Authentic
Rating:
5 / 5
Having spent time with my future in-laws and extended family in Morocco, I find that this book captures the cuisine beautifully. When I'm in the states, I miss the wonderful aromas and tastes of the souks and foires, and these recipes take me back to Taza, Fez, Agadir, Marakesh, and Casablanca. I highly recommend it.
On my list of the Best Cookbooks of All Time
Rating:
5 / 5
Paula Wolfert is a perfectionist, a researcher, and a culinary journalist extraordinaire. She has managed to be invited into the kitchens of some incredibly talented Morroccan cooks, catching the ingredients before they hit the pan, measuring them, and writing them down for those of us who will never have the privilege of entering the inner sanctum of a Morroccan home.
Every recipe is detailed and authentic. Some may seem labor intensive, but doing all the steps makes a superior finished product. Skipping steps will get a tasty dinner on the table on a weeknight, whereas following all the steps will melt your heart and cause your taste buds to sing.
Everything in its shadow
Rating:
5 / 5
The problem with the first major book on a cuisine being the best is everyone writing books afterward feels they have to change things, usually for the worse.For instance, if I were to write a Moroccan cookbook today, the best I could do is one line, directing the reader to buy this book instead. Otherwise, I would have to try to simplify recipes to their detriment, clutter them up with disastrous result, or scrape the bottom of the barrel for more original recipes that aren't particularly good. So even though this book has few illustrations and was written in the 70's, if you actually want to cook Moroccan food you really don't have any choice. You simply must buy this book and cook through it because every other author on the subject has done the same and cowers in the shadow of this achievement.
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