Traditional Bulgarian Cooking [Hardcover]

Atanas Slavov (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1998

Bulgaria, which stretches out and east from the Danube, is a colourful patchwork of mountains, forests, waters, and some of the best vegetable-growing land in the world. Here is a real taste of authentic Bulgarian home cooking -- characterised by a blend of South Slav and strong Turkish influences, within the framework of the great Mediterranean culinary tradition. As the world's undisputed centre of yoghurt production, Bulgaria boasts many creative and tasty dishes with this ingredient. This collection of over 140 authentic Bulgarian recipes spans the range of home cooking: stews and hearty soups; lamb, poultry, grilled meats and game; vegetarian delights; cheese pastries; desserts; and even soft drinks.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Atanas Slavov

Product Details

• Hardcover: 150 pages
• Publisher: Hippocrene Books (March 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0781805813
• ISBN-13: 978-0781805810
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.6 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,817,834 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A little Bulgarian treasure., December 6, 2003

By 

dinska "phoenixwinged" (Chicagoland, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Traditional Bulgarian Cooking (Hardcover)

Atanas Slavov is a prominent Bulgarian-American writer. He has written many books on many subjects for many years. His commentary alone is worth the price of the book. The little essay on tomatoes was excellent and very true. (If you're Bulgarian, you'll understand how important tomatoes are!) Very Bulgarian in thought and sense of humor throughout, not to mention for the appropriate cultural notes.

But are the recipes any good? Largely, yes. However, this is still not a complete cookbook. There are many recipes missing, such as some pepper spreads/pastes, recipes calling for cheese, oh gosh, so many more. But this is a very good start for anyone who wants to learn more about Bulgarian cooking or who needs a favorite old recipe.

The recipes are Americanized well (meaning appropriate spices were substituted for ones you can't get in the US, etc.). There is a little bit of everything from Bulgarian cuisine. Fish, which gets little coverage in most western Balkan cookbooks is covered here. The dessert section is also very nice, and the wine notes are a plus. Again though, it should have been so much more.

I have to speak to the review ahead of mine. 90% of cookbooks have recipes that yield 4-6 servings. Cookbooks that cater to meals of two servings are rare, specialty items. This cookbook has clear yields of 4-6 servings for entrees, 8 servings for desserts and more for things such as drinks and jams. It's just the way cookbooks are.

Bulgarian cookbooks are still too hard to find in the US. This is a good one. I only wish that the cuisine had been given the exhaustive attention it needs.

13 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Traditional Cooking for the Bulgarian Army, June 21, 2000

By 

Amy L. Hubbell (Manhattan, KS) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Traditional Bulgarian Cooking (Hardcover)

While Slavov does an excellent job of covering the wide variety of Bulgarian dishes, his recipes all call for large quantities. I have found that cooking a Bulgarian meal for 2 requires only about 1/5 of the proportions Slavov gives. Otherwise, the book is concise, without pictures, with a complete list of ingredients but light on description or explanation. In my opinion, one would need a Bulgarian consultant to know if the dishes turned out correctly.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent - easy to use and fun, March 31, 2004

By A Customer

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Traditional Bulgarian Cooking (Hardcover)

Excelent authentic easy to use recipes. Many amusing thoughts by the author. We had the pleasure of the authentic Bulgarian recipes in Sofia, and this book is a close as we can match them in the US. Here we can't get such fresh vegatables, fruits and good wine.