May is Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month. Here are some cookbooks to check out this month!
Simply Korean: Easy Recipes for Korean Favorites That Anyone Can Make by Aaron Huh
"If you’ve always wanted to make your favorite Korean dishes at home, Simply Korean is for you. With streamlined techniques, minimal ingredients, and clear instructions, you'll learn the easiest methods to make fried rice, bulgogi, kimchi, and more without sacrificing taste. Master the art of banchan and impress your guests with an epic K-BBQ party. Can't travel to Seoul? Recipes for tteokbokki and hotteok bring these street food favorites to your kitchen." Find copies of Simply Korean here.
6 Spices, 60 Dishes: Indian Recipes That Are Simple, Fresh, and Big on Taste by Ruta Kahate
"Using just six spices—cayenne, coriander, cumin, turmeric, mustard seed, and asafetida—chef Ruta Kahate presents 60 delicious recipes that are easy to prepare and deliver rich, complex flavor. These dishes—including tons of nourishing veggies, raitas, grains, and dals—are fresh, healthy, and versatile enough to mix and match, plus they feature Instant Pot variations for maximum ease. Serve up a quick lunch of Mustard Shrimp alongside a cool lettuce and citrus salad. Short on time after a busy day? Instant Pot your supper with a comforting Coconut Beef Stew. Prep a double batch of Parsi-Style Rajma on Sunday and enjoy it throughout the week—the flavors only get better over time. With stories from Ruta Kahate's culinary life around the world, plus vibrant, colorful photography that reflects the lively recipes within, 6 Spices, 60 Dishes is a must-have for anyone who wants super-tasty, healthy meals that come together in a flash." Find copies of 6 Spices, 60 Dishes here.
Ever-Green Vietnamese: Super-Fresh Recipes, Starring Plants from Land and Sea by Andrea Nguyen
"Although many people think of Vietnamese cooking as beefy pho and meat-filled sandwiches, traditional Vietnamese cooking has always involved a lot of plants and seafood and a little meat. In Ever-Green Vietnamese, Andrea Nguyen details how cooks in her home country draw on their natural resourcefulness and Buddhist traditions to showcase a wide array of herbs and vegetables in flavorful, comforting recipes. Filled with the brilliant advice and exceptional teaching Nguyen is known for, the book offers recipes for flavor-boosting condiments and sauces (her incredible DIY vegan fish sauce), exciting ways to enjoy tofu, and dozens of vegetable-driven sides and mains, including a few that incorporate a bit of meat (many with vegetarian or vegan options)." Find copies of Ever-Green Vietnamese here.
Jeremy Pang's School of Wok by Jeremy Pang
"Bringing together the best Asian flavors from across the continent, this book is a combination of quick-fire, easy meals that take as little as 15 minutes to cook. From lavish suppers for lavish weekend suppers to family feasts with a bit more flare, Jeremy Pang's School of Wok contains the tips and tricks you need to make the world of Asian cooking easily accessible so you never have to resort to a takeaway ever again. Most recipes in the book utilize the 'wok clock' technique, where the ingredients are laid out in a clock formation in the order they will be cooked for complete simplicity. Wok Wednesdays and Flavor Fridays, all seen on the School of Wok Youtube channel, are also featured." Find copies of Jeremy Pang's School of Wok here.
Otsumami Japanese Small Bites & Appetizers: Over 70 Recipes to Enjoy with Drinks by Atsuko Ikeda
"Otsumami is the Japanese term given to snacks and simple dishes, designed to be eaten alongside a drink. (“Tsumamu” means to grab something with your fingers or chopsticks so any foods that can be eaten easily in this way came to be known as “otsumami.”) They are common at izakaya bars, pubs, and at house parties in Japan—even if you are at home having a snack with your evening drink, you are still enjoying otsumami! There are countless delicious flavor pairings to be enjoyed and included here are small bites and dishes to tempt everyone, from existing devotees of Japanese food to newcomers keen to discover more. Popular ingredients such as dashi, ponzu, miso, soy, teriyaki, and more, all make an appearance in a myriad of mouth-watering morsels including dips, pickles, salads, gyoza and tempura, sushi and sashimi, plus beautifully presented meat, fish, vegetarian, and vegan plates. Also included is a basic guide to Japanese beverages, and deliciously inventive cocktail recipes." Find copies of Otsumami Japanese Small Bites & Appetizers here.
