Introducing the Cookbooks of October 2023

The biggest cookbook month of them all.

Howdy cookbook fans!

And welcome to your second issue of fall cookbook season: OCTOBER RELEASES! (See September releases here.) A quick reminder that, unlike in previous years, this is a much more heavily-curated list! No catch-all listicle here, these are books I 100% think you should get excited about. Make room on the shelves! Get on the library hold lists now!

So what does October 2023 hold for you? Well, a lot of LARGE BOOKS, to start: Sohla El-Wahlly is out with her giant treatise on beginner cooking, we’ve got encyclopedic tomes on cocktails and Latin American cooking and Korean cooking, we’ve got an entire book of chocolate chip cookie recipes (OVER 100 y’all), and multiple books on Jamaican food. We’ve got sophomore efforts from authors like Riaz Phillips, Molly Baz, Michał Korkosz, and Erin French, and third books from Nik Sharma and the fish man himself, Josh Niland. That’s right, I said NEW FISH BOOK Y’ALL. And that’s just scratching the surface.

SO ENOUGH OF MY JIBBER JABBER, here are the cookbooks of October 2023. This post is likely too long for your email client, so do click through to the website to read.

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Today's issue of Stained Page News is brought to you by Hardie Grant North America and Sohn-mat: Recipes and Flavors of Korean Home Cooking by Monica Lee, founder of Los Angeles’s legendary Beverly Soon Tofu. The book is a master class in making the iconic Korean stew, soondubu jjigae, with recipes for everything to serve alongside it, including kimchi, banchan, grilled meats, and more. Monica shares the knowledge she built over decades and the trial and error that went into creating the version of this dish that patrons of Beverly Soon Tofu loved so much. Pre-order today.

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The Stained Page News October 2023 Cookbook Preview

• I know but perhaps you do not know that, despite a brief growing season, Wisconsin is a farm-to-table powerhouse, and I am not just talking about local cheese! (Although I am also of course talking about local cheese.) Veteran food writer Lori Fredrich’s Wisconsin Field to Fork explores the state’s food purveyors, with recipes to make the best use of their produce. Globe Pequot, October 1.

• Okay, five hundred and ninety two pages packed with recipes from every single Latin American country! Latinísimo by Sandra A. Gutierrez is divided by ingredient, which I think makes sense—readers can see how beans are treated across the continent, or corn, or quinoa, or etc. Knopf, October 3.

  

• Jeremy Lee’s Cooking has been making critically-lauded rounds in British cookery book press, so I am glad to see it’s getting a US release! Lee is a London chef and his book will probably make Nigel Slater and Diana Henry friends happy, focusing chapters on ingredients (artichokes, chard, wild garlic) and dishes (biscuits, impromptu suppers, sweet somethings). Fourth Estate, October 3.

• The big question for me about The Ranch Table by Elizabeth Poett is: can Magnolia Publications launch someone whose last name isn’t Gaines? Poett has a TV show on the Magnolia Network called Ranch to Table, where she shares recipes for dishes similar to those in The Ranch Table: California-fare inspired by the Central Coast ranch that’s been run by her family since 1837. Stay tuned! Magnolia, October 3.

• I am very, very particular about my chocolate chip cookies, and I keep thinking that at some point I will perfect my version. (One of the nice things about being a recipe developer is if you don’t like the versions of recipes that already exists, you can tailor them to your preferences.) And MAYBE this book is a sign that this winter is my winter: The Chocolate Chip Cookie Book by Katie Jacobs has over 100 chocolate chp and chocolate chip-adjacent recipes to peruse whenever I get my act together. Harper Celebrate, October 3.

  

• Chef Loretta Barrett Oden (Potowatami) runs the Corn Dance Café in Sante Fe, where she explores the flavors and dishes of Indigenous cuisine, and now there’s a cookbook! Corn Dance draws on recipes from the cafe, from her PBS show Seasoned with Spirit, and tells the story of her childhood in Oklahoma and her journey as a chef. University of Oklahoma Press, October 3.

