From the earliest written recipes of ancient Mesopotamia to collections from some of the most prominent modern chefs, cookbooks are an integral part of daily life and a record of the past. Some cookbooks have even changed the way we eat and prepare food forever. These are the game-changing tomes that continue to grace kitchen shelves and influence today's chefs, decades and even centuries after they were first published.
The birth of the cookbook arguably goes back to the Yale Culinary Tablets. Created around 1700 BC in Mesopotamia – modern-day Turkey, Syria, Iran and Iraq – these three pieces of inscribed clay are widely recognised as oldest known written recipes in the world. Housed at Yale University, the ancient ‘cookbooks’ provide a glimpse into daily life at the time. Although the inscriptions are only just being fully explored, aromatic stews and poultry pies were definitely on the menu.
De re culininaria, also known as De re coquinaria, is a collection of Roman recipes in a manuscript dating back to at least the ninth century, with some recipes believed to be from as far back as the fourth century BC. Translated from Latin to English roughly as On the Subject of Cooking, its form and structure set the tone of recipe books for centuries to come, with sections divided into meat, vegetables, fish, poultry, seafood and pulses. There are even sections on good housekeeping and four-legged animals.
Providing a glimpse into medieval France, Le Ménagier de Paris is still widely referenced today. Translated into English as The Good Wife's Guide in the early 21st century, the household guidebook was written by an unknown French author in the voice of a husband addressing his young bride. Like many older texts, most recipes are limited to ingredients and method, with little or no reference to measurements, temperatures and cooking times.
The Compleat Housewife by Eliza Smith was first published in London in 1727 and was printed 15 years later in the US state of Virginia, aimed at women interested in keeping up with the latest fashions from England's capital. Considered the earliest cookbook to be printed in the US, it introduced readers to ‘katchup’ and bread and butter pudding for the first time. With 18 editions published in the past 50-odd years, its popularity and influence continues to be impressive.
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Hannah Glasse’s The Art of Cookery Made Plain and Easy is still often referenced today, although the author – who grew up in northeast England – earned little profit. Written for the average household cook and servant, the recipes include jelly trifle, piccalilli and Hamburgh sausages, considered an early version of a hamburger. Dozens of editions have been published since it was first printed in 1747, and copies sat on the bookshelves of US presidents Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson and George Washington.
Considered the template for the modern cookbook, Eliza Acton’s Modern Cookery for Private Families is not only influential for its recipes but also in its design and layout. First published in 1845, the cookbook has a contents page and, crucially, includes cooking times. Acton's recipes earned the respect of many famous cooks including Isabella Beeton, whose Mrs. Beeton’s Book of Household Management was published in 1861.
First published in 1891, La scienza in cucina e l'arte di mangiar bene or Science in the Kitchen and the Art of Eating Well is considered one of the most important Italian cookbooks of all time. The first of its kind to include recipes from all across Italy and with Artusi’s own anecdotes mixed in, the collection is considered a landmark work in Italian culture, not least because it was aimed at family cooks and domestic staff rather than professional chefs.
Revered as the culinary bible by many, Le Guide Culinaire by chef and ‘father of French food’ Auguste Escoffier is a collection of more than 5,000 recipes. First translated into English in 1907, many of the recipes were developed by Escoffier while working in the prestigious London kitchens of the Ritz and the Savoy, where he claimed to have created the peach Melba. Still in print to this day, the cookbook is widely used as a culinary textbook.
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Édouard de Pomiane's cookbook La cuisine en dix minutes was first published in Paris in 1930 and revolutionised French cuisine. The aim of the collection, translated as Cooking in Ten Minutes, was to help the average cook create classic French dishes quickly and from scratch. It remains hugely popular today, named as one of Observer Food Monthly’s top 50 cookbooks of all time. Renowned French chef Raymond Blanc has described Pomiane as among the first to demystify French cooking, making it more accessible and challenging its "static traditions".
Published in 1931, Joy of Cooking by Irma S. Rombauer is one of the most published cookbooks of all time – largely because it's so squarely aimed at the average home cook. Filled with relatively easy dishes, this family-friendly recipe book became the main reference in many American households. With witty comments and input from family members, even later editions of the cookbook remain true to form and it's still a fixture in millions of American homes today.
Betty Crocker was in fact a character dreamt up in 1921 by General Mills yet, despite this small detail, she became a household name and had a huge influence on how people cooked at home. Crocker's success was so remarkable that, in 1945, Fortune magazine named her the second most popular woman in the United States – and to this day she's still considered the queen of mid-century cooking.
By the 1960s, French cuisine was still relatively unexplored in the US. Then came Julia Child. The exuberant chef shared her expertise and knowledge in her cookbook Mastering the Art of French Cooking, co-written with Louisette Bertholle and Simone Beck. It was a revelation for American cooks, bringing authentic French cuisine out of fine dining restaurants and into homes. Child also ushered in the dawn of the celebrity chef, starring in her own TV show – the first of its kind in the US.
Vibration Cooking: or, The Travel Notes of a Geechee Girl was a landmark publication that went beyond food, combining stories, recipes and culture in a masterpiece that's equally nourishing for the mind and soul as for the belly. Written by Vertamae Smart-Grosvenor, the book provides insight into “the social significance of food” and delves into the culture and culinary traditions of the Gullah Geechee, descendants of African people who were enslaved on plantations along the lower Atlantic coastline.
Edna Lewis is known as the Grande Dame of Southern Cooking. Published in 1976, her second cookbook The Taste of Country Cooking was among the first by an African-American woman to reach a nationwide audience. This combination of memoir and recipes has had a lasting impact on American food traditions, generating respect for Southern-style food. Even if you don’t cook, it makes for a compelling and important read.
