Feast: Food of the Islamic World

The book spans an extraordinary range of culinary traditions across Muslim communities from Morocco to Indonesia, covering countries such as Lebanon, Iran, Iraq, Egypt, Senegal, India, and Afghanistan. Anissa Helou documents recipes for dishes like tagines, pilafs, kebabs, flatbreads, and sweets, reflecting the diversity of the Islamic culinary world.

The cookbook was written by Anissa Helou, a Lebanese-Syrian food writer, journalist, and chef who has authored multiple cookbooks on Middle Eastern and Mediterranean cuisine. Helou grew up in Beirut and has spent decades traveling and researching food traditions across the Muslim world.

Feast was published in 2018 by Ecco, an imprint of HarperCollins. It received critical acclaim and was a finalist for the James Beard Foundation Book Award in the International category.

No, while Middle Eastern cuisines are well represented, the book deliberately covers the entire Islamic world, including South Asian, Central Asian, Southeast Asian, West African, and North African traditions. Helou traces the spread of ingredients and techniques along trade routes, showing how Islamic culinary culture influenced cuisines from Spain to Indonesia.

Yes, Helou provides extensive historical and cultural background for the recipes, drawing on her travels and research across dozens of countries. She discusses the influence of the medieval Islamic cookbook tradition and how the spread of Islam shaped foodways across regions.