Linger: Salads, Sweets and Stories to Savor: A Cookbook

by Hetty Lui McKinnon

ONE OF THE BEST COOKBOOKS OF 2025: The Washington Post, The Strategist, Bon Appétit, The Boston Globe, Slate, Serious Eats, and Saveur

“Hetty McKinnon doesn’t write great vegetarian recipes, she just writes great recipes.”

—Nigella Lawson

In her follow-up to the James Beard award-winning cookbok Tenderheart, Hetty Lui McKinnon returns with Linger, a cookbook for those looking to up their salad game. These colorful main-meal salads are inventive and hearty, packed with vegetables and globally-inspired flavors. Linger proves that salads are the most versatile dish, perfect for weeknight dinners, not-sad-desk-lunches, and as a show-stopping celebration meal.

From her salad-delivery days in Sydney to her current career as a food writer and bestselling cookbook author in New York, Hetty has long known the power of salads to connect and create community. In Linger, Hetty presents her salads, sweets and stories in twelve vibrant, loosely-seasonal menus -- each of which have their own playlist -- that are the perfect blueprint for gathering and entertaining.

Over 100 recipes,

• Caprese Salad with Grilled Pineapple
• Mapo Tofu salad
• Cauliflower Larb
• French Onion Salad
• Curry Potato-and-Pea Dumpling Salad
• Potato Salad Tartine
• Vegan Dan Dan salad
• Roasted Spiced Carrots and Crispy Tofu with Agrodolce
• Tomato and Kimchi Pasta Salad • Butternut with Lentils, Olives, and Pickle Sauce
• Plus sweets like Hong Kong Milk Tea Tres Leches and Matcha and Ginger Custard Tart!

Genres: Cookbooks, Food, Cooking, Nonfiction

310 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 7, 2025

Reviews

[Elizabeth]

As heard on The Splendid Table: Conversations & Recipes For Curious Cooks & Eaters (840: Holiday Traditions Around the World with Hetty Lui McKinnon and Yasmin Khan)

This week, we’re celebrating the holidays by looking beyond, into global stories that shape the season. First, we talk with Hetty Lui McKinnon about her new book, Linger: Salads, Sweets and Stories to Savor, and what the holidays look like in Australia, where Christmas is hot and the seafood markets buzz at midnight. Hetty reflects on the vegetable forward meals that defined her Chinese Australian upbringing and leaves us with her recipe for Coronation Cauliflower and Chickpeas. Then, we turn to writer Yasmin Khan for a deeper look at Yalda Night, the Persian winter solstice celebration that reminds us of the return of the sun, after the longest night of the year. Her latest cookbook, Sabzi: Vibrant Vegetarian Recipes, explores vibrant vegetarian cooking rooted in Persian culture. Yasmin shares how Yalda brings people together through poetry, pomegranates, and seasonal comforts, and leaves us with her recipe for Eggplant Fesenjan.

Broadcast dates for this episode: 

December 19, 2025 (originally aired)

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[bookcookery]

Such an aptly titled cookbook, as you truly do want to linger with it. McKinnon strikes a balance between the new and the nostalgic, making her recipes feel like both comfort food and fresh discoveries. And though it’s perhaps not surprising for a salad cookbook, it’s a delight to find that most of these recipes are vegan or offer vegan alternatives.

For my first pass, I tried the Black Sesame Tofu “Basque” Cheesecake, the Mapo Tofu Salad, the Potato and Scallion Flatbread, the Tofu Bread Rolls, and the Vegan Meringue, all of which were tasty. The cheesecake had a satisfyingly creamy texture both warm and cold (with a not-surprisingly coconuty flavor thanks to the can of coconut milk). The Mapo Tofu Salad captured some of my favorite flavors in salad form, the flatbread and rolls were chewy and flavorful, and the vegan meringue, as McKinnon notes, nothing new but still wonderful to be guided through for the first time.

McKinnon manages to draw great depth of flavor from a relatively limited number of ingredients in each recipe, and her instructions are consistently clear and confidence-building. This is a new favorite.