Considered by many to be the bible of vegetable preparation and cooking, Jane Grigson’s Vegetable Book is more than just a recipe collection. With introductions to lesser-known varieties and a touch of history too, this cookbook has helped create a love of veggies for generations and continues to be a classic reference book for cooks and gardeners. Pictured is the author at home in 1988.
Shizuo Tsuji’s recipe book Japanese Cooking: A Simple Art opened up the cuisine to a new audience, making techniques and dishes from stocks to sushi achievable for home cooks and simultaneously putting Japanese food on the culinary map. With around 230 traditional recipes plus introductions to ingredients, techniques and cultural elements, Tsuji made sure there would be a dish everyone could make and enjoy.
From stockbroker to catering legend, editor and television entertainer, Martha Stewart is more than just a household name – she's America’s premier domestic goddess. Her first book, co-written with Elizabeth Hawes, revolutionised the way people entertained. With 300 original recipes plus plenty of tips, Entertaining became a bestseller and Stewart has since published dozens of books on topics from cooking to DIY.
The Art of Mexican Cooking brought hundreds of Mexican recipes to home kitchens in the US and UK. Written by Diana Kennedy, a Brit who moved to Mexico in the 1950s, the cookbook shares techniques to bring out the best Mexican flavours and was named among the top 50 best cookbooks of all time by Observer Food Monthly. The author is pictured at home in the Mexican state of Michoacán in 2018.
Marcella Hazan’s Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking is widely considered the culinary bible for those looking to master the cuisine. From introducing different pastas and sauces to tips on using seasonal ingredients and exploring techniques, it's a must-read for any passionate cook wanting to learn how to cook proper Italian meals.
When Mark Bittman’s How to Cook Everything first appeared on shelves in the late 1990s, it quickly became widely regarded as the kitchen bible for beginners. Bittman, a former food writer for The New York Times, loves to keep things simple. His 1,000-page book combines recipes with practical guides to help readers build up their cooking skills, and covers practically every occasion.
Known for her intimate and often wonderfully carefree approach to cooking, TV chef and author Nigella Lawson focuses on what cooking and eating should be all about: moments of joy, whether it's eating an amazing sandwich alone or serving a feast to friends and family. Her first cookbook, How to Eat, appealed to experienced and novice cooks alike, with food writer Nigel Slater describing her writing as "lustrous, seductive and reassuring".
Celebrating a whole continent of cooking in one book is no easy feat but culinary historian Jessica B. Harris pulls it off in The Africa Cookbook. With around 200 recipes inspired by African countries from Morocco to South Africa, the cookbook takes readers on a culinary adventure, bringing dishes to life with discussions of culture, history, music and even decor. With photographs, history and personal anecdotes alongside the recipes, it remains an inspiration today.
Entertaining isn’t always easy, so when food store owner Ina Garten shared her secrets on to how to serve up the best food for parties and lunches with ease, her popularity in the culinary world was sealed. Her debut, The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook, set out to show the world that food doesn’t have to be overly complicated to be special – and it worked. The TV chef's cookbooks remain hugely influential today, even if they have moved on from crab cakes and chowder to more modern comfort food.
Madhur Jaffrey's Ultimate Curry Bible has been described as the most comprehensive book ever published on curries, combining recipes with the heritage behind the many dishes that fall under the broad category. Bringing her knowledge and experience to the table, she doesn't skim over the complexities of curry and its history, focusing on different dishes from her own country of India and also looking at curries from Sri Lanka, Vietnam, Japan and others.
For many, Delia Smith is the queen of home cooking. With her calm manner, clear instructions and maternal presence, she helped revolutionise British cooking by making it accessible for anyone and everyone to cook. Her 700-page bible, Complete How to Cook, includes photos so cooks can check, step by step, if they are doing things right. Most importantly, it doesn't assume any prior culinary knowledge – covering everything from how to boil an egg to making puff pastry.
Yotam Ottolenghi's culinary influence arguably began with his New Vegetarian column in The Guardian's Weekend magazine, which was the basis for his 2010 cookbook Plenty. This love letter to vegetables appealed to the vegetarian and vegan markets but also to a wider audience beyond that, demonstrating the flavours that can be packed into everything from potatoes to jewelled salads. The Israeli-born British chef and restaurateur continues to impact the way we cook and eat with his complex, zingy flavours and clever use of herbs and spices.
When Jamie Oliver made his debut appearance on British television in 1999 as The Naked Chef (pictured), few could have predicted just how meteorically he would rise. From shaking up school dinners to changing UK government policy on healthy eating, the chef has been hugely influential – as have his cookbooks. Selling 735,000 copies in the first 10 weeks of its release, Jamie's 30-Minute Meals helped home cooks whip up impressive and tasty dishes from risottos and pies to cheesecakes.
America’s food culture has been influenced by many cuisines but possibly no more than those of Africa. The Jemima Code brings together more than 150 cookbooks from Black authors, from an 1827 house servant's manual to modern classics by Edna Lewis and Vertamae Smart-Grosvenor. The books are presented chronologically with photos and detailed notes on the authors, plus selected recipes people can try at home. The name is also significant, taking the racist 'Aunt Jemima' caricature and turning it on its head to show how these once-forgotten cooks still influence US cuisine.
To become a great cook you need to master the basics, which is what Samin Nosrat teaches in Salt Fat Acid Heat. Her enthusiastic guide to the world of food and flavour proved so influential it sparked a Netflix documentary series. Focusing on concepts and techniques, the chef explores different recipes from around the world, encouraging people to cook with innovation, inspiration, improvisation and instinct: the basic ingredients that make a great chef.