover | Clarkson Potter/Ten Speed | 512 pages

On Food and Cooking

Author: Harold McGee

A kitchen classic for over 35 years, and hailed by Time magazine as "a minor masterpiece" when it first appeared in 1984, On Food and Cooking is the bible which food lovers and professional chefs worldwide turn to for an understanding of where our foods come from, what exactly they're made of, and how cooking transforms them into something new and delicious.

For its twentieth anniversary, Harold McGee prepared a new, fully revised and updated edition of On Food and Cooking. He has rewritten the text almost completely, expanded it by two-thirds, and commissioned more than 100 new illustrations. As compulsively readable and engaging as ever, the new On Food and Cooking provides countless eye-opening insights into food, its preparation, and its enjoyment.

On Food and Cooking pioneered the translation of technical food science into cook-friendly kitchen science and helped birth the inventive culinary movement known as "molecular gastronomy." Though other books have been written about kitchen science, On Food and Cooking remains unmatched in the accuracy, clarity, and thoroughness of its explanations, and the intriguing way in which it blends science with the historical evolution of foods and cooking techniques.

Among the major themes addressed throughout the new edition are:

• Traditional and modern methods of food production and their influences on food quality
• The great diversity of methods by which people in different places and times have prepared the same ingredients
• Tips for selecting the best ingredients and preparing them successfully
• The particular substances that give foods their flavors, and that give us pleasure
• Our evolving knowledge of the health benefits and risks of foods

On Food and Cooking is an invaluable and monumental compendium of basic information about ingredients, cooking methods, and the pleasures of eating. It will delight and fascinate anyone who has ever cooked, savored, or wondered about food.

Harold McGee is a world-renowned authority on the science of food and cooking. He studied science and literature at Caltech and Yale, and has written two prize-winning books, On Food and Cooking and The Curious Cook, as well as many articles and reviews. He has been named food writer of the year by Bon Appétit magazine and to the Time 100, an annual list of the world’s most influential people. He lives in San Francisco.

Hardcover | Scribner | 896 pages

First published in the United Kingdom, THE RIVER COTTAGE MEAT BOOK quickly became an underground hit among food cognoscenti around the world. Now tailored for American cooks, this loving, authoritative, and galvanizing ode to good meat is one part manifesto on high-quality, local, and sustainable meat production; two parts guide to choosing and storing meats and fowl; and three parts techniques and recipes for roasting, cooking, barbecuing, preserving, and processing meats and getting the most out of leftovers. With this thought-provoking and practical guide, meat eaters can knowledgeably buy and prepare meat for better health and better living, while supporting the environment, vibrant local economies, and respectful treatment of animals.

• Already a sensation in the United Kingdom, this groundbreaking treatise on choosing and preparing meat is now available in the United States for the first time.

• Includes more than 100 recipes and more than 200 full-color photographs.

• Thoughtfully Americanized, with complete information about assorted cuts (including illustrations), production standards, and sources for buying and learning about meats in the United States.

• British edition has sold 150,000 copies.

Hardcover | Clarkson Potter/Ten Speed | 544 pages

100 recipes for everyday eating with built-in wow factor, from the Ottolenghi protégé and co-author of Ottolenghi Flavor shaking up the food world.

MEZCLA means mix, blend, or fusion in Spanish, and in her first solo cookbook, Ixta Belfrage—loved for her inventive ingredient combinations—shares her favorite mezcla of flavors. Helpfully divided into quick recipes (for when you need something great on the table, fast) and longer recipes (for when you have time to slow down and savor the process), here are one hundred bold, impactful recipes inspired by Italy, Brazil, Mexico, and beyond.

There are quick, flavorful recipes such as Giant Cheese on Toast with Honey and Urfa Butter, Piri Piri Tofu with Crispy Orzo, and Chicken with Pineapple and 'Nduja, as well as dishes to spend more time over: Chiles Rellenos with Salsa Roja Risotto, Sticky Coconut Rice Cake with Turmeric Tomatoes and Shrimp Lasagna with Habanero Oil.

Creative, colorful, and always delicious, this is food for every day and every occasion.
 

Hardcover | Clarkson Potter/Ten Speed | 288 pages

Rambutan

Recipes from Sri Lanka

Author: Cynthia Shanmugalingam

From the publisher:

Big flavours from a small island.

