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Eastern Vegetarian Cooking
The countries of the East offer a dazzling range of vegetarian dishes in a variety of styles. For this definitive book, Madhur Jaffrey, has gathered together the cream of vegetarian recipes from Turkey, Japan, China, India, Korea and the Philippines, among others. With suggestions for menus and a valuable section of general information, this classic of vegetarian cooking in the Far East, is a book no discerning eater (vegetarian or otherwise) should be without.
544 pages, Paperback
First published October 6, 1983
83 people want to read
About the author
Madhur Jaffrey
94 books194 followersMadhur Jaffrey CBE is an Indian-born actress, food and travel writer, and television personality. She is recognized for bringing Indian cuisine to the western hemisphere with her debut cookbook, An Invitation to Indian Cooking, which was inducted into the James Beard Foundation’s Cookbook Hall of Fame in 2006.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
September 1, 2012
An absolute favorite which has traveled with me everywhere for 20 years - and I still haven't tried everything in it. If you thought veggie food was bland and boring, try some of these recipes. I'm not a vegetarian, but I often turn to this book just to add more variety to my food. It's my go-to book when cooking for veggie friends, and many times I've cooked huge feasts for hardcore carnivores and they haven't realized until afterwards that they'd just eaten a meatless meal.
This and Madhur Jaffrey's Ultimate Curry Bible are why Madhur Jaffrey is referred to in my household as "the blessed Madhur". Nigella Lawson may be a domestic goddess, but Madhur Jaffrey has literally transformed my culinary life. I want her as my auntie so I can visit her and see what she's cooked up.
This and Madhur Jaffrey's Ultimate Curry Bible are why Madhur Jaffrey is referred to in my household as "the blessed Madhur". Nigella Lawson may be a domestic goddess, but Madhur Jaffrey has literally transformed my culinary life. I want her as my auntie so I can visit her and see what she's cooked up.
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November 17, 2014Not inspiring me at all.
May 31, 2018
A good book that helped me transition into my brief vegetarian phase.
Very spicy delicious chickpeas (yes that’s the name) is a stock standard for me.
Very spicy delicious chickpeas (yes that’s the name) is a stock standard for me.
December 21, 2024
Madda Jaffrey’s Eastern Vegetarian Cooking has been around for over forty years. It still tastes very good! I am astounded by the fact that I watched her television show about Indian cooking when it was new. I really must be that old.
In Eastern Vegetarian Cooking she lists recipes by genre from Turkey and the Caucuses in the west to Japan, Korea, and the Philippines in the east. The majority of her text deals with India and China, and there is very little from Thailand or especially the rest of Indochina. But what there is between the book covers is pure delight.
Madhur Jaffrey was not a chef. I will rephrase that - is not a chef, because she is now ninety years old. In her own estimation, I am sure, she would have described herself as a cook with a strong interest in the culture of food, rather than as a chef. She was also always very practical, and throughout the book she describes techniques, shortcuts, and tips that offer a way around a hard-to-obtain ingredient, an unavailable utensil or an over-laborious technique. Unlike many cookbook writers, one feels that she has tried all these ideas several times in a domestic kitchen before recommending them.
In the main, Madhur Jaffery uses techniques that can easily be followed in the home kitchen. Not for her the use of blow torches, liquid nitrogen, or fresh flowers assembled with tweezers. Reading her style of working, one feels that she would have advised against such “fiddle-faddle”. And she does try to respect the food cultures of the different countries she visits. But only one, India, has references to regional styles which surely the others have as well.
Madhur Jaffery makes no excuses about the sources of her recipes. Many dishes come from restaurants, or from single visits to a country, whilst many of the Indian dishes come, of course, from family, friends and childhood. These biographical elements add to the reading experience and detract in no way from the usefulness of the cookbook.
But what is also clear is that she was always on the lookout for dishes that we’re both traditional and brought out the best of fresh, seasonal ingredients, wherever she found herself. She clearly thought that part of the cultural exposure and education of travel was to savour local food. Personally, I think that the true traveller tries to leave assumed culture at home along with its trappings in order to experience as fully as possible the culture that is doing the hosting. And that includes food preferences… There is a world out there.
This is a cookbook that can be red cover to cover. It does have illustrations, but these are simple, monochrome sketches that are present to punctuate the text, not make the book into an expensive revenue owner.
It is about forty-five years since I went to my first South Indian vegetarian restaurant in Tooting, South London. Madhur Jaffrey, from that same era, writes about many of the dishes that were present on the Sree Krishna’s menu. At the time, the restaurant was small and tended to be packed. When the staff advised of a wait of half an hour or so, the used to show us to the pub across the road and then come to announce when a table was free. Times change, but the food does not, because it is rooted in a culture.
Four decades later, despite the increased tendency for the British public to be vegetarian, it is still rather difficult to find an Indian restaurant in Britain that cooks South Indian vegetarian dishes from scratch using fresh ingredients. The restaurateurs should read Madhur Jaffrey’s book. I await the joy of a masala dosai.
In Eastern Vegetarian Cooking she lists recipes by genre from Turkey and the Caucuses in the west to Japan, Korea, and the Philippines in the east. The majority of her text deals with India and China, and there is very little from Thailand or especially the rest of Indochina. But what there is between the book covers is pure delight.