Mooncakes and Milk Bread: Sweet and Savory Recipes Inspired by Chinese Bakeries by Kristina Cho
"Inside you’ll find sweet and savory baked buns, steamed buns, Chinese breads, unique cookies, whimsical cakes, juicy dumplings, Chinese breakfast dishes, and drinks. Recipes for steamed BBQ pork buns, pineapple buns with a thick slice of butter, silky smooth milk tea, and chocolate Swiss rolls all make an appearance--because a book about Chinese bakeries wouldn’t be complete without them!" Find copies of Mooncakes and Milk Bread here.
Filipinx: Heritage Recipes from the Diaspora by Angela Dimayuga & Ligaya Mishan
"Filipinx offers 100 deeply personal recipes—many of them dishes that define home for Angela Dimayuga and the more than four million people of Filipino descent in the United States. The book tells the story of how Dimayuga grew up in an immigrant family in northern California, trained in restaurant kitchens in New York City—learning to make everything from bistro fare to Asian-American cuisine—then returned to her roots, discovering in her family’s home cooking the same intense attention to detail and technique she’d found in fine dining. In this book, Dimayuga puts a fresh spin on classics: adobo, perhaps the Filipino dish best known outside the Philippines, is traditionally built on a trinity of soy sauce, vinegar, and garlic—all pantry staples—but add coconut milk, vinegar, and oil, and it turns lush and silky; ribeye steaks bring extra richness to bistek, gilded with butter and a bright splash of lemon and orange juice. These are the punches of flavor and inspired recipes that home cooks have been longing for. A modern, welcoming resource for this essential cuisine, Filipinx shares exciting and approachable recipes everyone will wholeheartedly embrace in their own kitchens." Find copies of Filipinx here.
"In this showstopping collection of must-try Thai dishes, culinary mastermind and bestselling author Jet Tila opens up the world of his Thai heritage for today’s home cooks with recipes that are authentic, accessible and ultra-craveable. Jet partners up with Tad Weyland Fukumoto, longtime friend and fellow chef, to channel their years of Southeast Asian culinary prowess into mouthwatering recipes, such as Street-Style Basil Pork, Glass Noodle Stir-Fry, Hung Lay Northern Pork Curry, New Thai BBQ Chicken, Fried Tilapia with Three-Flavor Sauce and so many more. They’ve tirelessly perfected these recipes to ensure that their flavors, techniques and quality rank number one across the board―the true gold standard. With dishes ranging from tantalizing classics and popular street foods to unsung heroes spanning the regions, this cookbook is your one-stop guide to the rich culinary traditions of Thailand. Jet also presents an exciting collection of plant-based takes on popular dishes to welcome everyone to the table and show the range of possibilities in the modern Thai kitchen. Fire up your wok and get hungry for 101 of the best damn Thai dishes you’ll ever have." Find copies of 101 Thai Dishes You Need to Cook Before you Die here.
Cook Real Hawai'i by Sheldon Simeon & Garrett Snyder
"Even when he was winning accolades and adulation for his cooking, two-time Top Chef finalist Sheldon Simeon decided to drop what he thought he was supposed to cook as a chef. He dedicated himself instead to the local Hawai‘i food that feeds his ‘ohana—his family and neighbors. With uncomplicated, flavor-forward recipes, he shows us the many cultures that have come to create the cuisine of his beloved home: the native Hawaiian traditions, Japanese influences, Chinese cooking techniques, and dynamic Korean, Portuguese, and Filipino flavors that are closest to his heart. Through stunning photography, poignant stories, and dishes like wok-fried poke, pork dumplings made with biscuit dough, crispy cauliflower katsu, and charred huli-huli chicken slicked with a sweet-savory butter glaze, Cook Real Hawai‘i will bring a true taste of the cookouts, homes, and iconic mom and pop shops of Hawai‘i into your kitchen." Find copies of Cook Real Hawai‘i here.
All synopses from the publisher.