• If you’re looking to up your cocktail game, you could do much worse than diving into Danny Childs’ Slow Drinks. Learn seasonal approaches to foraging, fermenting, and infusing your way into truly unique concoctions. Hardie Grant, October 3.

• Journalist Helin Lee recently wrote about why over a century of Korean cookbooks in the US lead to the publication of Sohn-mat by Monica Lee with Tien Nguyen, and why that’s important, so instead of taking my word for it, go read her article! Hardie Grant, October 3.

  

• From chef Junghyun “JP” Park, whose Atoboy, Naro, Seoul Salon, and Atomix I still have been to because I haven’t been to New York in a billion years, and culinary resercher Jungyoon Choi comes The Korean Cookbook. They’re calling it “the first comprehensive book on Korean home cooking,” which… IDK, Maangchi might like a word. But! I am excited for it regardless. Phaidon, October 4.

• Find recipes for 200 iconic cocktails from around the world alongside 600 (!) years of cocktail history in Signature Cocktails. Written by drinks writer Amanda Schuster, the book features a murders’ row of expert consultants including Camper English, Emma Janzen, and Robert Simonson. Phaidon, October 4.

• More on this book 🔜, but looking forward to seeing The Lula Cafe Cookbook from the beloved Chicago institution of the same name, written by chef Jason Hammel. Phaidon, October 4.

• Last year, Riaz Phillips looked at the cuisine of Jamaica in West Winds; now he turns his attention to Trinidad and Tobago, Guyana, and Suriname in East Winds. Recipes include the rice pudding Kheer, cumin-laced Jeera Pork, Pepper Roti, and a whole chapter called “Curry?” DK, October 10.

• Molly Baz is back with her second cookbook, More Is More. I appreciate they’re taking some design risks with this one! Love the fonts. Recipes include dishes like Crispy Rice Egg-in-a-Hole, Chicken Salad with Coconut Crunch, Drunken Cacio e Pepe, Ooey Gooey Carrot Cake, “the Only Meatloaf that Matters,” and Miso-Braised Chicken and Leeks. Also she’s brought back the QR codes from her first book, which lead to audio tutorials and instructional videos. Clarkson Potter, October 10.

• The Global Pantry Cookbook, from Cooking Light alums Ann Taylor Pittman and Scott Mowbray, will teach you how to deploy oyster sauce, miso, gochujang, panko, chorizo, and more in your cooking. Workman, October 10.

  

• I feel like we’re seeing more facets of Japanese cuisine come through in cookbooks recently? Including Rintaro, a look at izakaya cooking from Sylvan Mishima Brackett, chef/owner of San Francisco izakaya Rintaro. Written with Jessica Battilana, the book features over 70 recipes for home cooks. Hardie Grant, October 10.

• 320 pages of cocktail lore, history, and recipes from drinks writer Robert Simonson in The Encyclopedia of Cocktails, a “witty and opinionated presentation of the bar world.” Ten Speed, October 17.

• I don’t normally cover rereleases, but I will make an exception for the excellent Growing Up in a Nonya Kitchen, Sharon Wee’s memoir with recipes of growing up in a Peranakan Chinese family in Singapore. This new edition has been expanded and revised. Marshall Cavendish International, October 17.

• The fish man Josh Niland is back with another fish book, and you know what we say about fish books around these parts: everyone loves the fish books. This time the topic is Fish Butchery. All of these books have great design but…fish bits on a cover!!?! Wow. Hardie Grant, October 17.

• Eastern European food often gets pegged as being very heavy, which is why I was so excited to hear that Michał Korkosz has written a follow-up to his 2020 book Fresh From Poland: his new book Polish’d explores modern vegetarian Polish food, including dishes like Chilled Cucumber-Melon Soup with Goat Cheese, Crispy Apple, and Mint; Kopytka (potato dumplings) with Umami Sauce, Spinach, Hazelnuts, and Poppy Furikake; Nettle Pesto Pasta with Radishes and Asparagus; Grilled Broccoli with Lemon Mayo, Umami Bomb Sauce and Poppy Seeds; and Tomatoes and Peaches with Soft Goat Cheese, Crispy Sage, and Superior Brown Butter Sauce. Experiment, October 24.