Rambutan tells the story of Sri Lanka's unique, spicy, fresh, vegan-friendly cuisine that deliciously combines Javanese, Malay, Indian, Arab, Portuguese, Dutch and British influences. Cynthia serves up a feast of over 80 simple recipes, including coconut dal, hoppers, kothu roti, cashew nut curry and her mum's slow-cooked Jaffna lamb curry.

Stories of family and travel combine with beautiful landscapes and candid photography to show both ancient and modern Sri Lanka. From crispy hopper pancakes to spicy drinking snacks, this exuberant guide is for beginners and experienced cooks alike.

Hardcover | Bloomsbury Publishing | 336 pages

Author: Benedetta Jasmine Guetta

From the publisher:

Cooking alla Giudia is the ultimate tribute to the wonderfully rich, yet still largely unknown, culinary heritage of the Jews of Italy. From Roman deep-fried artichokes (carciofi alla giudia) to Venetian sarde in saor (sweet-and-sour sardines), Apulian orecchiette pasta, and Sicilian caponata, some of Italy’s best-known dishes are Jewish in origin. But little is known about the Jewish people in Italy and their culinary traditions. It was the Jews, for example, who taught Italians to eat the eggplant, and thus helped inspire the classic eggplant parmigiana and many other local specialties. With a collection of kosher recipes from all regions of Italy, including plenty of vegan, vegetarian, and gluten-free options, author Benedetta Jasmine Guetta is on a mission to tell the story of how the Jews changed Italian food, to preserve these recipes, and to share with home cooks the extraordinary dishes prepared in the Jewish communities of Italy. Highlighted throughout the book are menus with regional Italian specialties, along with short, useful guides to the Italian cities with Jewish history. The book will show how to integrate the recipes into your everyday meals and holiday traditions as well.

Workman | Hardcover | 352 pages

Joy of Cooking

2019 Edition Fully Revised and Updated

by Irma S. Rombauer, Marion Rombauer Becker, Ethan Becker, John Becker and Megan Scott. 

Published by Scribner

Cover: Hardcover

Number of pages: 1200

Bress 'N' Nyam

Gullah Geechee Recipes from a Sixth-Generation Farmer

by Matthew Raiford and Amy Paige Condon

Published by Countryman Press.

Cover: Hardcover

Pages: 240

Jubilee

Recipes from Two Centuries of African American Cooking

Author: Toni Tipton-Martin

From the publisher:

Ready For Dessert

My Best Recipes

Author: David Lebovitz

From the best-selling author of The PDT Cocktail Book comes the first definitive guide to teach readers--be they professional bartenders or amateur cocktail enthusiasts--the art of bar building.

Interest in craft cocktails has reached fever pitch, with every city in the country boasting at least one craft cocktail bar. Whether you're a professional looking to take your bar game to the next level, or a passionate amateur interested in better understanding concepts like batching, mise en place, or the mechanics of drink making, Meehan's Bartender Manual is the definitive guide to the art of bar building. Featuring chapters on the history of the cocktail and bar; hospitality, service, and etiquette; home and professional bar design; and tools and machinery, Jim's authoritative yet engaging voice is on full display. This hardworking, practical bar book also includes the 100 cocktail recipes that every serious cocktail aficionado should know, groundbreaking never-before-published information on spirits from around the world, and unprecedented access to Meehan's creative process. The incredible content in this densely informative, yet completely approachable manual is matched only by its gorgeous photography and elevated package design, making it an instant classic to be enjoyed now, and for years to come.

Hardcover | Ten Speed Press | 488 pages

In Singapore, cooking the agak agak way is cooking with intent and intuition.

‘Agak agak’ is a colloquial term rooted in the Malay word for ‘somewhat’. This term comes to life especially in the home kitchen, where cooks rely on their senses and experience, rather than tools or exact formulas.

Singaporean cuisine, as we know it today, has come from a long history of adjusting and adapting and doing things ‘to taste’. In Agak Agak, Shu Han Lee encapsulates this approach to cooking by sharing delicious recipes that bring punchy Singaporean flavors to simple home cooking, whilst encouraging you to use these recipes as inspiration to create other dishes.

Try classic and modern recipes such as Kaya Toast with Half-Boiled Eggs, Nasi Goreng, 8-hour Ox Cheek Rendang, Green Beans with Turmeric and Toasted Coconut, Chilli Crab Spaghetti, Mum’s Steamed Pumpkin Rice, Pandan Swiss Roll and Black Sticky Rice Pudding with Rhubarb, amongst others.

