Foods and Nations – serie

This is a comprehensive account of France’s rich culinary history, not only full of tales of haute cuisine, but seasoned with myths and stories from a wide variety of times and places; from snail hunting in Burgundy to female chefs in Lyon, and from cheese appreciation in Roman Gaul to bread debates from the Middle Ages to the present. It examines the use of less familiar ingredients such as chestnuts, couscous and oysters, French food in literature and film, the influence of France’s overseas territories on the shape of French cuisine today, and includes historical recipes for readers to try at home.

Ask about German food and most people think of beer and sausage, or pretzels and Limburger cheese. However, the 82 million inhabitants of modern-day Germany do not all live exclusively on Oktoberfest fare. In fact, as in most modern countries, Germans have a long tradition of taking outside influences into their cuisine, and there is a wide variety of food eaten within the various regions of the country.Beyond Bratwurst traces the many traditions that have combined to form German food today. From their earliest beginnings, food and cooking in Germany have been marked by geographic and climatic differences between north and south, as well as continuous cultural influences from bordering countries. The book shows that the openness and receptiveness Germans have shown towards these influences have resulted in the frequent reinvention of their cuisine, and a food culture with a remarkable flexibility. The regional variations of today are based as much on political, cultural and socioeconomic history as on geography: the story of German food includes the back-to-the-land movement of the late nineteenth century and the development of modern mass-market products by Justus von Liebig and Dr Oetker, as well as rationing and shortages under the Nazis, post-war hunger and divisions between East and West.Beyond Bratwurst describes who eats what, how, where and when in Germany, telling the stories of many German specialities such as beer, stollen, rye bread and lebkuchen, as well as more surprising German favourites.

What is it that makes Indian food so recognizably Indian, and how did it get that way? Feasts and Fasts: A History of Food in India is an exploration of Indian cuisine in the context of the country’s religious, moral, social and philosophical development. It addresses topics such as dietary prescriptions and proscriptions, the origins of vegetarianism, culinary borrowings and innovations, the use of spices and the inseparable links between diet, health and medicine. It also looks at special foods for festivals, street foods and the splendour of Mughal feasts. This lavishly illustrated book gives a mouth-watering tour of India’s regional cuisines, containing numerous recipes to interest and excite readers.

The once-obscure cuisine of Vietnam is a favourite of many people from East to West. After millennia of adaptation and innovation with a pervasive Chinese influence, today’s Vietnamese food is, surprisingly, a mixture of Vietnamese and French dishes, with the baguette the most cherished part of the French culinary legacy. Introduced into Vietnam in the mid-nineteenth century, the baguette is now second only to rice, the wonder grain the Viêt discovered thousands of years ago and made their staple food.Drawing on archaeological evidence and a wealth of oral and written history, Rice and Baguette reveals the journey Vietnamese food has traversed through history to become a much-loved cuisine today

What do we think about when we think of Greek food? For many, it is the meze and traditional plates of a typical Greek island taverna from summer holidays or from Greek restaurants at home. This book takes us into and beyond the taverna to offer us a unique, comprehensive history of the foods of Greece. Andrew and Rachel Dalby discuss how the land was first settled, what was grown, and how certain fruits, herbs and vegetables came to be identified. Moving through prehistorical and classical Greece, and the Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman empires, they explore the variety of Greek foods among communities outside the national borders as well as the food culture of the regions and islands of Greece itself. Through a synthesis of modern Greek food, with all that it owes to Christianity and to Greeks of the diaspora, they lead us into a discussion of Greek hospitality. Greek food is brimming with thousands of centuries of history, lore and culture. With many superb illustrations, and traditional recipes that blend historical and modern flavours, Gifts of the Gods is a fine account of this rich and ancient cuisine.

When people think of Russian food they generally think either of opulent luxury, signified above all by caviar, or of poverty and hunger – of cabbage and potatoes and porridge. Both of these visions have a basis in reality, but both of them are incomplete. The history of food and drink in Russia includes hunger and it includes plenty, it includes scarcity and, for some, at least, abundance. It includes dishes that came out of the northern, forested regions and ones that incorporate foods from the wider Russian Empire and later from the Soviet Union. Cabbage and Caviar places Russian food and drink in the context of Russian history, and shows off the incredible (and largely unknown) variety of Russian food.

Italy is a mecca for food lovers. The home of pasta and pizza, it also boasts a dazzling array of wines, cheeses, breads, vegetables and meats. Globally, Michelin-starred Italian restaurants and TV chefs celebrate Italian cuisine for its freshness and health benefits. Now in paperback, Al Dente takes readers on a journey through Italy’s regions and food history, exploring how its cuisine evolved. Southern Italy faced food scarcity, wars and poor agricultural conditions, relying on grains, legumes and vegetables until the late 1950s economic boom allowed a more varied diet. The last 50 years brought new packaging, conservation, and distribution methods, revolutionizing Italian food culture. Including historical recipes, Al Dente is a captivating history of perhaps the world’s most beloved cuisine.

Spanish cuisine, a rich tapestry of cultures, flavours and ingredients, has been shaped by Greek, Roman, Jewish, Moorish and Middle Eastern influences. The diverse climate and geography of Spain have fostered a variety of regional food traditions, including Basque, Galician, Castilian, Andalusian and Catalan. Over time, the cuisine has evolved with new ingredients from Italy, France and the Americas, such as cocoa, potatoes, tomatoes, beans and chili peppers.Now in paperback, this is the first English-language book to trace the history of Spanish food from antiquity to today. María José Sevilla masterfully intertwines the history of Spanish cuisine with the factors that have shaped its development and characteristics, highlighting Spain’s evolving relationship with food and cookery.