• Roya Shariat and her mom Gita Sadeh share a TikTok (190k followers) which seems to focus primarily on three things: one, Iranian food. Two, specifically, Sadeh’s impeccable tahdig skills. And three, Sadeh’s ability to find the exact right-sized containers to bundle up leftovers in. (It is in fact very satisfying watching her turn out perfectly golden tahdigs over and over and over again. Gosh I love tahdig.) ANYWAY! Now they have a cookbook! It’s called Maman & Me. Princeton Architectural Press, October 24.

  

• I’ve been excited for this one for awhile, ever since Yewande Komolafe’s 10 Essential Nigeria Recipes came out in the NYT. In My Everyday Lagos, she shares not just recipes from the city where she grew up, but also dishes from Nigerians living abroad and incorporating local flavors of cities like London, Houston, Atlanta, Chicago, Toronto, and Newark. Ten Speed, October 24.

• Easy Indian and Indian-inspired recipes in Palak Patel’s The Chutney Life, named for her blog of the same name. Recipe include dishes like Coconut Shrimp Po’ Boys with Panang Curry Remoulade; Crispy Barbecue Chicken KeemaTacos; Masala Pot Pies; and Patel’s famous chutney recipes. Abrams, October 24.

• You know I love a vegetable book! And here’s Nik Sharma, back for round three with his new book, Veg-Table. 50 vegetables are arranged by family, and recipes include dishes like red onions with tomato yogurt, shallot and spicy mushroom pasta, corn cakes with Sichuan chive butter, roasted garlic and chickpea soup, sweet and sour yams, corn, cabbage and shrimp salad, and much more. Chronicle, October 24.

  

• Baker Rose Wilde runs Red Bread Bakery in LA, where she bakes bread and other treats using whole grains. Her first cookbook, Bread and Roses, looks at whole grains from around the world and turns them into bakes like Corn Tres Leches Honeysuckle Cake, Spelt Khachapuri with Dandy Green Eggs, Oatmeal Chocolate Chunk Cookies, Einkorn Bagels with Crispy Broccoli Rabe Borage Cream Cheese (!), a Brown Rice Kinako Salted Cherry Blossom Cherry Crisp (!!), and more. Countryman, October 24.

• I like the Trap Kitchen books from Malachi Jenkins and Roberto Smith, chefs at Trap Kitchen LA. Their latest, Trap Kitchen: Wah Gwaan, looks at the foods of their Jamaican heritage. Kingston Imperial, October 24.

• Jon Kung is a TikToker (1.6 million followers) who ran a pop-up restaurant that was quite popular…until the pandemic shut it down. Now, in Kung Food, he shares his own personal cooking style that mashes up his backgrounds in LA, Hong Kong, Toronto, and now Detroit through dishes like Sesame Shrimp Toast, Vegan Fried Chicken Sandwiches, Ginger Scallion Noodles, Buffalo Chicken Rangoon, Lamb Curry Dumplings, “Clay Pot” Rice Tahdig, Mushroom Fried Rice, Szechuan Paneer, Faygo Orange Chicken, Hong Kong Chicken and Waffles, Dan Dan Lasagna, and more. Clarkson Potter, October 31.

• Looking for a beginner cookbook that won’t make you feel like a dummy? Sohla El-Waylly’s Start Here is a good place to, erm, start. At an eye-popping 656 pages, El-Waylly covers a lot of territory, including technique basics and over 200 recipes. Knopf, October 31.

• Chef Erin French, of Maine’s Lost Kitchen restaurant, is out with her second cookbook, Big Heart, Little Stove. The book contains recipes from both the restaurant and her family, including Pecorino Puffs, Clam Dip, Golden Tomato & Peach Soup, Green Beans with Sage, Garlic, and Breadcrumbs, Pickle-Brined Roast Chicken, Kitchen Sink Pesto and Floral Vinegar, as well as hospitality tips. Celadon, October 31.

