Spanish cookbooks I recommend

A reader recently sent me the following question via email:

"Can you recommend a good starter cookbook for Spanish cooking. I'm thinking something in the vein of Paula Wolfert or Patricia Wells -- flavorful, rustic dishes that would give me a good sense of the fundamentals of Spanish food."

Because I frequently write about Spanish cooking, people often ask me what my favorite cookbooks on Spanish cuisine are. I started to answer the reader's email and, as my reply grew longer and longer, I thought I should just put the answer on my blog. That way, if anyone else cares to hear my opinions on the topic, they will have a place to read it. I hope my response will be helpful.

In my opinion, there is no starter cookbook on Spanish cuisine that is quite at the same level as Paula Wolfert, Patricia Wells or, I may add, Marcella Hazan. The problem is that Spanish cooking is incredibly diverse and regional. Galicia, Asturias, the Basque region, Catalunya, Valencia, Andalucía, the Castillian heartland - the regional specialties are all so different, easily as varied as the regions of France or Italy (in fact, I would say more varied). The reason Wolfert's book on the cooking of southwest France is so good is that it focuses in depth on one region. However, there are some very good books out there.

The author who has been writing about Spanish cooking for an American audience the longest is Penelope Casas. She's an American who is married to a Spaniard and they split their time between NY and Spain, where they lead luxury cultural and gastronomic tours. She has written an indispensable travel guide to Spain, Discovering Spain, which I often consult when planning a trip, even though it was last updated 10 years ago. In fact, this guide book illuminates the culinary differences between the various regions better than any cookbook. Only the enormous Culinaria Spain, replete with shamelessly sumptuous food porn, rivals Casas' guidebook in this category.

Casas also has several cookbooks out that are all highly regarded. However, my personal opinion is that many of her more general earlier books seem dated and lack the intensely personal voice of someone like Wolfert, Wells or Hazan. That said, I do like her newest book, La Cocina de Mamá (2005), quite a bit. She collected family recipes from many well-known chefs and other more traditional cooks, so there are lots of rustic dishes to tempt you. To discover more about the rice cooking of Valencia and Alicante, her Paella (1999) book is a good resource too.

For an all-purpose introduction to Spanish cooking, however, I prefer and highly recommend Anya von Bremzen's book The New Spanish Table (2005). She provides tempting recipes for the lusty traditional dishes associated with Spain, yet also balances them with a few of  the more innovative and modern approaches to cooking that are so prevalent today (and not just in restaurants). This book is packed full of valuable information and I thoroughly enjoy von Bremzen's writing style, so I was able to overlook the publisher's choice of graphics. Be sure to read this book from cover to cover, because the most interesting anecdotes and techniques are scattered throughout the book in the recipe headers and little info boxes.

Another excellent introduction to Spanish cuisine that I recommend with equal enthusiasm is Janet Mendel's My Kitchen in Spain (2002). She is American-born and has lived in Andalucía for decades. Like von Bremzen, her recipes are excellent. They focus more on traditional Spanish cooking, especially that of Andalucía (one of my favorite regions), and there are a lot of interesting Spanish pastries which you don't find in other books. For "flavorful, rustic dishes," like the author of the email has requested, this may be the best book. In fact, Wolfert's personal recommendation is prominently displayed on the book jacket!

Another favorite region of mine is, of course, Catalunya. To learn about that region, you can do no better than Colman Andrews' classic Catalan Cuisine (1988, reprinted in 1992, 1999). I find his writing style to be highly engaging. You'll have to look elsewhere, however, for photography.

As an aspiring restaurateur, I am interested in the cooking of other chefs who have tried to adapt the highly product-dependent cuisine of Spain to American and British audiences. I am often inspired by the recipes found in the two books by the chef-proprietors of the restaurant Moro in London, which I have yet to visit. Their most recent book is Casa Moro (2004). Although I also have not had the good fortune to visit any of Josés Andrés' restaurants in Washington, D.C., I love his new book, Tapas: a Taste of Spain in America (2005). I would categorize all the recipes in these books to be balanced and flavorful, but perhaps less rustic than what the author of the email is looking for.

Now, if you want to know my favorite Spanish cookbooks written in Spanish (and Catalan), that's a whole other topic.

