André Simon awards 2020: The longlisted food books to add to your culinary collection

One of the chefs at Holborn Dining Room and London’s “king of pies” shares his favourite recipes in this cookbook that’s been praised for being a “definitive guide” to both sweet and savoury pastries. From beef wellington and the humble chicken and mushroom pie to rhubarb and custard tarts, as well as the sides for every pie lover, you can expect the lot. But that’s not all, the pages are also filled with his tips and tricks for pastry success. A treasure trove that is likely to cheer up any wintery evening. 

The passion project of Ravinder Bhogal, chef and restaurateur of Jikoni, this book, much like the restaurant, is in part influenced by African and Indian flavours, as well as a range of other ingredients including miso and kimchi. Split into sections for breakfast and brunch; snacks and nibbles; vegetables and salads; fish and shellfish; poultry and meat, and finally sweet things and desserts, within the pages you’ll find “inauthentic recipes” and new world tastes and smells. It also featured in The Independent’s guide to the cookbooks of 2020 you need.

Sheldrake’s debut is a study into fungi and just how integral it is for sustained living. The content ranges from experimentations with LSD and alcoholic drinks to introducing the properties that fungi has, which include being able to digest plastic and oil and being used as building materials. 

With more than 100 Palestinian-inspired dishes, from sweet tahini rolls to chicken musakhan, Falastin provides an opportunity for you to travel from Bethlehem to East Jerusalem. Both writers have honed down their niches in the world of Palestinian cooking, Tamimi is a chef and co-author of several other bestselling cookbooks, including Ottolenghi and Jerusalem, while Wigely similarly co-authored one of Yotam Ottelenghi’s books, Simple. When writing Falastin, both writers spent time with Palestinian chefs and home cooks. Within the pages, you’ll also find stories from unheard Palestinian voices, as well as food and travel photography. 

As the name suggests, this cookbook is a celebration of the widely interpreted humble and beloved dish: chicken soup. It’s an exploration into the way it’s served up globally, from ohn-no khao swe in Myanmar to green chilli chicken stew in the USA. Interested? Louis shared recipes from the book with us over on IndyEats. 

This cookbook is not just a homage to one of the world’s most eaten meat, it also proves its versatility. It begins with a step-by-step guide to how to joint a chicken, followed by the sections, which are divided by cut: whole; breasts; mince; thighs; legs; wings; offal; bones and skin. Demonstrating and showing how every bit of the bird can be used, expect recipes ranging from butter chicken to chicken pie.   

From one of the world’s leading chemistry of food writers, McGee explores the science behind every smell we encounter, from fine foods, flowers and fragrances. Nose Dive will take you on a sensory adventure into this often overlooked sense. 

Delving into important questions, such as “what is a sustainable diet?", Eating for Pleasure, People & Planet aims to give you the solutions and manifestos you need to achieve a more eco-friendly approach to grub. From practical information to recipes for everyday cooking, it will hopefully encourage you to think about how we farm, trade, eat and dispose of food. 

A journey through the British Isles, looking at the varied regional baking identities, this is a showcase of everything from Cornish pasties to Aberdeen buttery rowies. Recipes aside, it’s a well-researched love letter to the history and heritage of Great British baking and is full of research and photos. 

While this is a compilation of Afghan recipes passed down through the generations, Parwana is also a celebration of family history and aims to give readers a taste of the homeland they have left behind. Expect everything from rice dishes and dumplings to pasta, chutney and pickles. Some everyday meals, some celebratory dishes. 

From the bestselling author of Cod, Kurlansky is, in essence, the king of fish. This particular book is a cultural and historical look of salmon, as well as acting as a call-to-action to repair the damage that we’ve done to the species. 

Food historian Annie Gray explores the life of Georgina Landemare in this culinary biography. Landemare worked as Winston Churchill’s cook from 1940 to 1954, and was a “vital part of the team”. Victory in the Kitchen is packed with recipes and person-centred accounts of what life was like being in service for the prime minister. 

The follow-up of Eden’s award-winning Black Sea, this is an illustrated blend of food and travel writing. Not your usual cookbook, Red Sands allows you to travel through Central Asia, and it contains human stories, histories and adventures.    

With a large amount of information and advice constantly shared regarding what we should and shouldn’t eat, it can be difficult to truly know what to trust. But, Spoon-Fed aims to offer a guide that busts myths and challenges policies, exploring the science behind many medical and governmental food recommendations, and above all provide answers.