Product Description

With over 800 recipes from 16 countries, Charmaine Solomon’s Complete Asian Cookbook is the perfect introduction to the food of Asia. Charmaine Solomon has tried and tested every recipe, insuring that they are simple to prepare and that every ingredient and every preparation step are explained in easy-to-follow terms. This classic cookbook, in print for 25 years, ventures into culinary areas that are often overlooked: the sour-hot dishes of Thailand, the Nonya cooking of Singapore and Malaysia, the soul-warming hotpots of Korea; as well as excitingly different dishes from the largely uncharted lands (in cooking terms) of Burma, Laos, and Cambodia. It includes recipes from Bangladesh, Burma, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Laos, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippines, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Vietnam.

"Once in a while, we encounter a food book that has never, to our knowledge, received the fanfare it deserves. I would put in this category a book in my library, The Complete Asian Cookbook by Charmaine Solomon, which I cherish and refer to often because it is so thorough going and authoritative in it subject matter, and the recipes are uncommonly well written and authentic." --Craig Claiborne, New York Times

"This marvelous book is a tour de force . . . Authentic recipes, all possible for the Western Kitchen."--Publishers Weekly

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #821668 in Books
• Published on: 2002-04
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 512 pages

Review

From the Inside Flap

About the Author
Through newspapers, magazines, television, cooking schools, and over twenty-five books, Charmaine Solomon has passed on her passion and knowledge of Asian cuisine. She is also the author of Charmaine Solomon’s Thai Cookbook (0-8048-3039-8) and Charmaine Solomon’s Encyclopedia of Asian Food (962-593417-0).

Customer Reviews

Essential - but you only need one copy
I have owned and loved this cookbook for 20 years. It is a MUST for anyone who wishes to become conversant in Asian food. I have lived in Indonesia for 7 years and traveled extensively in the region, and find her recipes to always be authentic. My one complaint is that a few years ago the book was republished with "revised" in big letters on the front, and I bought a second copy thinking it would be updated inside. In fact, it is absolutely criminal that they refer to it as "revised." IF YOU OWN AN OLDER VERSION OF THIS BOOK DO NOT BUY A NEW ONE. Virtually the only noticeable difference is that the photos are smaller and the list of where to buy ingredients is replaced by a forward saying that ingredients are now more readily available and food processors are useful (duh). Although she mentions changes to one recipe, Singaporean laksa, I have not seen a single change to the rest of book - including corrections of the rare typo or mistake, or instructions for a food processor where it clearly would make sense. Solomon and the publisher should be ashamed that they called the new edition "revised" and thereby caused loyal fans like me to waste money on a new book.

Definately A Good Cookbook for Anyone's Collection
I received this cookbook over the holidays, after noticing it in a bookstore and making it expressly
clear I really wanted it. It's sheer size got my attention when sitting on the shelf, and simply looking at
the table of contents, and the huge list of types of cuisine covered in the book, made me realize this
was definitely something that I would love to have, as it would be a wonderful chance to try new
types of food, and expand my cooking horizons.

Each country is divided into a seperate section, with the exception of Indian and Pakistani cuisine
being grouped together, as she states they are too similar to really be able to seperate. The
beginning of each section takes a little time to describe the country, and to show the author's
connection to the cuisine from that area - she's spent time working with people from every area,
watching and talking to them, to learn their ingredients and cooking methods. And it shows, as after
the description, she gets into information on those methods of cooking, how the food is presented,
and how it is eaten. She'll also give a list of ingredients very common to the cuisines from that area,
things you'll want to keep on hand if you make that type of cuisine often.

Each recipe is presented in both it's native name (or English transliteration), along with the English
equivalent underneath. The instructions are also nice and clear, making it less likely that there will be
confusion during cooking.

As Ms Solomon lives in Australia, and the book originates there, there are a number of minor
differences in names of ingredients, utensils, and other items. There is a handly little chart in the back
of the book to give a "translation" between American and Australian names. Usually this can be
figured out quickly, as most of them are not that different.

She also states substitutions for certain ingredients. The book tries to balance out the ingredients
used in the dishes, sticking as much as possible to authentic ingredients, but listing others for some
hard to find items. Those are listed in the book, so if you are able to find them, you can use them
instead - and if you're in an area where some of the other ingredients are not available, you'll also
see other choices to approximate the flavor and texture of the missing ingredients.

THE only Asian cookbook to own
I have owned the original copy of this book since 1984. I also lived on the Pacific Rim for 12 years. This book is without a doubt the most authentic Asian cookbook I own, and I own several. I have found Ms. Solomon's directions always clear and informative. Yes, some ingredients may be a bit out of date and you can use shortcuts (i.e. canned Thai sauces), but I find I still go back to the original recipes for the best taste. I have never had a failure using this book. My Maylaysian/Indian friend uses the Malay and Indian recipes all the time (because they're so good), the Thai section is better than in the restaurants, I re-create Indonesian food that tastes the same as in Indonesia, and everyone asks me for my Chinese and Indian recipes. The Japanese food tastes just like in the Japanese restaurant in San Francisco where I ate If you really get into Asian cooking I also recommend Ms. Solomon's Encyclopedia of Asian food, and another book called simply "Southeast Asian Cooking," by a German publisher (no author listed).