June 2007: Charlotte Puckette and Olivia Kiang-Snaije’s The Ethnic Paris Cookbook

Say the words “Parisian cookbook” to an armchair cookbook enthusiast and nightmarish visions of three-day recipes dating back to a style of cooking no longer even popular in France begin to dart and weave their way through the imagination. Off-putting, to say the least, and certainly a buzz kill when it comes to motivating the novice cook to head to the kitchen with confidence. Pâté en croûte, sole à la florentine, or canard à l’orange are the sort of recipes that sound inviting, but are hard to replicate. But Paris is a city that’s been in a state of cultural shape-shifting for the last thirty years, and the headlines of the last decade have told even the most provincial traveler that Parisian food is an ethnic experience nowadays. Charlotte Puckette and Olivia Kiang-Snaije’s The Ethnic Paris Cookbook (DK Publishing) details the vibrant multicultural panorama that is Paris today, and for the culture junkie or the weekend chef, this is one of the best cookbooks to emerge this year.

Upon meeting, the authors found they shared a love for the ethnic foods of Paris. Puckette was more sympathetic toward a more global cuisine, thanks to the experiences she encountered running her catering company, and Kiang-Snaije had many years under her belt as a journalist covering the newly emerging foreign communities in Paris. Together they scoured new neighborhoods looking for eateries specializing in Laotian, Tunisian, Moroccan, and Vietnamese cuisines, among many others. 

This cookbook pays homage to the idea best expressed by Moroccan writer and Paris resident Tahar Ben Jelloun, who said, “We cannot take our house, our olive tree, our well water with us. Cooking has an almost therapeutic effect on our nostalgia.” Recipes such as sizzling crêpes made with mung beans, green tea madeleines, and tabbouleh sorbet weave multicultural cuisine with French classics. Tips on preparing dashi (traditional Japanese fish stock) are found as readily as tips on how to clarify butter in the modèle du Français. In addition to the recipes and the playful illustrations that accompany them, Puckette and Kiang-Snajie also include brief histories of the country of origin and the nascent birthing of cultural participation and immigration patterns of specific peoples as they made their way to France. There are snippets on traditional cooking methods and tools, as well as profiles of the immigrant cooks and food folks who inspired the recipes.

The Ethnic Paris Cookbook also doubles as a travel guide. Looking for the restaurants where the recipes come from? Hooray! They’re listed with addresses, phone numbers, and even Métro stop information. This book is a boon for the traveler who looks for the best off-the-beaten-path places to shop and eat, an invaluable supplement to any Paris restaurant guide.

Buy The Ethnic Paris Cookbook at Amazon.com.