Fans pick 100 books like Parsi

By Farokh Talati,

Here are 100 books that Parsi fans have personally recommended if you like Parsi. Shepherd is a community of 12,000+ authors and super readers sharing their favorite books with the world.

When you buy books, we may earn a commission that helps keep our lights on (or join the rebellion as a member).

Book cover of Yalla, Let's Eat!: Delicious, Authentic Arab Meals Made Easy

Haniyeh Nikoo Author Of A Persian Kitchen Tale: Discover Exciting Flavors Through 60 Simple Recipes

From my list on cookbooks that are made easy to travel the world.

Why am I passionate about this?

I am Haniyeh Nikoo, a full-time recipe developer, food stylist, and food photographer.

My passion for food does not stop at my Iranian roots but goes beyond the borders. It is my way of experiencing and learning about the world, cultures, and people. I not only care about how a dish tastes but also how it looks and how it invites you to take a bite and get on a journey of trying something new.

Haniyeh's book list on cookbooks that are made easy to travel the world

Haniyeh Nikoo Why did Haniyeh love this book?

This book makes me hungry every time I go through it. It features a great selection of Arab and Palestinian recipes that look and sound amazing but also don’t seem pretentious or hard to make.

The book features 60 recipes, but once you go through it, the options seem endless—from hearty pilaffs to mouthwatering grilled meals, tasty dips, and delicious small bites. I love to add a few of the recipes to my gatherings’ menu because they are easy to prepare and always please my guests.

By Maha Kailani,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Yalla, Let's Eat! as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Making your favourite Arab dishes is easier than ever with this contemporary guide to effortless Middle Eastern cooking from Maha Kailani, creator of Make Delicious Happen. These show-stopping recipes honour all the vibrant flavours of traditional Arab cuisine but use quick shortcuts and helpful appliances like the Instant Pot (R) and Air Fryer to cut down on prep and cook time. Breeze through incredible yet simplified recipes such as:

Flavor Bomb One-Pot Chicken Kabseh,
Skillet Beef Shawarma,
Dawood Basha (Syrian- Style Kofta Meatballs and Pomegranate Potato Casserole),
Quick Palestinian Msakhan Rolls,
Traditional Tangy Tabbouleh,
Classic Lebanese Fattoush,
Cheat Baba Ghanouj,…


Book cover of Bitter Honey: Recipes and Stories from the Island of Sardinia

Haniyeh Nikoo Author Of A Persian Kitchen Tale: Discover Exciting Flavors Through 60 Simple Recipes

From my list on cookbooks that are made easy to travel the world.

Why am I passionate about this?

I am Haniyeh Nikoo, a full-time recipe developer, food stylist, and food photographer.

My passion for food does not stop at my Iranian roots but goes beyond the borders. It is my way of experiencing and learning about the world, cultures, and people. I not only care about how a dish tastes but also how it looks and how it invites you to take a bite and get on a journey of trying something new.

Haniyeh's book list on cookbooks that are made easy to travel the world

Haniyeh Nikoo Why did Haniyeh love this book?

I love this cookbook for how it makes me feel. It’s filled with authentic recipes from Sardinia (An island between Europe and Africa) that are presented like a poem to touch your soul and invite you to sit at a table that makes you feel warm, cozy, and welcomed.

The book contains various recipes for any occasion, and stunning images and engaging stories make it something beyond an ordinary cookbook!

By Letitia Clark,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Bitter Honey as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Guild of Food Writer's Awards, Highly Commended in 'First Book' category (2021)

In Bitter Honey, seasoned chef Letitia Clark invites us into her home on one of the most beautiful islands in the Mediterranean Sea - Sardinia.

The recipes in this book do not take long to make, but you can taste the ethos behind every one of them - one which invites you to slow down, and nourish yourself with fresh food, friends and family.

