The Book of Hot and Spicy Foods

In its roughly 50 parts, all written by experienced cooks and cook book writers, HP Books' "The Book of ... Cooking" series takes you to the cuisines of various regions of the U.S. and around the world; all in easy to follow, well-explained recipes. This installment, the Book of Hot and Spicy Foods, starts with an A to Z listing of the zesty and tangy spices used in this collection, and then presents suggestions for all major courses, from appetizers and snacks to desserts and beverages. Special chapters are dedicated to main courses, sauces, chutneys and pickles. Classics such as baklava, barbecue sauce, spareribs, satays, assorted curries, chicken tandoori, chili con carne, falafel, gado gado, guacamole, gluehwein, hot mulled cider, lassi, mulligatawny soup and nasi goring appear next to unique dishes such as berries with pepper sauce, curry cream mussels, apple chutney, mustard mozzarella pork, pears in pineapple cream, and wine and pepper cream sauce. From anchovy spread to yogurt tomato cooler, this collection of recipes, while not all-encompassing, is a great introduction to the endless possibilities of spicing up a meal - and at a relative bargain price, to boot. Also recommended: Around the World Cookbook Moosewood Restaurant Cooks at Home: Fast and Easy Recipes for Any Day Sundays at Moosewood Restaurant: Ethnic and Regional Recipes from the Cooks at the Legendary Restaurant (Cookery) Madhur Jaffrey's World Vegetarian: More Than 650 Meatless Recipes from Around the World On Cooking: A Textbook of Culinary Fundamentals (4th Edition) Textbook only Joy of Cooking: 75th Anniversary Edition - 2006

The Book of Hot & Spicy Foods is nicely illustrated with color photos, usually four per recipe.I picked out fourteen recipes to try: Mussel & Saffron Soup, Oriental Gingered Shrimp, Creole Gumbo Pot, Mulligatawny Soup, Chili Bean Tacos, Clam & Shrimp Chowder, Nasi Goreng, Lamb & Mushroom Korma, Ceylonese Chicken Curry, Indonesian Coconut Sauce (for my Indonesian coconuts, of course) Mango Chutney (great with pork roast) Pickled Red Cabbage (serve it with the pork roast) Pickled Cabbage, Berries with Pepper Sauce (an unexpected flavor combination) and Ginger Beer.These are pretty representative of the book and they're delicious. I wish the book had been longer.