At the Chinese Table: A Memoir with Recipes

by Carolyn Phillips

“Lucky for me, Taipei was in the midst of transforming itself into a food lover’s paradise at the exact time I appeared on the scene.” So begins Carolyn Phillips’s journey as a language student in 1970s Taiwan that culminated with her becoming a traditional Chinese family’s eldest daughter-in-law.

Through beguiling stories that stretch across four decades, she recalls how she fell in love with a man who seduced her with everything from simple homely meals to haute cuisine, from crabs stir-fried with clouds of scrambled eggs to lush braises that enticed and bewildered. As their relationship deepened and her language skills grew, she evolved into a cook who wrestled a pig’s head into dinner, learned Hakka dishes from her reticent father-in-law and wrote an award-winning cookbook. At the Chinese Table is a culinary adventure studded with stunning line drawings and twenty-two recipes that celebrate a lifetime filled with extraordinary meals.

• ISBN10: 132400245X
• ISBN13: 9781324002451
• Publish Date: 16 July 2021
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: WW Norton & Co
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 304
• Language: English

Reviews

[annieb123]

Originally posted on my blog: Nonstop Reader.

At the Chinese Table delivers exactly what it claims, an engaging memoir by Carolyn Phillips recounting her adventures learning another culture and language alongside some beautifully presented recipes. Released 15th June 2021 by W. W. Norton, it's 304 pages and is available in hardcover and ebook formats.

This entire book has such a comforting and wholesome honesty that I found myself enthralled and invested in the author's recollections from the first few pages. She writes well and clearly about her early days as a language student in Taiwan, her education and appreciation for the culture and the food, her intertwined stories with the man who would become her life partner and her interactions with his traditional family.

The format of the book meanders delightfully from story to anecdote; full of observations and a respectful humor on both sides, self-deprecating by turns, delighted and wondering soon after. The stories are interspersed with a handful of well curated personal recipes. The recipes are presented with an introduction, bullet list of ingredients with measures in both American standard and metric (yay!), followed by clearly written step-by-step directions.

There is no photography in the book. The stories and recipes are illustrated with whimsical line drawings which enhance the text well. Some ingredients will be difficult to source in North America outside large urban areas with well stocked Asian markets. The author includes tips for sourcing (or growing) some supplies.

I found this a charming read. I would recommend it to fans of memoir, gastronomy, Chinese cooking and culture. Beautifully done. Five stars.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.