Fuchsia Dunlop's Blog

Yes, today is the day the Invitation to a Banquet is published with W.W. Norton in the United States! I’m in New York, at the start of a book tour that will take me to Washington DC, Portland OR, Seattle, San Francisco and Los Angeles. See previous post for events and books signings!

Totally thrilled to read the wonderful review by Dwight Garner in the New York Times!

Here is some of what he says:

‘A serious and intrepid work of culinary history. As a cultural, intellectual and political investigation, “Invitation to a Banquet” is on par with Waverley Root’s “The Food of France” (1958) and Jessica B. Harris’s “High on the Hog” (2011). It is a thesaurus of the senses. The book puts Dunlop, the Cambridge-educated English writer and cook, on a new level as a gastronomic commentator. Her prose is as rich and vivid as that of M.F.K. Fisher and Betty Fussell… If you don’t live within 100 miles of a real Chinese restaurant, or an H Mart, this book will not only entertain and instruct you — it might make you go mad with longing.’ ― Dwight Garner, The New York Times 

I’m so looking forward to being back in the United States for the first time in about four years!

Please see the image for the events I’ll be doing in various cities.

Here are some useful links for tickets etc:

7 Nov: New York

James Beard Foundation

I’ll be in conversation with the wonderful ‘Stir-Fry Guru’ Grace Young! (The initial allocation of tickets has sold out but they may possibly add more!)

On 7th November, I will also be signing lots of books for Kitchen Arts and Letters and McNally Jackson, so please contact them before that date if you’d like a personalised or other signed copy!

8 Nov: Washington DC 

Happy Hour and Book Talk at Chang Chang restaurant 

Amish dinner at Chang Chang 

9 Nov: Washington DC 

Bold Fork Books 

11 Nov: Portland, OR

Powell’s Burnside

I’ve never been to Portland so I’m particularly excited to visit! If anyone has suggestions of what to see or where to eat, please message me here or on Instagram!

12 Nov: Seattle 

Book Larder , in conversation with the fab Kenji Lopez-Alt!

Unfortunately this event has already sold out, but I’m happy to sign any amount of books, so please contact the bookshop if you’d like to pre-order a copy!

13 Nov: San Francisco

2-4pm China Live book signing

6.30 pm Omnivore Books event 

14 Nov: San Francisco

Mister Jiu’s event (I don’t have a link for this yet!)

16 Nov: Los Angeles

Now Serving LA: in conversation with Chris Ying  (link to follow!)

For any publicity/media/event enquiries, please contact publicity@wwnorton.com

I can be contacted directly on Instagram etc.

My new website is currently underway, but will be a little later than I had hoped, mainly because I’ve been preoccupied with other stuff! In the meantime, I’m reviving posts on this one.

Anyway, these are the UK and US jackets of my latest book, Invitation to a Banquet: The Story of Chinese Food, which came out in the UK with Penguin’s Particular Books on 31 August and is published by W.W. Norton in the US on 7 November. It’s not a cookbook, but a sort of historical and sensory exploration of Chinese cuisine.

You can read more about it or buy a copy here (UK edition) or here (US edition).

I’ll be touring the US with the book in November and will make a separate post with my schedule!

Here is what people have been saying about the book:

PRAISE FOR INVITATION TO A BANQUET

‘A serious and intrepid work of culinary history. As a cultural, intellectual and political investigation, “Invitation to a Banquet” is on par with Waverley Root’s “The Food of France” (1958) and Jessica B. Harris’s “High on the Hog” (2011). It is a thesaurus of the senses. The book puts Dunlop, the Cambridge-educated English writer and cook, on a new level as a gastronomic commentator. Her prose is as rich and vivid as that of M.F.K. Fisher and Betty Fussell… If you don’t live within 100 miles of a real Chinese restaurant, or an H Mart, this book will not only entertain and instruct you — it might make you go mad with longing.’ ― Dwight Garner, The New York Times 

‘Any book by Fuchsia Dunlop is cause for celebration, but this one is very special. Heart-felt and beautifully researched, Invitation to a Banquet serves up an entirely new way to enjoy Chinese food. It is a gift to everyone who ever picked up chopsticks.’― Ruth Reichl

‘A brilliantly informative appreciation of Chinese food past and present, told through a series of essential ingredients and dishes… Her sensory writing is so vivid that I felt I was actually there with her in the food markets of China.’ ―Bee Wilson, Sunday Times