Like all things, cookbook preference is intensely personal and subjective. I suggest you use my opinions as a starting point. Go to your local bookstore or library and look through the books I've mentioned and see which ones resonate with you. Have fun and buen provecho!
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If you follow the links above, you will be taken to a great on line resource for discounted cookbooks, Jessica's Biscuit (ecookbooks.com), which I prefer to the site named after the South American rain forest (Why would a bookseller name themselves after a forest any way? Think about it). However, I strongly encourage everyone to support your local independent (non-chain) bookstore and buy your books there, even if you have to ask them to place a special order. Sorry for the editorial, but I have a friend whose fabulous neighborhood bookstore is struggling. In addition, one of the best bookstores in our city, A Clean Well-Lighted Place for Books, is on the market (in fact they sold their website URL, bookstore.com, so I don't have a website for them). Besides, this is Eat Local Month, so how about we locavores consider buying our cookbooks locally too!

Food|and Drink|Cookbooks|Spain

Comments

[Ivonne]

Hi Brett,

Wonderful post about Spanish cookbooks! I was espeically happy to see your mention of Anya von Bremzen's book.

[SilverSara]

What a great post! The Casas book is the only I have - and I've used it so many times, I love it.
I'll have to check out the others you mentioned. Thanks!

[savina]

Hi Brett, I'm totally with you in supporting local non-chain bookstores, except that, living in Itraly, English language books are difficult to come by and quite expensive, so lately I'm doing lots of on-line purchasing at the tropical-forest-named site you didn't mention. Do you by any chance have any suggestions as far as on-line bookstores doing international shipping goes? Thanks a lot for your blog, I recently discovered it and really enjoy reading it!

[pisto]

There is a shame that the quintaessential book on Spanish cooking (1080 recetas de cocina by Simone Ortega) is not translated to English, being an absolute reference and, probably, the best seller in Spain for decades.

[Martha]

I quite like Penelope Casas. Her recipes were an essential part of a marvelous 22 course tapas New Year's Eve party. I agree that her later books are better, and her writing is never particularly lovely, but I like how well-researched and specific she is.

[kishko]

thank you for the insight. i have been researching the topic because i desperately need a cookbook on spanish cusine. so i am going to follow your advice!

[Brett]

Ivonne, I'm glad to see some other people also enjoy AvB's new book. I think it's great.

SilverSara, hope you enjoy the other books as much as the Casas book.

Savina, Amazon is probably your best option, particularly in your case living in Italy. Like everybody, I order stuff from Amazon, too. It's not as if they're evil. In fact, they provide a good service in that they almost always have what you need. I personally just prefer to support more local businesses when I can. I have a soft spot in my heart for the underdog in nearly every situation.

Pisto, maybe somebody will translate that book and it will become as successful as the translation of the Silver Spoon (the Italian classic).

Martha, I read about your tapas party. Don't get me wrong. Casas' books are excellent, especially her most recent. I just prefer the books by von Bremzen and Mendel. I encourage you to give them a look-see.

Kishko, best of luck in your quest for a Spanish cookbook. And thanks for stopping by IPOS.

[Savina]

Hooray for the underdogs!

[Tony of Bachelor cooking]

thanks pal... It was very helpful. i have always wanted to learmn spanish cuisine after i took that espanol class in B School

[shuna fish lydon]

I love the editorial! and welcome back, we have missed you so!

I hope you & N get to Moro because it's wondrous.

[mrs D]

A friend of ours just lent us a stack of Spanish cookbooks, including the Janet Mendel, which looks fabulous. Chopper's devouring what he can find about Spanish cooking up here -- which is all about books, since there's no good Spanish food to be had nearby. Someday... someday... we'll find our way to Spain...

[lobstersquad]

Shame that I can´t recommend a book written by an actual spaniard.We haven´t quite caught up with the luscious presentacion and evocative writing of you people.
But Moro is excellent. And you get a fair amount of moroccan recipes as a bonus, too.Definitely recommended.

[Yasmin Khan]

Hey there! I'm tracking foodie blogs for ThisNext.com and I DO want to know your favorite Spanish cookbooks written in Spanish!! I have been working out of an old Cucchiaio d'Argento (before it came out in English) and am curious to know what the equivalent cookbook is in Spain. Please post your recommendations and favorites, however subjective, if you can!

[alysea]

how do you make tacos in spanish and CAN YOU WRITE IT IN SPANISH

[El Master]

You site makes my mouth water!

[stacy]

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