Rachel HogrogianThe Armenian Cookbook

I did one of those DNA tests recently where you send your spittle to a laboratory and five weeks later they send you a breakdown of your genetics indicating what percentage of your genes is from different regions of the world. Mine was fairly boring with 99% being Western European, specifically England, northern France and Ireland but I was intrigued that a very small part of me is, apparently Armenian. I was immediately researching flights to Yerevan and reading as much as I could about Armenia and its history and food and this bought be to this book.Despite having travelled to the Levant my knowledge of middle Eastern food was constricted to pilaf and humus and, that's about it. This book has delicious recipes for wonderful exotic sounding dishes such as lavash, khash and khorovats and I am going to enjoy trying to source some of the ingredients so I can eat the food of "my people".

Some products hard to find, but a very engaging book and recipes I've used have worked well. I like the illustrations.

Very pleased

The title of the book is The Armenian Cookbook. This would suggest that it is an established or authoritative summary of Armenian recipes. It is not. It is a small format paperback book of 138 pages including index. There are illustrations by Nonny Hogrogian who apparently is an illustrator of children's books. These contribute nothing to the book and are indeed childlike. There is an interesting glossary at the start of the book which is helpful for further researching Armenian dishes. There is no introduction to the Armenian cuisine or the logic of the various courses comprising a meal. Indeed, what makes Armenian food distinct from other cuisines is not discussed. The use of walnuts and pomegranates in Armenian cooking is not considered. I recently traveled through Armenia and had many foods not included in the book which are considered typical: the book is not comprehensive. The book has no illustrations of the recipes or stages in making them, This would not matter so much for soups or salads, but I think most people would have difficulty creating Armenian pastry dishes or breads without illustration, or the typical stuffed rolled aubergines. More needs to be made of the compilation of Armenian meals and the nature of starters and mains. A photograph of a laid-out meal would easily solve this problem. The index has shortcomings. Aubergine is listed under baked eggplant with "baked" being the subheading and the characteristic walnut and pomegranate ingredients in Armenian food are omitted apart from "walnut crescents". The book gives little more than an initial orientation and does not deserve the title "The Armenian Cookbook".

not quite what I expected but alright still to use it properly

I have my mother’s copy of this book (from the 1970s) and really enjoyed using it. I was sad to learn that it was out of print for many years, but purchased a copy for my daughter as soon as I learned the author’s daughter (and illustrator) arranged for it to be printed once again. It’s a small, conveniently-sized paperback with easy to understand instructions and charming line drawings. I encourage everyone who enjoys Armenian cuisine to buy a copy!

This Armenian Cookbook is a cute little book that covers most of the Armenian and Middle Eastern everyday meals cooked in Armenian households.The drawings are funny and make an entertaining addition to the popular recipes for the experienced cook, but lacking the colorful, appetizing pictures of the food for the young chef or the beginner.The book is in a pocket book format looks like a novel. It does not have the regular cook book style. It is definitely unique in its own way, but wouldn't make a great gift to a new cook by itself, unless added with a picturesque one. Or... I keep it for myself and try all the exotic recipes that are new to me.

This was a gift for my mother, who is a fabulous cook. Both she and my father loved the recipes and the historical anecdotes. Reading this book is like sitting in the kitchen with your grandmother when you were a kid and learning how to cook "real" Armenian food by sight and feel while hearing about life in the old country. A great introduction to classical Armenian dishes, with a little history thrown in. Not fancy, but authentic and good! Highly recommend this to novice and seasoned cooks alike.

Excellent write-up with all of the traditional recipes. Will be very helpful to recreate dishes going forward. Thank you for a wonderful resource!

Fun artwork! Good recipes. Interesting and entertaining explanations!