Baladi: A Celebration of Food from Land and Sea

by Joudie Kalla, Jamie Orlando Smith (Photographer)

Overview

Joudie Kalla, author of the bestselling Palestine on a Plate, introduces readers to more of the Middle East’s best kept secret—Palestinian cuisine.




“Baladi” means “my home, my land, my country,” and Joudie once again pays homage to her homeland of Palestine by showcasing its wide ranging, vibrant and truly delicious dishes. Palestine is a country of different seasons and landscapes, and it is these diverse conditions that create the many and varied ingredients featured in the book. Joudie takes an entirely flexible approach to cooking, using influences from her home to create new dishes, and bringing her own twist to more traditional recipes.

Baladi features recipes according to the area that they hail from, such as the land, the sea, the fields, the orchard . . . Experience the wonderful flavors of Palestine through Daoud Basha (lamb meatballs cooked in a tamarind and tomato sauce), khubzet za’atar (za’atar brioche twists), samak makli bil camun (fried fish selection with zucchini, mint and yogurt dip), atayef (soft pancakes filled with cream in an orange blossom sugar syrup), and many more sublime flavor combinations.

With stunning color photographs to accompany each recipe, the book is also interspersed with shots of the landscapes, streets, and people of Palestine, reflecting the rich culinary culture running through the whole country.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781623711030
Publisher:	Interlink Publishing Group, Incorporated
Publication date:	01/30/2024
Pages:	256
Sales rank:	306,804
Product dimensions:	9.90(w) x 7.60(h) x 0.90(d)

About the Author

Joudie Kalla is the author of the highly-praised cookbook Palestine on a Plate: Memories from My Mother’s Kitchen. She has been working as a chef for over 18 years. She trained at London’s prestigious Leith’s School of Food and Wine and has worked at restaurants such as Pengelley’s, Daphne’s, and Papillon. She has been running her own private catering company for over eight years and holds regular sold out supper clubs. She also ran a hugely popular deli, Baity Kitchen, for three years and hosted Palestinian-themed dinners for Jamie Oliver's Fifteen charity.

Editorial Reviews

Once again Joudie puts Palestine on the map so beautifully by celebrating the breadth and depth of our cuisinemaking Palestinians everywhere proud. This important book is a visual and culinary feast that preserves our history and cultural identity.

Reem Assil

Joudie Kalla looks homeward for inspiration. 'I want to pay homage,' she writes, 'to the Palestine that my family knew and remembers.' And that's exactly what this book does so gracefully.

From the Publisher

An important cuisine and culinary tradition that needs to be understood, celebrated, and enjoyed.

Anthony Bourdain

Joudie Kalla takes the reader on a compelling and delicious culinary journey through Palestine. A much-needed compilation of hitherto undocumented Palestinian family recipesan ode to Palestine's rich culinary heritage.

Laila El-Haddad

"This book goes to the heart of the relationship between food and identity, and conveys a sense of belonging through beautiful, compelling and, yes, joyous recipes. I just want to eat everything in it."

Nigella Lawson

10/01/2018
Caterer Kalla follows up Palestine on a Plate with this celebratory collection of soulful recipes from the baladi, or homeland, her family fled in 1948. A chapter on vegetable and grain dishes offers up purslane salad with pomegranate seeds; while a chapter on meats suggests a string of tempting lamb recipes including one for cored carrots stuffed with rice and ground lamb, and another that calls for rolling chard leaves around ground meat and then using them to form a patty atop lamb cutlets. A chapter on bread and savory pastries begins with a story of Kalla’s grandmother bringing dough to the town baker to bake, as caring for her 11 children made baking in her home kitchen impossible. Recipes are provided for several flatbreads, including one layered with zaatar, sumac, and onion. Desserts include caraway pudding (traditionally served to nursing mothers) and a sesame cake blackened with nigella seeds. The only off-key note is represented by the “fusion” offerings; there is so much here in Palestinian cooking that has previously gone unexplored (including milk infused with turmeric and cardamom) that it’s jarring to come upon fish-out-of-water items like ceviche and éclairs. Nevertheless, Kalla’s excellent recipes wonderfully evoke culinary Palestine. (Nov.)

Publishers Weekly

"Baladi captures the essence of Palestine in a beautifully tangible way that pays tributes to Palestine's farmers, fishermen, bakers, market sellers, and ordinary daily family life — you will certainly want to add this to your cookbook collection and it is one of my top cookbooks of 2018.... "

BUNDT LUST

Joudie Kalla looks homeward for inspiration. 'I want to pay homage,' she writes, 'to the Palestine that my family knew and remembers.' And that's exactly what this book does so gracefully.

The New York Times on 'Palestine on a Plate

Illustrated with sumptuous, full-color photography throughout, Baladi: A Celebration of Food from Land and Sea is a showcase of Palestinian cuisine, traditional recipes, and culinary heritage ' [It] is a treasure for personal and public library international cookbook collections, highly recommended.

Midwest Book Review

This lovely homage to the intertwining of home, life, and food in Palestine is a mix of colorful photographs and 100-plus recipes that evoke both new and old traditions....

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