Where Flavor Was Born: Recipes and Culinary Travels Along the Indian Ocean Spice Route [Hardcover]

Andreas Viestad (Author), Mette Randem (Photographer)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 2007

This extraordinary cookbook from celebrated author Andreas Viestad explores the culinary wonders along the legendary spice route, from Zanzibar to India to Bali and everywhere in between. Part travelogue, part cookbook, this colorful volume captures the spirit of each region and reveals the origins of the spices now used in everyday cooking across the globe. Nearly 100 recipes, a glossary of spices, source list, and unforgettable color photographs document the people, places, andbest of allthe irresistible cuisine at every stop on the journey. Where Flavor Was Born brings the exotic flavorsand culturesof the Indian Ocean into the home kitchen.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"This beautiful book from the Norwegian author of Kitchen of Light: New Scandinavian Cooking offers photos galore, travel tales and interesting recipes (a few of them impractical, including the Balinese suckling pig). It's a travelogue as much as a cookbook, with Viestad taking readers to where cumin, tamarind, turmeric and nutmeg are grown." Star Tribune, December 6, 2007

"Where Flavor was Born explores the edge of the Indian Ocean, from Australia around to South Africa, stopping at Thailand, Malaysia and Bali, and stretching up through the Red Sea to Egypt. On vividly colored pages, between recipes for potato croquettes with ginger and honey and turmeric squid with tamarind sauce, Viestad charts his travels with anecdotes that turn the book into a journal and history lesson as ell a collection of recipes and reference for the area's spice trade." San Francisco Chronicle, December 12, 2007

About the Author

Andreas Viestad is a food writer and TV chef. His television series New Scandinavian Cooking with Andreas Viestad airs in more than 50 countries. When not traveling, he lives in Norway and South Africa.

Mette Randem is an internationally renowned photographer based in Norway.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Chronicle Books; First Edition edition (October 1, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0811849651
• ISBN-13: 978-0811849654
• Product Dimensions: 10.4 x 9.9 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #560,980 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Enticing invitation, October 29, 2007

By 

pleureur. - See all my reviews

This review is from: Where Flavor Was Born: Recipes and Culinary Travels Along the Indian Ocean Spice Route (Hardcover)

"Where Flavor Was Born" is the product of the author's three year journey around the Indian Ocean spice trail, where he feasted his eyes and palate (not to mention his sense of smell) on the abundance of carefully seasoned food that he found along the way. The book is categorized by spice, with chapters highlighting black pepper, chile peppers, cardamom, and so on. Each chapter contains, and the book is full of beautiful photographs of the areas profiled, with an emphasis on the local people harvesting, selling/buying, and cooking their food. The photos of spices growing or being harvested are especially interesting. There is a wide range of foods in the cookbook, from meats to ways to flavor fruit with spices, and he promotes an attitude of playful experimentation with flavor rather than a rigid, harsh approach that takes all the fun out of eating. Most if not all of the recipes include detailed information about where he ate the dish, or how he was inspired to create his version. All in all, it's a great book that highlights the similarities between the cuisines of this wide geographic region while still managing to depict each local area as distinct.

The font size throughout the book is on the small side, but virtually all of the pages are white with black print and, if you can manage the size, easy to read.

And the recipes I have tried have turned out excellently.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Inspiring me to change my next party's menu..., December 16, 2007

By 

Shannon Clark (San Francisco, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Where Flavor Was Born: Recipes and Culinary Travels Along the Indian Ocean Spice Route (Hardcover)

I purchased this book after seeing it in the window of one of my favorite used bookstores earlier this evening, then tonight I am purchasing multiple copies of this book to give as gifts to my family this holiday season. I should note here, my father is a professional food technologist (for over 30+ years leading R&D programs for some of the world's biggest food companies as well as building and desiging factories and food processes) and my sister's boyfriend is a cookbook author and professional food critic (writing for the NY Times). So these are gifts for serious food lovers.

Where Flavor was Born is a beautiful, inspiring book. Many of the recipes are very simple - emphasizing the wonderful flavors that high quality, fresh spices and sometimes just one other ingredient can achieve. While other dishes involve slow cooking for 8+ hours. In short, recipes which while customized for the needs of a modern, western kitchen, do not cut corners to achieve flavorful combinations.

I generally do not cook from recipes, rather I typically cook extremely fresh, mostly local & organic ingredients which are in season with the minimum of additional steps to bring out their best flavors - it is a very rare dish I cook that involves more than 7 ingredients (even including spices most of the time).

However, this is a rare cookbook which I sat down and almost read cover to cover, noting on many pages recipes which I want to make sometime soon.

So soon, in fact, that I think my next dinner party - on the 25th - will include quite a few dishes from this book - as alternatives to slightly simpler dishes which I had intended on making. And in addition to trying many of the recipes as written, I am also taking inspirations from the overall stories and discussion of the spices.

And though I know I have a gift basket of spices from my favorite spice vender, The Spice House, coming to me later this month, I suspect I'll be calling them up about getting a few of the more exotic spices mentioned in this book (varieties of peppercorns for example).

In short, this is a great addition to the library of anyone who loves food, flavors, and cooking - cooking which is driven by starting with the highest quality ingredients.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars fabulous informative cookbook, November 6, 2007

By 

Cheryl Welcome (Lowell, MA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Where Flavor Was Born: Recipes and Culinary Travels Along the Indian Ocean Spice Route (Hardcover)

The photos are stunning. I love learning more about the spices origins and how they can be used. I made my first meal last Sunday - a lamb stew that was delicious and easy to prepare. The smell in my kitchen was fabulous. I even bought a mortar and pestle the other day so that I will be able to grind my own spices. Can't wait to have more time to try more recipes.