The dish Team's Favourite Foodie Books

The dish office has piles upon piles of well thumbed food tomes from all over the world - and these are our favourites of the lot.

Though we all have all our lovely copies of dish on-hand, it takes a lot of perusing and reading to produce all the foodie content that we do. And though we have stacks of books that we love, there are always one or two recipe books, non-fictions and novels that have us going back for another look. These are those books - and whether they're guides, cookbooks or novels, these inspire us and enrich our lives as foodies. We wish the same joy on all of you too.

We've all picked our favourite few so you might be similarly inspired - scroll through too see what we've picked and why.

P.S., though we've linked to online sites that sell these books, we'd love it if you went to your local bookstore and ordered it through them. We love Unity and Time Out (#supportlocal!).

Editor, Sarah Tuck
The Flavour Thesaurus

It’ll come as no surprise that I cook a lot and generally speaking I have two ways of deciding what I’m going to make – by strolling around my local specialty food store or market looking for seasonal inspiration, or by heading to my tried-and-true favourite combinations. I bloody love The Flavour Thesaurus because it shakes me out of occasional complacency with weird and wonderful suggestions (broccoli and anchovy? Mushroom and Blueberry? White chocolate and olive!?) that have me inspired in no time.

Food Editor, Claire Aldous (who couldn't pick just one favourite)
Eat by Nigel Slater, Ottolengi: The Cookbook by Yotam Ottolengi and Simple by Diana Henry

Cookery books can be fickle territory as whims of trendiness such as fad diets and ‘super foods’ influence what people want to buy. These books fall into the timeless category for me with each author being inspirational with their flavours, ingredients and photographs. I often pick them up on a quiet weekend afternoon when I’m thinking about what to cook for a simple, delicious Sunday night dinner.

Business Development Manager, Karrin MacLeod
Root Stem Leaf Flower by Gill Meller

Although I love meat this book makes me want to be a vegetarian for life…bloody delicious – every single recipe ❤

Bridget Daulby, Art Director
Bread is Gold

It's very relevant at the moment with sustainability because its whole premise is about using what you already have in the pantry but a Michelin Star chef created it with his mates. Its only downfall is that the chefs are Italian so a lot of the recipes require leftover parmesan rinds - a resource that is much more scarce here in New Zealand.

Digital Editor, Alex Blackwood
Consider the Oyster by M.F.K. Fisher

The way M.F.K. Fisher embeds her recipes in anecdotes, advice and travel stories makes her feel like a well-traveled friend. I've read most of her books, but my obsession with oysters was deepened by this one in partictular. Indulge in oyster fantasies (even when bluffies aren't in season) and revel in a shared obsession.