The World Is a Kitchen: True Stories of Cooking Your Way Through Culture

by Michele Anna Jordan (Editor), Michele Anna Jordan (Editor)

Divided into five world regions, The World Is a Kitchen explores the gastronomic side of travel. These true tales by noted writers cover everything from learning how to make coconut bread in an outdoor kitchen in Polynesia, to teaching Japanese housewives how to make salsa, to training under one of the world's top chefs, to trying mightily to impress one’s in-laws by preparing snails. A wealth of recipes and a resource and reference section for finding cooking schools, classes, and culinary vacations are included.

Genres: Nonfiction, Cookbooks, Cooking, Food Writing

326 pages, Paperback

First published August 9, 2006

Reviews

[Yaaresse · Rating 4 out of 5]

Michele Anna Jordan, whose food writing was the sole reason I subscribed to the newspaper when I lived in NoCal, once wrote an entire book in homage to tomatoes. How can I not love an author who understands that the existence of vine-ripened heirloom tomatoes is proof that God exists?

Jordan is editor for this wonderful collection of short essays about food and food culture. All are personal stories about making and sharing cherished meals. As with all collections, there are some uneven spots, but there are far more hits than misses. No essay is more than ten pages, so it's an easy book to read in bits and pieces as time -- or hunger -- allows. In particular, I loved the story about young woman whose oh-so-very French future father-in-law charmingly coerces her into helping him "harvest" and prepare snails for his beloved escargot, something his son and wife refuse to do. Oh, the things some of us will do to get in good with the future in-laws!

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

So far I am loving this book! The setup, anecdotal essays about specific cooking experiences accompanied by specific recipes, makes it more like a novel than a cookbook. I'm excited that my book club is not only reading it, but that we are all going to prepare a dish from the book for our next meeting (can't wait for yummy food)!

I love being transported all over the world with these stories -- cooking is near and dear to my heart and I have found my eyes tearing up while reading some of them. It really makes me want to quit my day job and open a restaurant, or go manage a bed and breakfast in South/Central America.

I was also pleasantly surprised to read a story about a woman I met while traveling in Oaxaca, Mexico last summer ... always get warm fuzzies when a personal connection comes alive in a book.

[Betty Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

I genuinely liked some of these but a lot I struggled with. Some people are much better at putting the magic of food and culture into words. And with some, there just isn't any magic. The whole American section was pretty boring.

[Avital · Rating 5 out of 5]

Delicious! Try my moqueca recipe...

[Kat · Rating 3 out of 5]

great collection of stories, recipes & cultures

[Alaina · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some stories were definitely better than others, but there were some real gems sprinkled throughout the book. It was nice, light reading.