Madhur Jaffrey was not a chef. I will rephrase that - is not a chef, because she is now ninety years old. In her own estimation, I am sure, she would have described herself as a cook with a strong interest in the culture of food, rather than as a chef. She was also always very practical, and throughout the book she describes techniques, shortcuts, and tips that offer a way around a hard-to-obtain ingredient, an unavailable utensil or an over-laborious technique. Unlike many cookbook writers, one feels that she has tried all these ideas several times in a domestic kitchen before recommending them.
In the main, Madhur Jaffery uses techniques that can easily be followed in the home kitchen. Not for her the use of blow torches, liquid nitrogen, or fresh flowers assembled with tweezers. Reading her style of working, one feels that she would have advised against such “fiddle-faddle”. And she does try to respect the food cultures of the different countries she visits. But only one, India, has references to regional styles which surely the others have as well.
Madhur Jaffery makes no excuses about the sources of her recipes. Many dishes come from restaurants, or from single visits to a country, whilst many of the Indian dishes come, of course, from family, friends and childhood. These biographical elements add to the reading experience and detract in no way from the usefulness of the cookbook.
But what is also clear is that she was always on the lookout for dishes that we’re both traditional and brought out the best of fresh, seasonal ingredients, wherever she found herself. She clearly thought that part of the cultural exposure and education of travel was to savour local food. Personally, I think that the true traveller tries to leave assumed culture at home along with its trappings in order to experience as fully as possible the culture that is doing the hosting. And that includes food preferences… There is a world out there.
This is a cookbook that can be red cover to cover. It does have illustrations, but these are simple, monochrome sketches that are present to punctuate the text, not make the book into an expensive revenue owner.
It is about forty-five years since I went to my first South Indian vegetarian restaurant in Tooting, South London. Madhur Jaffrey, from that same era, writes about many of the dishes that were present on the Sree Krishna’s menu. At the time, the restaurant was small and tended to be packed. When the staff advised of a wait of half an hour or so, the used to show us to the pub across the road and then come to announce when a table was free. Times change, but the food does not, because it is rooted in a culture.
Four decades later, despite the increased tendency for the British public to be vegetarian, it is still rather difficult to find an Indian restaurant in Britain that cooks South Indian vegetarian dishes from scratch using fresh ingredients. The restaurateurs should read Madhur Jaffrey’s book. I await the joy of a masala dosai.
July 18, 2011
Okay.
I don't know that many Indian people.
A few.
Those few don't really cook much Indian food. They get take away, usually. They could tell you if the Indian food was like their family's or like a restaurant in India, but beyond that... it's a bit like asking Americans if the hamburger is good.
So I made my first Indian food from this book.
It was AMAZING.
We are *mostly* vegetarian, and are always looking for recipes that entail more beans and stuff we get in our CSA boxes. Protein always seems to be an issue, so beans are an important part of my recipe gathering process. We don't eat a huge amount of grain, so if you are looking for that sort of thing, there is plenty to be had in this book as well. Lots of emphasis on fresh ingredients, tasty spices and step by step instructions. If you have tinned beans, that's okay too.
This book is a panoply of Asian recipes: filipino, korean, japanese, indonesian, cantonese...
Definitely one of my favorites!
Buon Apetito!
I don't know that many Indian people.
A few.
Those few don't really cook much Indian food. They get take away, usually. They could tell you if the Indian food was like their family's or like a restaurant in India, but beyond that... it's a bit like asking Americans if the hamburger is good.
So I made my first Indian food from this book.
It was AMAZING.
We are *mostly* vegetarian, and are always looking for recipes that entail more beans and stuff we get in our CSA boxes. Protein always seems to be an issue, so beans are an important part of my recipe gathering process. We don't eat a huge amount of grain, so if you are looking for that sort of thing, there is plenty to be had in this book as well. Lots of emphasis on fresh ingredients, tasty spices and step by step instructions. If you have tinned beans, that's okay too.
This book is a panoply of Asian recipes: filipino, korean, japanese, indonesian, cantonese...
Definitely one of my favorites!
Buon Apetito!
October 1, 2011
One of the first cookbooks I got when I moved out of home. Actually that's a lie, my housemate had it and when he moved out, my then boyfriend bought it for me. I still use it. I know most of the chick pea recipes by heart. It's the book you need when someone gives you a big bunch of green beans and you think 'what can I do with these? Turn them into a main course of course!
I tried to buy it for someone recently, and it appears to e out of print. Such a shame.
I have a different version, a big thick paperback. Looks like a novel in fact.
I tried to buy it for someone recently, and it appears to e out of print. Such a shame.
I have a different version, a big thick paperback. Looks like a novel in fact.
August 24, 2012
One of my first vegetarian books. I made soy milk and learned about tofu. It's not full colour pictures but the little illustrations were very informative.
The recipes are introduced with context and it's a delightful read - not something that you can always say about a recipe book!
The recipes are introduced with context and it's a delightful read - not something that you can always say about a recipe book!
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May 1, 2017Edition: Re-issue
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews