Get the book!

Now available nationwide, support your local independent book sellers!

Reviews

“Bhatt makes a convincing case for a Southern cuisine based on both tradition and innovation.” - Read the full review at KIRKUS

“Western India and the Southern U.S. share more culinary parallels than you'd think, from rice varietals and sesame to okra, shrimp and fresh tomatoes. Here, these ingredients explode in gleeful fusion, the torrid affair of a spice cabinet and a well-stocked pantry.” - T. Susan Chang, NPR

“When you need inspiration, this collection won’t let you down.” - J.B., San Francisco Chronicle Best Cookbooks 2022

“This cookbook thoughtfully, and persuasively, expands notions of what it means to be, and cook like, a Southerner today.” - Read the full review at GoodReads

Buy Now

Articles & Mentions

WTF Does Heritage Truly Mean?
Rushir Parikh Rushir Parikh

WTF Does Heritage Truly Mean?

James Beard winning chef Vishwesh Bhatt talks to Mark and Kate about the marvelous flexibility of food, how "fusion" became a dirty word, and grocery store birthday cake.

Read More
Mississippi Masala: How A Native Of India Became A Southern Cooking Star
Rushir Parikh Rushir Parikh

Mississippi Masala: How A Native Of India Became A Southern Cooking Star

Oxford, Miss., is a town steeped in Southern identity.

"In many ways this is an archetypal Southern town," says John T. Edge, director of the Southern Foodways Alliance, which is based in Oxford. "There's a courthouse square at the center, there are beautiful homes with rolling lawns framing it."

And there's the University of Mississippi, known as Ole Miss, a campus once rocked by deadly riots over racial integration. To some, Oxford might seem an unlikely place for a native of India to achieve star status as a chef.

But Vishwesh Bhatt — or Vish, as everyone calls him — isn't exactly cooking Indian food. He's the chef at Snackbar, an upscale restaurant that serves Southern and French food with a twist. He uses traditional Southern ingredients, like catfish, grits or mac and cheese — but he prepares them using flavors and techniques of his native India.

Read More