‘Dunlop’s erudite historical account tells the story of China’s multifarious cuisine in lip-smacking detail… A compelling blend of scholarship and passion.’ ― Isabel Hilton, Financial Times

‘Dunlop travels from the wheat-eating north to the rice-loving south, dishing up meaty nuggets of history, morsels of politics and, above all, lip-smacking descriptions of food… A paean to Chinese gastronomy as refreshing as a bowl of grandma’s bitter melon and pork rib soup .’  ― Tom Miller, Spectator

‘In 30 years of exploring and documenting the country, Fuchsia Dunlop has done for China what Elizabeth David did for Mediterranean food and Claudia Roden did for the Middle East.’ ― Tim Lewis, The Observer

‘An authoritative new book… Dunlop makes a compelling case for the superiority of Chinese cuisine, but in a delighted and expansive rather than a chauvinistic way.’ ― The Economist

‘A vivid account of China’s food culture, going back to its mythical past to trace the diversity of flavours, textures and techniques that blossomed in the millennia that followed.’ ― Andrew Irwin, TLS

‘Hailed as one of the finest food writers, Dunlop understands that to simply describe food is stagnant. Her style is wickedly erotic… While one is lulled by her words, it is easy to forget how clever her construction. Like a fugue, her motifs echo and dance us to the end.’ ― Mei Chin, Irish Times

‘A landmark love letter to Chinese food.’ ― Mail on Sunday

‘Glorious.’ – Nigella Lawson

‘Fuchsia Dunlop’s expertise in Chinese cuisine is both remarkable and enlightening. She has devoted her life to intricately intertwining China’s rich history with its culinary traditions, making significant contributions in sharing this delicious knowledge. Invitation to a Banquet offers a captivating glimpse into Chinese culture, served as a mouthwatering feast. Indeed, there’s no better way to understand a culture than through its food, and Fuchsia captures this notion with mastery.’― René Redzepi, co-owner and chef of noma

‘Passionate and thoughtful. This book highlights the intricate connections between China’s people, food, and culture over time.’― Nik Sharma, James Beard Finalist, cookbook author, and photographer

‘As a young Chinese food writer, Fuchsia Dunlop’s books were my Harry Potter. She introduced me to the vibrant, expansive, magical world of Chinese gastronomy beyond the four walls of my Cantonese home. Next to my parents, there’s no person I’ve learned more about the cooking of my people than Fuchsia Dunlop. Invitation to a Banquet just might be her magnum opus: the richest English-language accounting of China’s culinary history I’ve ever read. I’m grateful this magnificent book exists.’― Kevin Pang, James Beard Award-winning writer, author of A Very Chinese Cookbook

‘Fuchsia Dunlop is such a gifted writer that the reader cannot help being swept along by her masterful, yet intimate, account of a cuisine that is unmatched not only in its refinement and diversity, but also in the richness of its history of nutritional experimentation and speculation. Invitation to a Banquet is destined to become a classic of travel literature and ethnography as well as food writing.’ ― Amitav Ghosh, author, most recently, of Smoke and Ashes: A Writer’s Journey Through Opium’s Hidden Histories

‘Fuchsia Dunlop is one of the world’s best writers on Chinese food. This book is ample proof of that. Each chapter becomes a course, written in her usual erudite manner but entertaining and informative at the same time. I found the book irresistible, addicting and mouth-watering. If you love Chinese food then you must accept the invitation to her banquet!’― Ken Hom CBE, author of Chinese Cookery

‘How the scales fall away from the eyes reading this masterpiece. Invitation to a Banquet enthrals as it enlightens as it delights. Fuchsia has a way with words and cooking quite unique and mesmerising. I have had to put the book down only out of necessity and wish only that instead of mounting a bicycle headed to work, I had boarded a train bound for China, book in hand, with a blanket, chopsticks and a hamper brimming with dishes prepared by Fuchsia.’― Jeremy Lee, author of Cooking

‘There are cooks who write and writers who cook, but very few succeed in blending both arts to perfection in the way Fuchsia Dunlop does. The flavours arising from these pages are sprinkled with insight and experience, its narrative is infused with anecdote and historical depth. This book is the perfect dish for anyone curious about the story of Chinese cuisine and a joy for those among us simply in need of food for thought.’ ― Professor Roel Sterckx, author of Chinese Thought

‘This book is destined to be a culinary classic. Fuchsia Dunlop is a top-notch cook, a first-rate food writer, and a thoroughly grounded scholar of the history and culture of Chinese food. The book is a superb and intensive introduction to Chinese food . . . a delight to read. It will remain a landmark in food and culinary studies.’ ― E. N. Anderson, author of The Food of China

I’m currently in the US on my book tour for The Food of Sichuan!

