Short description:

Named one of New York Times Top-20 Cookbooks of 2006.

Have you ever wanted to host a full evening of Indian food, culture, and music? How about preparing a traditional Balinese banquet? Or take a trip to Cairo and enjoy an Egyptian feast? The Ethnomusicologists' Cookbook takes you around the world on a culinary journey that is also a cultural and social odyssey.

Many cookbooks offer a snapshot of individual recipes from different parts of the world, but do nothing to tell the reader how different foods are presented together, or how to relate these foods to other cultural practices. For years, ethnomusicologists have visited the four corners of the earth to collect the music and culture of native peoples, from Africa to the Azores, from Zanzibar to New Zealand. Along the way, they've observed how music is an integral part of social interaction, particularly when it's time for a lavish banquet or celebration. Foodways and cultural expression are not separate; this book emphasizes this connection through offering over thirty-five complete meals, from appetizers to entrees to side dishes to desserts and drinks. A list of recommended CDs fills out the culinary experience, along with hints on how to present each dish and to organize the overall meal.

The Ethnomusicologists' Cookbook combines scholarship with a unique and fun approach to the study of the world's foods, musics, and cultures. More than just a cookbook, it is an excellent companion for anyone embarking on a cultural-culinary journey.

Long description:

Named one of New York Times Top-20 Cookbooks of 2006.

Have you ever wanted to host a full evening of Indian food, culture, and music? How about preparing a traditional Balinese banquet? Or take a trip to Cairo and enjoy an Egyptian feast? The Ethnomusicologists' Cookbook takes you around the world on a culinary journey that is also a cultural and social odyssey.

Many cookbooks offer a snapshot of individual recipes from different parts of the world, but do nothing to tell the reader how different foods are presented together, or how to relate these foods to other cultural practices. For years, ethnomusicologists have visited the four corners of the earth to collect the music and culture of native peoples, from Africa to the Azores, from Zanzibar to New Zealand. Along the way, they've observed how music is an integral part of social interaction, particularly when it's time for a lavish banquet or celebration. Foodways and cultural expression are not separate; this book emphasizes this connection through offering over thirty-five complete meals, from appetizers to entrees to side dishes to desserts and drinks. A list of recommended CDs fills out the culinary experience, along with hints on how to present each dish and to organize the overall meal.

The Ethnomusicologists' Cookbook combines scholarship with a unique and fun approach to the study of the world's foods, musics, and cultures. More than just a cookbook, it is an excellent companion for anyone embarking on a cultural-culinary journey.

"I recommend this book warmly to delight body and mind and all the senses."--Ni Wayan Murni, Hello Magazine, Bali

"The Ethnomusicologists' Cookbook might have started out as an academic endeavor, but it is a lively book, filled with suggestions for delicious recipes and good music. You can expand your global awareness while trying out dozens of different ways to have a good time. I heartily recommend it!"--Barbara Lloyd McMichael, The Olympian

"This one is for the more adventurous cooks and dinner hosts who are looking for something far beyond the usual fare. Make your next gathering a trip to another part of the world."--Mish Mash Music Reviews

"To savor better its fascinating essays on culinary rituals across the gtlobe, this cookbook is one to pore over in the living room instead of the kitchen. Recipes are attached, but are not the primary pleasure; instead, it is learning about the ceremonial drinking songs of Namibia, or the meals that celebrate the return of the swallows in Korea. However, the recipes serve as worthy accompaniments to the accomplished essays: Dates Stuffed with Almond Paste, from Judeo-Spanish Morocco, are sweetly,irresistible, and Bolivia's addictive Avocado with Uncooked Salsa begs to be downed with a bucketful of chips." --Publishers Weekly

"Food and music are the main markers of identity in the multicultural, globalized, and anglophone world we live in. Creatively, this cookbook brings the two together. ... Overall, this is a book that should make your kitchen sing." --Gastronomica: The Journal of Food and Culture

"The most important thing to remember about The Ethnomusicologists' Cookbook is that you must under no circumstances read it while hungry. This compilation of international recipes assembled from the experiences of globetrotting ethnomusicologists (those who study music in the context of culture) is chock full of foods that are exotic and inviting. Authored by tenured Evergreen State College (in Olympia) professor Sean Williams, this is a cookbook to make a Washingtonian proud...and also rush off to concoct and sample the flavors of lands unknown."  --Steven Walling, The Vancouver Voice

Table of Contents:

1: Prelude; 1: World Music, World Food; 1: How to use this Book; 2: Africa; 2: Kenya; 3: Northern Ghana (Dagomba Ethnicity); 4: Cape Verde Islands, Atlantic West Africa; 5: Namibia; 3: East Asia; 6: Chaozhou, China; 7: Sichuan, China; 8: Tokyo, Japan; 9: Okinawa, Japan; 10: Korea; 11: Mongolia; 4: South Asia; 12: Nepal; 13: North India; 14: Kerala, South India; 5: Southeast Asia; 15: Luzon, Philippines; 16: Surakarta, Java, Indonesia; 17: Sunda, Indonesia; 18: Bali, Indonesia; 19: Thailand; 20: Vietnam; 6: Middle East; 21: Morocco; 22: Andalusian Morocco; 23: Judeo-Spanish Morocco; 24: Egypt; 25: Palestine; 26: Suwayda Province, Syria; 27: Iran; 7: South and Central America; 28: Bolivia; 29: Brasília, Brazil; 30: Minas Gerais, Brazil; 31: Southeastern Brazil; 32: Oaxaca, Mexico; 8: North America; 33: Newfoundland and Labrador; 34: Romanian Jewish New York; 35: Southern Appalachia (Western North Carolina); 36: Canoe Nations of the Pacific Northwest; 9: Oceania; 37: Australia; 38: New Zealand; 39: Tonga; 10: Europe; 40: Andalusian Spain; 41: Ibiza and Formentera (The Pityusic Islands); 42: Campania, Italy; 43: Greece; 44: Bulgaria; 45: Estonia; 46: Sweden; 47: Norway; 48: Ireland; 11: Encore; 49: The Marzipan Workshop Sonnets; 50: About The Contributors; 51: I Can't Eat that! Dietary Modifications