Hello Reader
It's pub day! There's no need to wait. Fundamentals of Flavor is now OUT IN THE WORLD -- online, in bookstores, and every place a book sold.
Quite likely your doorbell will ring today or the mailbox lid will give a loud clank, as your preordered copy arrives. You'll rip open the packaging and in your hands will be your shiny new copy of Fundamentals of Flavor (aka FOF as I affectionately call it at home), you'll cook from it and I hope stain the pages, make notes, highlight things, and maybe even dog-ear pages. This is your book as much as it is mine.
“Every book Nik Sharma produces is a marvel. This cookbook explores the four elements―fire, earth, air, and water―and their impact on what and how we cook. Not only will this enhance your understanding of what happens in your kitchen (in an accessible way), but it also gives you irresistible recipes. Sharma’s creativity has no limits.” ―Diana Henry, British food writer and James Beard–award winning cookbook author
Inside Fundamentals of Flavor
Over the past several weeks, I wrote a series of special newsletters so I could took you behind-the-scenes to see how this book came to life over six years. I got to be brutally honest and share things that I'd never made it in the book or elsewhere. The idea, the joys, the fun, the chaos, and every little bit that, and even a few recipes for you to try from the book. You can read the entire archive by clicking the button below.
“Fundamentals of Flavor is a master class in curiosity. Nik Sharma connects the dots between chemistry and cooking, identity and the elements, showing how fire, earth, air, and water govern everything from caramelization to culture. It’s as rigorous as it is poetic―a rare cookbook that teaches you how the world works while making you hungry.”―Kenji López-Alt, author of The Food Lab and The Wok
“Fundamentals of Flavor is delicious, generous, and moving. Nik Sharma understands that in bringing our whole self to the table, we open the way for the deepest creativity and most resonant ideas to emerge.”―Kylie Kwong, chef, television presenter, and cookbook author
Thank you
Before I move on, I want to say a huge thank you to everyone who preordered or bought Fundamentals of Flavor, shared the book with friends, came to an event, sent me a note, or helped spread the word. You've carried this book with me all the way to publication day, and I am enormously grateful.
And now I have one small favor to ask. Once you've had a chance to spend some time with the book, please leave a review wherever you bought it, whether that's Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop, or your local bookseller. Reviews are one of the simplest ways you can continue to support the book and help new readers discover it.
It doesn't need to be long. Tell people what you cooked, what you learned, what surprised you, or simply what you thought of the book.
Thank you for getting Fundamentals of Flavor here. Now let's help it find its way to even more cooks.
And by the time you read this, I’ve left New York for Boston to film a special show with America’s Test Kitchen, and then I hop over to Washington, D.C., for my book talk with Elazar Sontag, the Washington Post restaurant critic, at Bold Fork Books on Friday evening. (That event has sold out!)
“An excellent standalone volume showcasing science and the glorious flavors it can produce. Mouthwatering, innovative recipes, stunningly illustrated by the author’s own color photos”
—Booklist, ★ Starred Review
New York was very special and busy. This was the first time I’ve launched a book on the East Coast, so it was memorable. Until now, my launches have always been back home in California. I started the tour by signing stacks of books at Strand Books (Signed Copies Here) and Kitchen Arts & Letters (Signed Copies Here). I ate a customary bagel with plenty of lox and cream cheese as one does when visiting. It was messy. It was joyful!
I filmed something fun at the Food52 studios in Brooklyn (coming soon) and then headed over to my book launch event at Powerhouse Arena with my friend Hetty McKinnon and my friends showed up. Even my former lab mate, Michaele that I worked with at Georgetown Hospital many years ago stopped by.
And now the tour goes much further from home.
Australia, I'm Coming to See You! 🇦🇺
I’m thrilled to share that I’m taking Fundamentals of Flavor to Australia this November for something truly extraordinary: the Opening Festival of the new Powerhouse Parramatta in Sydney.
Across two days, November 27–28, I’ll be bringing the world of the book to life through conversations, lectures, tastings, and a very special dinner that I’m curating for Powerhouse [Tickets + Details].
It’s an incredible honor to be invited to be part of the opening of this major new cultural institution, and to celebrate Fundamentals of Flavor on this scale in Australia.
Sydney, I cannot wait!
xx
Nik
FOF, Out in the Wild
- Cookbook author Hetty McKinnon tries the Indian technique of dum to steam and soften potatoes in my Kashmiri Dum Aloo. “This is what a good recipe writer does: they introduce you to the unfamiliar in a familiar way.” Read all about it here and then make the potatoes.
- On the North Carolina State University science podcast, Wolfing Down Food Science, I talk about why understanding science can make us more adventurous and thoughtful cooks.