The importance of eating well is even more pronounced here on this forgotten island. Try your hand at Roasted Aubergines with Honey, Mint, Garlic…


Book cover of Authentic Brazilian Home Cooking: Simple, Delicious Recipes for Classic Latin American Flavors

Haniyeh Nikoo Author Of A Persian Kitchen Tale: Discover Exciting Flavors Through 60 Simple Recipes

From my list on cookbooks that are made easy to travel the world.

Why am I passionate about this?

I am Haniyeh Nikoo, a full-time recipe developer, food stylist, and food photographer.

My passion for food does not stop at my Iranian roots but goes beyond the borders. It is my way of experiencing and learning about the world, cultures, and people. I not only care about how a dish tastes but also how it looks and how it invites you to take a bite and get on a journey of trying something new.

Haniyeh's book list on cookbooks that are made easy to travel the world

Haniyeh Nikoo Why did Haniyeh love this book?

This book convinced me to try cooking from a cuisine I had not tried before. Olivia’s way of presenting every dish has got me drooling page by page over dishes I haven’t heard of before.

The recipes have been developed to be easy to follow for those who try them for the first time. From meaty grill recipes to filled fried doughs, pilaffs, sweets, desserts, and more! This book is a complete feast for the body and the soul.

By Olivia Mesquita,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Authentic Brazilian Home Cooking as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Bring Brazil To Your Kitchen

Learn to cook like a Brazilian native with this love letter to traditional Latin American cooking from Olivia Mesquita. Inspired by the food Olivia's grandmother made her as a child, these crowd-pleasing recipes draw from generations of vibrant Brazilian flavours, cooking and culture. Recreate the taste of your childhood with a mouth-watering Carne Louca (Braised Beef with Onions, Tomato and Peppers) that will rival even your mother's, or try your hand at delicious recipes like Plantain Gnocchi or Pastel de Bacalhau (Fried Cod Empanadas). Or, if you're new to Brazilian cuisine, expand and delight your…


Book cover of Nistisima

Haniyeh Nikoo Author Of A Persian Kitchen Tale: Discover Exciting Flavors Through 60 Simple Recipes

From my list on cookbooks that are made easy to travel the world.

Why am I passionate about this?

I am Haniyeh Nikoo, a full-time recipe developer, food stylist, and food photographer.

My passion for food does not stop at my Iranian roots but goes beyond the borders. It is my way of experiencing and learning about the world, cultures, and people. I not only care about how a dish tastes but also how it looks and how it invites you to take a bite and get on a journey of trying something new.

Haniyeh's book list on cookbooks that are made easy to travel the world

Haniyeh Nikoo Why did Haniyeh love this book?

Vegan cooking never looked so appealing to me before reading this book. I’m not vegan, but I love to eat hearty, delicious vegan food if I get my hands on it, and this book is filled with many!

The stories behind how she decided to write the book and the tasteful Mediterranean vegan recipes just opens the door of adding some healthy, flavourful dishes to your diet nevertheless of being a vegan or not.

This cookbook is written with love and passion, and it’s beyond just a recipe

book.

By Georgina Hayden,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Nistisima as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

WINNER OF THE OBSERVER FOOD MONTHLY BEST NEW COOKBOOK AWARD THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLING COOKBOOK The Daily Mail Best Cookbooks of the Year 2022 The Independent 10 Best Cookbooks of 2022 Delicious Magazine Best cook books of 2022 ____________________________ No fads, no frills, just 120 vegan recipes that have stood the test of time from award-winning food writer Georgina Hayden, currently appearing on Channel 4's The Great Cookbook Challenge Nistisima means fasting food - food eaten during Lent and other times of fasting observed by those of Orthodox faith. Mostly this involves giving up meat and dairy and instead using…


Book cover of Sofreh: A Contemporary Approach to Classic Persian Cuisine

Edy Massih Author Of Keep It Zesty: A Celebration of Lebanese Flavors & Culture from Edy's Grocer

From my list on diverse Middle Eastern cultures and cuisines.

