From the people who brought you
Bread,
Milk,
Potato, and other titles in the Edible Series of books (disclaimer: the books themselves are not edible), I just finished reading
Curry: A Global History, by
Colleen Taylor Sen.
The book is exactly what the title states, being an examination of what curry is, how it spread around the globe, and examples of the myriad curry dishes in various countries and regions the world over. Of course, it ends with a number of recipes for various curry dishes. Interestingly, this included reproducing historical curry dishes from cookbooks that have been in the public domain for decades, and in some cases centuries, alongside more modern recipes.
Needless to say, I frequently found myself getting hungry as I read this.
All joking aside, I'm not sure how much I took away from this. While it was surprising to see just how widespread curry dishes were worldwide, and I liked reading about the history involved (e.g. this was the first time I'd heard about
The Rihla, whose author mentions eating curry during his travels), I've never been any sort of "food tourist," and the focus on the specific components of various regional curries was appetizing, but not much else. It's ironic to call this a palate-cleanser after reading so many "serious" history books, but that's honestly what it felt like.
Though it helps that I have some instant curry packets in my cupboards.
