BOOK REVIEW: Tokyo Cult Recipes by Maori Murota

Shane | 5 March 2016 | 1 Reply

BOOK REVIEW: Tokyo Cult Recipes by Maori Murota

Murdoch Books
December 2015
Hardback, $49.99
Reviewed by Shane Pinnegar

Regional Cooking

8.5/10

Anyone coming to TOKYO CULT RECIPES in search of secrets to the mysterious art of blowfish preparation, or something similarly ‘cult’ is in for disappointment: Maori Murota lovingly describes normal, day-to-day and special occasion food that everyday Japanese families enjoy.

So, more basic cookbook than a treasure trove of cult fancies – but all the better for it.

Tokyo Cult Recipes provides ample background into the philosophy and style behind each meal, illustrated by wonderfully colourful photography, hand-drawn sketches, and Murota’s engaging, entertaining and insightful prose.

Most of all, the recipes are easy to follow, mostly healthy and extremely tasty – none more so than our family favourites Chicken Kara-age, white radish & scallop salad and marinated tuna with avocado and rice.

Murota achieves the ultimate accolades by succeeding in making Tokyo Cult Recipes the equivalent of opening a dog-eared copy of your mothers personal recipe book. Bravo.