• Food writers Darra Goldstein, Richard Martin, and Cortney Burns are teaming up for a new 6 book series called Preserved, from Hardie Grant. The first two books are out this fall: Preserved: Condiments and Preserved: Fruit, both of which have 25 recipes each. Collect ‘em all… Hardie Grant, October 31.

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More Books I’m Excited About…

• Seafood Simple by Eric Ripert. Random House, October 3.

• Bake Your Heart Out by Dan Langan. Union Square & Co., October 3.

• Scandinavian from Scratch by Nichole Accettola. Ten Speed, October 3.

• Familia by Marcela Valladolid. Voracious, October 3.

• Cook Clever by Shivi Ramoutar. Harper Collins, October 3.

• Painting the Plate by Felicity Souter. Prestel, October 3.

• Foolproof Roasting Pan by Sue Quinn. Quadrille, October 3.

• Gennaro’s Cucina by Gennaro Contaldo. Interlink, October 3.

• Baking with Whole Grains by Valerie Baer. Good Books, October 3.

• Kneaders Bakery & Cafe by Colleen Worthington. Shadow Mountain, October 3.

• Beat the Budget by Mimi Harrison. Ebury, October 3.

• Now & Then by Tessa Giros. Murdoch, October 3.

• Asian Vegetables by Stéphanie, Caroline and Patricia Ho-Yi Wang. Ambrosia, October 3.

• Signature Dishes of America by Sherry Monahan. Globe Pequot, October 3.

• Taste the World in Marseilles by Véranne Frédani. La Martiniere, October 3.

• The Vegan Baker by Zacchary Bird. Smith Street, October 3.

• Zingerman’s Bakehouse Celebrate Every Day by Amy Emberling, Lindsay-Jean Hard, Lee Vedder, and Corynn Coscia. Chronicle, October 3.

• The Great Indian Thali by Nandita Iyer. Roli Books, October 5.

• In Mary’s Kitchen by Mary Berg. Appetite by Random House, October 10.

• Theo’s Family Kitchen by Theo A. Michaels. Ryland, Peters & Small, October 10.

• Beautiful Bread by Theresa Culletto. Rock Point, October 10.

• Just Eat by Jessie James Decker. Dey Street, October 10.

• CDMX by Rosa Cienfuegos. Smith Street, October 10.

• The Book of Gingerbread by Helena Garcia. Quadrille, October 10.

• The Handbook of Preserves by Lindy Wildsmith. Crowood Press, October 10.

• Chocolate All Day by Steven Hodge. Appetite by Random House, October 17.

• Let’s Eat Paris! by François-Régis Gaudry. Artisan, October 17.

• Let’s Bake Bread! by Bonnie Ohara. Artisan, October 17.

• Good Soup by Joris Bijdendijk and Samuel Levie. Tra, October 17.

• How to Make Better Cocktails by Andrew Shannon, Sebastian Hamilton-Mudge, and Natalia Garcia Bourke. Mitchell Beazley, October 17.

• Sustain: Groundbreaking Recipes and Skills That Could Save the Planet by Jo Barrett. Hardie Grant, October 17.

• An Chua: Simple Vietnamese Recipes That Taste Like Home by Julie Mai Tran. Page Street, October 17.

• There’s Always Room for Cheese by Colin Wood. Hardie Grant, October 17.

• Vietnamese Made Easy by Thuy Diem Pham. Quadrille, October 17.

• Homemade Simple by Amanda Haas. Cameron, October 24.

• Make It Japanese by Rie McClenny with Senaë Lemoine. Clarkson Potter, October 24.

• Craving Vegan by Sam Turnbull. Appetite by Random House, October 24.

• Sweet Greek by Kathy Tsaples. Touchwood, October 24.

• Basics with Babish by Andrew Rea. Simon Element, October 24.

• Sweet Vietnamese Bakes by Tara Nguyen. Page Street, October 24.

• Drink Like a Local: Austin by Veronica Meewes. Cider Mill Press, October 31.

• Festive Maryland Recipes by Kara Mae Harris. Self-published, October.

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