These events are still to come:

Saturday 26 October: Washington DC, Politics and Prose

Monday 28 October: Seattle, author lunch at Lionhead restaurant

Monday 28 October: Seattle, Book Larder, in-store interview with food

Tuesday 29 October: San Francisco, author dinner at Mister Jiu’s

Wednesday 30 October: San Francisco, Book Passage

Friday 1 November: San Francisco, China Live, author dinner

Saturday 2 November: San Francisco, Omnivore Books

You should be able to find the book in good independent bookshops, and also buy it here. UK edition available here.

[image error]I’ve been meaning for a while to post some more photographs of my Sri Lanka trip earlier this year, and once again to thank the delightful ‘Mr Teddy’ (aka Sanjeewa) and his colleague Jayasinghe for giving me such a magical time. Both Mr Teddy and Jaya work for the Schools Relief Initiative, a charity based in Tissamaharama that was established after the Asian tsunami of 2004. Mr Teddy also runs and leads safaris for Yala Eco Safari.

I may have a largely one-track mind, but I do occasionally do things that don’t entirely revolve around food (!) – and two safaris led by Mr Teddy and Jaya were highlights of an altogether incredible trip.

The first was to the Bundala National Park, which is known for its birds. Honestly, I hadn’t expected to find bird-watching particularly interesting, but as we drove through the wild, almost deserted landscape, it was a joy to view the grace and intricacy of green bee-eaters, ravishing little birds that shimmered with iridescent green and blue, paradise fly-catchers, grey-headed fishing eagles and princely jungle fowl, not to mention another dozen or so species that Mr Teddy and Jaya pointed out.

We watched raucous crowds of grey langurs hurling themselves around in the trees, and saw crocodiles lurking at the side of a lagoon. Occasionally we spotted macaque monkeys with their sad, ancient faces (the females’ painted in red). And there were water buffalo grazing, and enormous monitor lizards zigzagging lazily across the way. Best of all, we came across a bull elephant snatching leaves and stuffing them into its mouth; we were able to watch it for what seemed like ages, from just a couple of metres away. It was one of several wild elephants we saw roaming in the park.

As dusk fell, we drove up onto dunes rising over a deserted, rocky beach, where Mr Teddy built a driftwood fire and lit a barbecue. Jaya and I walked down to the shore and watched the waves breaking violently over the crab-scuttling rocks and sucking back into the deep. There was no one else around as far as we could see. Later, we sat on the dunes, gazing into glowing coals as we unwrapped hot parcels of tuna fish, sweetcorn and potatoes while the fire kept any marauding animals at bay. And then we looked up at the star-speckled sky.

The following day, we headed out to a less-touristy part of the Yala national park for a second safari. We drove through a beautiful and often dramatic landscape where we saw not only several basking crocodiles, many different birds and crowds of langurs and macaques, but groups of wild elephants – at one moment, a family of eight, including two babies. In one narrow track through the forest, Mr Teddy suddenly shut down the engine of the jeep: he’d heard the alarm calls of deer and birds that told him a predator was near… and so we waited, holding our breath, and to our amazement saw a young leopard slinking through the undergrowth next to the jeep, and then crossing the track just behind us. (There are several leopards in the park, but apparently it’s extremely unusual to see one so close.) Later, as sunset approached, we saw two other leopards lurking around, but at a greater distance. As Mr Teddy said (ill-advisedly perhaps, given the company), the day had been a ‘leopard buffet’!

Anyway, if you’d like to find out more about the charity, or the safaris, here are the links:

http://www.schoolsreliefinitiative.com/

http://yalaecosafari.com/

Have you ever been to Panda Gourmet? It’s a Chinese restaurant on the outskirts of Washington DC with something of a cultish following because of its authentic dishes from Shaanxi and Sichuan, and because of the rumour that it was originally built as a canteen for Chinese workers constructing the new Chinese embassy in the city. I visited it last month on my US book tour, thanks to Tyler Cowen, who invited me to take part in one of his ‘Conversations’ – on the subject of Chinese food! It was great fun, and you can watch the video, listen to the audio podcast or read the transcript of our discussions here!