With tips and tricks, Agak Agak shares more than Singaporean recipes perfect for home cooks, it shares a fun, fresh and creative way of cooking. 

Hardcover | Hardie Grant | 224 pages

Award-winning author of Mosquito Supper Club, Melissa Martin shares a year in the life of South Louisiana cooking and all the dishes that are eaten to celebrate life’s big and small moments *Named one of the Best Books of 2024 by Publishers Weekly and one of the Best Cookbooks of Fall 2024 by Food & Wine, Eater, and The Week.

People on the Louisiana bayou mark the seasons of the Cajun calendar with traditions, emotions, and gatherings around the table to feast. In this highly anticipated next book from the author of the James Beard Award-winning Mosquito Supper Club, Melissa Martin shares a year of celebrations, both big and small, through 100 Southern Louisiana recipes that combine humble ingredients, such as onions, potatoes, and peppers, and the local bounty, including shrimp and crabs. Made-to-share recipes like Carnival Crawfish Boil and Etouffee ring in the New Year and kickstart the Carnival season, which is a time for abundance and decadence. Lent unfolds with simple, fresh foods like Cabbage Slaw and Fried Fish Collars. Summer ushers in the bright bounty of shrimp season. Families and friends band together in October for boucheries, feasting on Cracklins and Back Bone Stew, then gather with loved ones for hearty homey holiday dishes like Fried Turkey, Holiday Dressing, and Red Velvet Cake. With illuminating sidebars and stunning photography, Martin illustrates what Cajun people already know: the table is a place for restoration, nourishment, and communion.

Hardcover | Artisan | 368 pages

In an exploration of her own experience as a first-generation American, Kristina Cho, author of the award-winning baking book Mooncakes and Milk Bread, offers 100 recipes that blend the flavors of traditional Cantonese cooking with California ingredients and a midwestern sensibility.
 
In Chinese Enough, Cho turns to the savory side of cooking with recipes that are neither entirely Chinese nor entirely American, but Chinese enough. Here is an array of dishes to pair with rice, the cornerstone of Cantonese cuisine, including Triple Pepper Beef, Miso Pork Meatballs, and Seared Egg Tofu with Honey and Soy. Recipes like Smashed Ranch Cucumbers and Saucy Sesame Long Beans honor the Cantonese focus on vegetables. There’s a chapter dedicated to the joy of noodles, with creative takes on traditional dishes, birthed anew in a California kitchen—from San Francisco Garlic Noodles to Creamy Tomato Udon. Plus, a chapter of Banquet-Worthy Dishes teaches the Chinese art of food as celebration, a step-by-step guide shows how to employ friends and family in the kitchen to make dumplings, and the fruit-focused dessert section acts as a lesson on finishing a meal with a small, sweet act of affection. Woven throughout, Cho’s stories of her grandmother’s Chinese garden situated in the middle of Cleveland and falling in love over dim sum are a warm tribute to the nuanced and personal ways in which one can discover and define their own culture. 

Hardcover | Artisan | 368 pages

Julia Turshen is a home cook’s best friend. Known for her simple, no-frills, yet utterly satisfying recipes—as well as her authentic, relatable, problem-solving approach—hers are the cookbooks we all turn to when we want to know what else we can make with some ground turkey, or if we can pull off dessert with a few basic pantry ingredients. In essence, we look to Julia when we want to know What Goes with What: to understand how we can transform the seemingly boring contents of our fridge into an exciting meal.

Now, in her latest book, Julia offers readers a new way to think about cooking, one that focuses on mastering the alchemy of a meal—and then offers endless iterations. Organized into six sections (salads and sandwiches; soups, stews and braises; rice, more grains, and pasta; vegetables; mains; and baked goods), Julia arms readers with 20 charts and 100 recipes that teach them how to build a successful dish, while making ample room for creativity and personal preference.

For readers of tried and true cookbooks like Melissa Clark’s Dinner and Deb Perelman’s Smitten Kitchen series, as well as fans of Molly Baz and Alison Roman’s breezy yet craveable recipes, What Goes with What will become an instant classic and find its place as a foundational cookbook for a new generation of home cooks.

Hardcover | Flatiron Books | 320 pages