Silk Roads

The historic Silk Roads are the arteries along which people, goods, ideas, religions, and many other things have flowed. Iranian American cook and writer, Anna Ansari, is a former international trade lawyer and Chinese history scholar, who has been fascinated by the Silk Roads ever since her stay in China as a teenager and due to a growing obsession with The Golden Peaches of Samarkand (a record of the exotic goods imported into China during the T''ang Dynasty (A.D. 618-907). Her writing focuses on the intersection of food, family and history, with special attention to the immigrant experience as well to foods of the Asian continent. She is particularly interested in the ways food--flavor, ingredients, dishes--move across borders, carried in the memories and pockets of travelers and transplants. This cookbook is a culmination of her lifelong passion for the history and food of these regions, one that is ambitious in scope and flavor, appealing to curious cooks and lovers of global history.

Autorentext

Anna Ansari

Klappentext

“Packed with history, humor, and delicious food, this travelogue-memoir-cookbook checks every box. Anna's encyclopaedic knowledge of the subject, combined with compelling personal stories and recipes deeply rooted in a unique culinary culture, add a new voice to an important food story.” – Adeena Sussman

“A delectable feast for the senses. Anna Ansari traverses the colorful cuisines of the Silk Roads with curiosity, knowledge, and empathy.” – Naz Deravian

“A superb culinary journey along Silk Roads less travelled.” – Jay Rayner

This is the story of the world’s most famous trade routes, retold through recipes.

In this rich and delicious cookbook, Iranian-American cook and writer Anna Ansari takes us on a culinary, historical, and personal odyssey across the Silk Roads.

Weaving together essays, family photography and 90 recipes, Ansari brings life to the flavors of the Silk Roads – from the walnut groves of her father’s Iranian childhood, across Central Asian markets brimming with fragrant melons and thronged with fat-tailed sheep, and into the neighborhoods of modern-day Chinese cities.

Discover delectable dishes from Baku to Beijing – Azeri-Iranian stews served with crispy-bottomed rice, dill-infused noodles from Western Uzbekistan, Georgian cornbread, Uyghur lamb chops and all kinds of dumplings, from fat, spiraled oromo to tiny, stuffed dushbara in a delicate saffron broth. Plus, you’ll find refreshing drinks and sharbats, and American-inspired desserts like apple pie with quince, sticky persimmon pudding, and walnut-studded spiced blondies.

“A book of delicious recipes interwoven with histories, family stories and a good dash of humour is what we all need just now.” – Olia Hercules