Why am I passionate about this?

I am a Lebanese-born, New York-based Caterer, Chef, and Owner of Edy’s Grocer in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. Born and raised in Lebanon, I have a passion for Middle Eastern food, culture, and, cookbooks. Growing up with a grandmother who never wrote one recipe down, it's been a journey to nail each recipe she used to make. When I moved to America, it was so hard to find good Middle Eastern cookbooks. Fast forward to 2024, a plethora of talented chefs have written books to help transport me back to Lebanon, sharing our Middle Eastern cultures, flavors, and heritage in such a beautiful way. I am proud of these cookbooks representing the Middle East.

Edy's book list on diverse Middle Eastern cultures and cuisines

Edy Massih Why did Edy love this book?

This cookbook is not really for the everyday home cook. The recipes are not simple, and they are not modernized. And that’s what’s so cool and special about this book and Nasim’s cooking.

She cooks, showcases, and writes about beautiful classic Persian food so well, keeping the integrity of the food and the recipes throughout the book. 

By Nasim Alikhani, Theresa Gambacorta,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Sofreh as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The much-anticipated cookbook—an exquisite collection of Persian recipes—from the James Beard–nominated chef of Sofreh, one of Brooklyn’s most acclaimed restaurants.

A Best Book of the Year: Los Angeles Times, Epicurious

"I got lost in the flavors of Nasim’s mint oil, saffron rice pudding, and meltingly tender chicken stew laced with sweet-tart flavors from Pink Lady Apples and sour cherries. Her naan e-barbari is the best!" —Suzy Karadsheh, New York Times best-selling author of The Mediterranean Dish Cookbook

Growing up in Isfahan, a province in central Iran, Nasim Alikhani was a passionate cook from childhood, spending the first years of her…


Book cover of Food of Life: Ancient Persian and Modern Iranian Cooking and Ceremonies

Felicia Campbell Author Of The Food of Oman: Recipes and Stories from the Gateway to Arabia

From my list on best international cookbooks for both culture and food.

Why am I passionate about this?

Felicia Campbell is a food writer, editor, and author of The Food of Oman: Stories and Recipes from the Gateway to Arabia, the first English-language cookbook on Omani cuisine. She earned her masters degree in culinary anthropology from New York University with a specialization in Middle Eastern foodways. She has lectured on Omani food and food in zones of conflict at the Smithsonian Institute, Leiden University, New York University, and Arizona State University. She is currently developing a documentary series about endangered cuisines around the world. 

Felicia's book list on best international cookbooks for both culture and food

Felicia Campbell Why did Felicia love this book?

Over the last four years, I have been cooking my way through my mother-in-law’s canon of Persian dishes, from ghormeh sabzi herb and braised meat stew to countless pots of the crispy-bottomed saffron rice called tadiq. When a family recipe is lacking in key details (like measurements or timing), I always refer to Najmieh Batmanglij’s book, which is considered the bible of Iranian cooking. Her recipes offer elevated versions of all the classics, along with a number of more obscure regional specialties, and explanations of Iranian traditions and customs. If you are only going to have one Persian cookbook on your shelf, this should be it.

By Najmieh Batmanglij,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Food of Life as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Completely redesigned for today's generation of cooks and food enthusiasts, the 25th Anniversary Edition of Food of Life: Ancient Persian and Modern Iranian Cooking and Ceremonies by Najmieh Batmanglij provides a treasure trove of recipes, along with an immersive cultural experience for those seeking to understand this ancient and timeless cuisine. This edition is a more user-friendly edition of the award-winning and critically acclaimed cookbook series which began in 1986. Food of Life provides 330 classical and regional Iranian recipes as well as an introduction to Persian art, history, and culture. The book's hundreds of full color photographs are intertwined…


Book cover of Maman's Homesick Pie: A Persian Heart in an American Kitchen

Katy Motiey Author Of Imperfect: A Story about Loss, Courage, and Perseverance

From my list on Iranian women of survival and strength.

