Asian Vegetables by the Wang Sisters (Review)

Title: Asian Vegetables
Authors: The Wang Sisters
Type: Nonfiction
Genre: Food, Cooking, Cookbook
Publisher: Ambrosia (House of Anansi Press)
Date published: October 3, 2023

A complimentary physical copy of this book was kindly provided by House of Anansi Press in exchange for an honest review.

While bok choy is now a staple on Western grocery store shelves, other Asian vegetables remain unknown―even though they’re delicious, nutritious, and easy to grow in northern climates. Caroline, Stéphanie, and Patricia Ho-Yi Wang, three sisters of Cantonese descent, have made it their mission to introduce gardeners, cooks, and vegetable lovers of all flavours to wider sources of sustenance. Organized around fifteen Asian vegetables that are presented according to the rhythm of the seasons, this lush, full-colour book offers advice on growing and harvesting organic crops intended for both weekend and commercial gardeners, along with a host of ideas to preserve and prepare them, including forty or so recipes, some of which have been developed by renowned chefs. The Wang sisters complement the book’s practical advice by offering thoughts on Asian vegetables from a cultural point of view and sharing the importance of these foods within their own family, members of whom left China to immigrate to Madagascar before settling in Québec. Asian Vegetables is a generous and gorgeous tribute to good food, to the land, and the importance of strong roots.

⤖ My Review ⬻

The visuals for Asian Vegetables is what caught my eye first and what I liked the most about this cookbook overall. The use of dark tones on the cover as a background really makes the colors of the vegetables pop, drawing the eye and making them the main focus. I was happy to see this style continue into the book. The photography was crisp and used contrast in a really tasteful way. I really liked the illustrations. I also liked the balance between visuals, recipes, and background on Asian vegetables, history, and cooking.

I also really liked the way the book was organized with some background information in the beginning, and then vegetables sorted by seasons of the year. This organization made it easy to navigate and find recipes based on what’s in season or what ingredients are readily available. I knew about some of the vegetables in this book having cooked Asian food for many years now, but there were a lot that were new to me that I’m keen to look for and cook with now that I know about them. Overall, Asian Vegetables by the Wang sisters is not only visually stunning but also a valuable resource.