And here’s a picture of our lunch (my favourite dishes were the Xian cold noodles 凉皮 and the Xian pulled pork ‘burgers’肉夹馍:

These are some of the public events that I’m doing during my current US book tour, in case anyone’s interested! (With thanks to my friend Penny for typing this up, given my broken wrist!)

New York 26th October

I’ll be speaking at the Asian-American Writers Workshop: http://aaww.org/curation/chinese-cuisine-today/

Boston 27th October

In conversation with Christopher Kimball at Milk Street Kitchen (I’m sorry, but this event is sold out).

Washington DC 28th-29th October 

I’m giving a talk at Georgetown University, and will also be signing books at Kramerbooks on Saturday 29 October, so please contact the bookshop directly in advance if you’d like a personalised inscription. http://kramers.com/

San Francisco 1st November

I’ll be signing books at the Book Passage in the Ferry Building, so please feel free to come and say hello. http://www.bookpassage.com/event/fuschia-dunlap-land-fish-and-rice-san-francisco

Oakland, 1st November

I’ll be hosting a dinner at Camino Restaurant, where the chefs will be presenting some of the recipes from my new book: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/chinese-feast-at-camino-with-fuchsia-dunlop-tickets-28351293482

Seattle, 2nd November

I’ll be signing books at the Book Larder this afternoon: https://www.booklarder.com/events/info/author-book-signing-land-of-fish-and-rice-recipes-from-the-culinary-heart-o

I’ll be appearing at a dinner at Lionhead restaurant, hosted by chef Jerry Traunfeld, who will be cooking recipes from my new book (I’m afraid this event is sold out): https://www.booklarder.com/events/info/author-book-signing-land-of-fish-and-rice-recipes-from-the-culinary-heart-o

New York, 7th November

I’ll be giving a talk at the Museum of Food and Drink this evening. I’m afraid I can’t find the exact link, but I hope they’ll post something soon: http://www.mofad.org/

Today is the official publication day of my latest book, Land of Fish and Rice: Recipes from the Culinary Heart of China! It’s a collection of recipes and stories from the Lower Yangtze Region, Jiangnan in Chinese, which encompasses modern Shanghai and the inland provinces of Zhejiang and Jiangsu. This wonderful region has been known since ancient times as a ‘Land of Fish and Rice’. For centuries, local cooks have been using the plentiful produce of its lakes, rivers, fields and mountains, combined with delicious  flavourings such as rice wine, vinegar, soy sauce, spring onion and ginger, to create a cuisine that is renowned in China for its delicacy and beauty. In many ways, the food of this region is THE Chinese cuisine, regarded by gourmets as the most exquisite regional style and celebrated by poets through the ages. If Sichuanese cuisine is the jazz of the Chinese food world, Jiangnan food is its classical music.

In the West, however, the food of Jiangnan is perhaps the least known of the so-called ‘Four Great Cuisines’ of China; while Cantonese food is famed the world over and Sichuanese has started to captivate palates worldwide, it has languished in the shadows. As readers of my travel memoir Shark’s Fin and Sichuan Pepper may remember, I first started to fall for it during a trip to the ancient gastronomic capital of Yangzhou in 2006. Since then, I have found it hard to tear myself away. I have returned again and again to Yangzhou and the modern culinary centre of Hangzhou, with its lovely West Lake, to learn to cook local dishes and research the food culture. I’ve become addicted to the funky fermented tastes of Shaoxing and the delicate seafood of Ningbo, and have savoured the cooking of Shanghai, which has become a melting pot of flavours from all over the region. I have also made many friends there, and have been privileged to study in the kitchens of celebrated restaurants.

Land of Fish and Rice includes many classic recipes from the region, including Dongpo pork, West Lake fish in vinegar sauce, Mrs Song’s fish soup, Lion’s Head meatballs and Shanghai potsticker buns, Within its pages you’ll find simple supper dishes, healthy vegetables and some spectacular centrepieces, such as Beggar’s chicken in its shell of ‘mud’ that has to be smashed open with a mallet at the table!

It would be impossible to do justice to the rich and extraordinary cuisine of this ancient region in a single book, but I hope that Land of Fish and Rice will help to put it on the map!

I’ll be doing various events in connection with the book, including talks in London at the China Exchange and Asia House, and will be in a book tour in the US in October and November. I’ll post further details in due course…

I’m very happy to announce that the reprint of Land of Plenty (the US edition of Sichuan Cookery, my Sichuan cookbook) is now on sale. To all the people who have been asking me about it: thanks for your patience!

Copies available through Amazon US via this link