The Asian Vegan Kitchen By Hema Parekh
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I received a review copy of The Asian Vegan Kitchen, a vegan cookbook by Hema Parekh featuring vegan meals from India, Japan, China, Thailand, Veitnam, Burma, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Korea.
The cookbook is rather slim so you might not guess that it’s full of over 200 recipes. The recipes are divided by country and then subdivided by course. For example, there is a chapter for Burma with sections for Soups and Salads, another section for Main Dishes, another for Rice and Noodles, another for Side Dishes, and finally a section for Snacks. In the middle of the cookbook you’ll find a set of photos that’ll surely make your mouth water.
The organization is a bit strange. I expect cookbooks to be arranged by dish type, not country of origin. However, I quickly overcame my dislike of the organizational structure and have now decided I like it because it keeps flavor profiles together and helps develop the cook’s sense of spicing and flavor. (If there’s ever a reason to hang on to old meat cookbooks after you go vegan, this is the reason: to learn about spicing.)
I’ve tried a few recipes from The Asian Vegan Kitchen so far, including Aloo Gobi. All the recipes I tried are tasty, though the spicing is a bit different than what I’m used to from veganized versions of The Food of India and Ethnic Vegetarian. I had to buy a few extra spices to round out my set and complete these recipes. Luckily, everything I needed was easy to find.
In fact, Parekh seems to have designed this cookbook with Americans in mind. Each recipe is titled by an English name; the original dish name is in a small font next to the English name. Because I was reading the English title “Cauliflower and Potato with Spices,” I started prepping for Aloo Gobi before I even realized that’s what I was cooking. Funny.
Criticism: The font size is small. It’s too small, in my opinion. If your eyes give you trouble you may want to use magnifier with this cookbook.
Other than the font size, I think the cookbook is fantastic. It’s a great addition to my kitchen and I’m sure it will improve my cooking. I recommend this book to anyone interested in cooking traditionally vegan Asian foods.
Get your copy of The Asian Vegan Kitchen >>
(Crossposted at ElaineVigneault.com)
I just picked up this cookbook as well and had just about the same reaction as you did to the organization. I haven’t had a chance to cook from it yet, but now am looking forward to doing so even more.
I think it’s really neat that the author was raised in a Jain household – so she’s never eaten meat. I have always had the impression that Jains were a small, very ascetic sect of Hinduism, so I was pleased to have my preconceptions about Jains blown away by this book.
I have to get used to cooking by weight rather than by volumes — that’s my only hesitation about diving into the recipes.
Gosh!!
I’ll definitely try this, I’m not good in making this one but I am planning to give it a try again. My gf will surely love this. I love your site and I’ll be here often, keep it up!!
Btw, happy valentine day to you!!
well i’m a beginner cook so havent perfected this yet but will not give up
I’ve been looking forever for something delicious and quick to make that’s vegan. So thrilled to come across this Vietnamese noodle soup Happy Pho. It takes 15 mins for me to cook & has super healthy ingredients, so it’s tasty and doesn’t make me feel terrible afterwards like a lot of Asian prepackaged products. I found it at Whole Foods Berkeley but I think they’re at a bunch of other stores too