Three Cuisines Book Review : A Tribute to Gastronomy

By Fraaz Mahmud Kasuri

Compiled by: Dr Javaid Asghar

Published in: 2017

Number of pages: 335

The book ‘Three Cuisines: A Tribute to Gastronomy’ by Dr Javaid Asghar is a beautiful yet informative compilation of the recipes of regional dishes. Surprisingly, Dr Javaid Asghar is a doctor by profession and serving as a chairman at Doctors Hospital Lahore. On the basis of his personal affiliations, the author has picked the cuisines of three regions i.e. Hyderabad, Kashmir, and GT Road and discussed their gastronomy in a detailed way. By GT Road, the authors means the cities located on or around the road.

Being a medical doctor by profession, it is quite unusual on the part of Dr Javaid Asghar to do such a detailed work on the gastronomy of a large number of cuisines and that also in a very skillful way.

One of the best things about the book is that Dr Javaid Asghar has not only worked on the foods and recipes but he has also discussed the culturally rich lifestyle of Hyderabad, Kashmir, and GT Road regions. He has added the map of GT Road highlighting all the cities located around it. He has also included the high quality pictures of the monument buildings located in those cities.

It is also quite appreciative on the part of the author that instead of working on the specialties of these regions he has tried to explain as many dishes as he could.

Just like the quality of the content, the quality of the paper and printing of the book is also commendable. Fine quality art paper has been used while printing is actually flawless throughout the pages.

Interestingly, the author has not reserved any rights over the book as he believes that recipes are not invented by anyone rather they evolve with the passage of time.

Valuable impressions by Mahmood Akabr, Hotelier/Owner of Salt n Pepper Restaurants and famous TV Chef Mrs. Kobkab Khawaja have also been incorporated in the book.

In short, ‘Three Cuisines: A Tribute to Gastronomy’ by Dr Javaid Asghar is a must read for all those who love cooking not for the sake of cooking only but also for knowing more about the food culture of Hyderabad, Kashmir, and GT Road regions.

Important: This book has been donated to Hope Uplift Foundation which runs high quality schools for underprivileged children in DHA, Lahore. It also gives interest-free loans, free food for day labourers and cash grants to the needy people. You can get the book free-of-cost from Dr Javaid Asgher (0321-4380000) though a tax-exempt donation is requested for the Hope Uplift Foundation.