Why am I passionate about this?

I am the Chief Legal Officer at a US publicly traded company. Although I was born in Iran, I immigrated to the US from Iran at age ten. When I was three years old, my father’s side of the family tried to take my brother and me away from my mother after my father passed away. She fought a custody battle and lawsuit and eventually was forced to flee Iran with us during the revolution. I am passionate about the Iranian Revolution, my relationship with my very strong and remarkable mother who has been a mentor to me, as well as family relationships within Iranian families.

Katy's book list on Iranian women of survival and strength

Katy Motiey Why did Katy love this book?

Iranian food is the best food in the world. The author does a nice job describing her family’s move from Iran to the US and her accomplishments in the food business, becoming a chef, all the while honoring her mother.

She captures themes that are important to me, the Iranian Revolution, immigrating to the US, respect for your mother as well as food. What a perfect combination.

By Donia Bijan,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Maman's Homesick Pie as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

"A lavish taste of Persian culture and cuisine . . . [A] compelling, poignant and most delectable book."—BookPage

For Donia Bijan’s family, food has been the language they use to tell their stories and to communicate their love. In 1978, when the Islamic revolution in Iran threatened their safety, they fled to California’s Bay Area, where the familiar flavors of Bijan’s mother’s cooking formed a bridge to the life they left behind. Now, through the prism of food, award-winning chef Donia Bijan unwinds her own story, finding that at the heart of it all is her mother, whose love and…


Book cover of My Bombay Kitchen: Traditional and Modern Parsi Home Cooking

Darra Goldstein Author Of Beyond the North Wind: Russia in Recipes and Lore

From my list on cookbooks for armchair travelers.

Why am I passionate about this?

I've been thinking and writing about food ever since I spent a year in the Soviet Union many decades ago and discovered that food is a wonderfully immediate way to enter into another culture. My first cookbook led to a stint as a spokesperson for Stolichnaya vodka when it was first introduced to the US—a fascinating exercise in cross-cultural communication during the Cold War. In 2001 I founded Gastronomica: The Journal of Food and Culture, which deepened my interest in culinary cultures around the world. Cookbooks aren't just about recipes. For me, the best ones include personal stories and history that transport you to other realms.

Darra's book list on cookbooks for armchair travelers

Darra Goldstein Why did Darra love this book?

Until picking up this book I knew nothing about Parsi food, a distinctive way of cooking practiced by the descendants of the Zoroastrians who fled Persia for India around the 8th century. And what a cuisine it is! This book engages all your senses, immersing you in the aromas, colors, and tastes of Parsi kitchens. Niloufer King's descriptions are beguiling, her language deft as she evokes dishes like the "wobbly" cauliflower custard of her childhood and its "trembling delicacy," or a hot green chutney that is "raucous" rather than refined. King brings family and friends to life through anecdotes that reveal the long history and continuing evolution of this distinctive manner of cooking.

By Niloufer Ichaporia King,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked My Bombay Kitchen as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The Persians of antiquity were renowned for their lavish cuisine and their never-ceasing fascination with the exotic. These traits still find expression in the cooking of India's rapidly dwindling Parsi population - descendants of Zoroastrians who fled Persia after the Sassanian empire fell to the invading Arabs. The first book published in the United States on Parsi food written by a Parsi, this beautiful volume includes 165 recipes and makes one of India's most remarkable regional cuisines accessible to Westerners. In an intimate narrative rich with personal experience, the author leads readers into a world of new ideas, tastes, ingredients,…


Book cover of Indian Cooking

Frances Kuffel Author Of Passing for Thin: Losing Half My Weight and Finding My Self

From my list on cookbooks for weight loss and maintenance.

Why am I passionate about this?