Thanks to Knopf and NetGalley for the advance reading copy.

[Kristin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I adore Hetty McKinnon and her recipes. They're always creative and tend to tilt east-Asian inspired (which have lots of my favorite cuisines). I didn't like Linger as much as I loved Tenderheart. I wish there were time estimates included in these recipes and also noticed the serving sizes tended to be smaller than what I would consider to be X serving.

Onto the recipes tried:
- Bibimbap gnocchi - liked, didn't love. Lots of (personal) issues with cooking the gnocchi, but also felt like it was lacking something
- Kung pao cabbage and tofu - the first major miss for me - found it to be bland
- Spicy braised eggplant and tofu with noodles - loved this - I really enjoyed the japchae noodles, which added an interesting bouncy texture to the dish
- Roasted sunchokes and cannellini beans with tahini sauce - a lot of potential, but honestly the sunchokes just didn't do it for me - found them to be turnip-like in taste, adding a lingering after taste
- Broccoli tempeh with salsa macha - I also made the salsa macha and really loved this sauce - though I liked the salsa macha more than the broccoli tempeh
- Roasted spiced carrots with tofu and agrodolce - my husband loved this dish ("best thing you've ever made" - even though it had raisins in it, and he hates raisins, so I think this one was a win
- Spiced chickpea and lentil salad - beautifully colorful dish and very filling

So overall a bit of a mixed bag for me.

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ve loved the recipes of Hetty’s that I’ve tried before, so I was excited when the library got a copy of her new cookbook. However, this was sort of a miss for me, which made me very glad that I borrowed a library copy instead of buying. While almost all of the recipes sound good to me, many of them contain ingredients that are not possible to find in rural America, or they take longer to make than I have normally have time for. Having said that, I did save a few recipes that I could get ingredients for that take less than an hour to make.

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Netgalley ARC- I wasn't expecting to enjoy this book as much as I did. The recipes are presented in twelve chapters with their own playlist (QR codes provide) which helps set the mood and ties them together. Handy substitutions are provided for some of the ingredients which will provide endless options. I've never read her published work outside of the NYTS, but I will definitely seek out her others.

[Nicole · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Great cookbook for anyone who wants to make a variety of international vegetarian recipes.

I already made: potato & sumac salad, soba noodles with crunchy vegetables, & iced tea fizz.

I really appreciate that most recipes include substitutions and ways to veganize &/or make a dish gluten free.

I’m excited to make even more recipes!

[Stephanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you’re vegetarian or vegan, you might really like this cookbook. I’m not, so it’s just okay for me. If Hetty had me over for a meal, I’d be delighted to try her offerings. But making them myself? Only two recipes appealed enough to me that I’d try them.

[Shayna Elyse · Rating 5 out of 5]

if i could give this more than 5 stars i would. love the variety of recipes in this book!! as someone who brings cold lunch to work many of these room temp salads will be perfect.

[Pcox · Rating 4 out of 5]

lots of healthy veggie dishes and gluten free pumpkin cake!

[Cherie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Part cookbook, part stories, this did not have my fave recipes of McKinnon.

[Maggie Connolly · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the best cookbooks I've ever purchased. Every recipe, so far, has been perfect.

[Hannah Dalpiaz · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have so many recipes bookmarked waiting to try. Another wonderful blend of recipes, writing and music too!

[Great Escape Books · Rating 5 out of 5]

Our Review...

The author of bestselling Community is back with a fabulous new cookbook Linger. This delightful collection is packed with vegetable laden loosely seasonal menus full of salads, sweets and stories that celebrate the coming together of friends.

Each chapter features a distinct collection of songs, playlists curated by McKinnon’s daughter Scout, and to be enjoyed as you cook, eat and linger.

In Linger, salads aren’t just made of leaves—they’re stories in their own right, rich with flavor and memories. It’s an incredible follow-up to Community, offering not just a fantastic cookbook but a beautiful way to connect through food.

Review by Jess L @ Great Escape Books