I love to cook and it’s difficult to find something beyond chicken and salad when you’re trying to lose weight.  Over the years I’ve assembled a cookbook library that covers many topics (interested in how the Georgians ate green beans? I can help you out!), many of them as off-topic from weight-loss as my cookie cookbook collection. But I still return to what I call “abstinent” favorites, simply because they are so tasty.

Frances' book list on cookbooks for weight loss and maintenance

Frances Kuffel Why did Frances love this book?

If you discount Northern Europe and North America, it’s amazing that most of the world has such clean food. I love Indian food and Madhur Jaffrey knows how to make it accessible and easy for the rest of us.  You’ll find dishes here that are not part of your local Indian spot: Dry Moong Dal, Goan-style Hot and Spicy Pork, Cold Yogurt Soup with Mint.

By Madhur Jaffrey,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Indian Cooking as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Chef magazine called this book�s author �the best-known ambassador of Indian food in the United States� . . . and the Boston Herald referred to her as �the renowned author and actress [who] teaches home cooks about the sophistication and infinite diversity of Indian fare.� The New York Times described her simply and succinctly as �the Indian cuisine authority.� For many years a best-selling cookbook, Madhur Jaffrey�s seminal title on Indian cuisine now has been totally revised, redesigned, enlarged, and enhanced with 70 brand-new full-color photos. With chapters on meat, poultry, fish, and vegetables, as well as pulses, relishes, chutneys,…


Book cover of Dakshin: Vegetarian Cuisine from South India

Didi Emmons Author Of Vegetarian Planet

From my list on Southeast Asian cookbooks from a Chef who uses them daily.

Why am I passionate about this?

Thirty-two years ago, I got my start as a chef by cooking in a shoebox cafe in Boston that played with curious Asian ingredients. Ten years later, after using lots of Asian cookbooks, I was incorporating Thai and Vietnamese cooking into my menus at the restaurant I was running. A few years after that, I opened and ran a Vietnamese restaurant in Cambridge (unfortunately, after major success, it burned down after a year). After this, the tourism board of Malaysia sent me on a four-week trip to write about the street food for FoodArts magazine. It is these experiences that greatly influenced my interest in Southeast Asian cooking.

Didi's book list on Southeast Asian cookbooks from a Chef who uses them daily

Didi Emmons Why did Didi love this book?

This is a glossy cookbook published first in India and then in 1994 by an Australian division of Harper Collins. I’ve made many, many recipes in this book and it’s opened my eyes to the meat-free, texturally complex cuisine of South India. The careful but dynamic mix of ingredients such as mustard seeds, curry leaves, dried coconut, dal, and cumin seeds used in tempering dishes brings the food to life. I recommend this book to the curious and adventuresome home cook who enjoys shopping at Indian markets. The recipes are solid and for the most part easy once you become familiar with its cuisine and techniques.

By Chandra Padmanabhan,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Dakshin as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

"Dakshin" in an ancient Sanskrit word meaning "south." It symbolizes what this Indian cookbook is all about - the best and most delicious of South Indian vegetarian cuisine.

Filled with tempting recipes and beautiful photographs, Dakshin: Vegetarian Cooking from South India presents the finest cooking from the region. Drawn from the states of Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, and Andhra Pradesh, and the union territory of Pondicherry, the recipes in this vegetarian cookbook bring traditional South Indian cooking within reach of any cook in any kitchen.

From sambars and rasams, to cooling desserts and sweet treats, Dakshin takes you through the…


Book cover of Yalla, Let's Eat!: Delicious, Authentic Arab Meals Made Easy
Book cover of Bitter Honey: Recipes and Stories from the Island of Sardinia
Book cover of Authentic Brazilian Home Cooking: Simple, Delicious Recipes for Classic Latin American Flavors

Share your top 3 reads of 2024!

And get a beautiful page showing off your 3 favorite reads.

1,583

readers submitted
so far, will you?

5 book lists we think you will like!

Interested in Iran, presidential biography, and cooking?

Iran 133 books
Cooking 107 books