Designed to Feel by Peter Burchardt
Bestseller by Peter Burchardt
Designed to Feel
Why Evolution Built Your Emotions, and How to Make Them Work for You
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Best Cooking & Food Books

Food writing is one of the great minor literary traditions. At its best, as in M.F.K. Fisher's The Art of Eating or Elizabeth David's Mediterranean Food, it is not merely about cooking but about desire, memory, culture, and the pleasures of the senses organised into ritual. The contemporary food memoir — Anthony Bourdain's Kitchen Confidential, Gabrielle Hamilton's Blood, Bones & Butter — has expanded the form, bringing the heat and hierarchy of professional kitchens to general readers. The cookbook as literary object, from Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking to Yotam Ottolenghi's Mediterranean celebrations, has its own demanding craft.

50 titles ranked · Scored across 40+ editorial sources
#1
Анна Каренина
literary-fiction

Анна Каренина

Лев Толстой· 1876
Publishers Weekly
Editorial Score55/100
#2
鋼の錬金術師 1
fantasy

鋼の錬金術師 1

荒川弘· 2002
Library Journal
Editorial Score55/100
#3
Kokuritsu Kokkai Toshokan shozō Meijiki kankō tosho maikuro-ban shūsei
biography-memoir

Kokuritsu Kokkai Toshokan shozō Meijiki kankō tosho maikuro-ban shūsei

Kokuritsu Kokkai Toshokan (Japan)· 1991
Publishers Weekly
Editorial Score50/100
#4
The Bartender's Guide
cooking-food

The Bartender's Guide

Jerry Thomas· 1862
Notable Work
Editorial Score46/100
#5
Miss Beecher's domestic receipt book
cooking-food

Miss Beecher's domestic receipt book

Catharine Esther Beecher· 1846
Notable Work
Editorial Score46/100
#6
Let's cook it right.
cooking-food

Let's cook it right.

Adelle Davis· 1947
Notable Work
Editorial Score46/100
#7
The lady's assistant for regulating and supplying the table
cooking-food

The lady's assistant for regulating and supplying the table

Charlotte Mason· 1775
Notable Work
Editorial Score46/100
#8
Mrs Beeton's every day cookery and housekeeping book
cooking-food

Mrs Beeton's every day cookery and housekeeping book

Isabella Beeton· 1870
Notable Work
Editorial Score46/100
#9
Miss Beecher's housekeeper and healthkeeper
cooking-food

Miss Beecher's housekeeper and healthkeeper

Catharine Esther Beecher· 1873
Notable Work
Editorial Score46/100
#10
The lady's country companion
cooking-food

The lady's country companion

Jane C. Webb Loudon· 1845
Notable Work
Editorial Score46/100
#11
The housekeeper's instructor, or, Universal family cook
cooking-food

The housekeeper's instructor, or, Universal family cook

W. A. Henderson· 1791
Notable Work
Editorial Score46/100
#12
The American woman's cook book
cooking-food

The American woman's cook book

Delineator Home Institute.· 1938
Notable Work
Editorial Score46/100
#13
Bibliographical Notes on Histories of Inventions and Books of Secrets: Six Papers Read to the ..
cooking-food

Bibliographical Notes on Histories of Inventions and Books of Secrets: Six Papers Read to the ..

John Ferguson· 1895
Notable Work
Editorial Score46/100
#14
The Young Cook's Guide, With Practical Observations
cooking-food

The Young Cook's Guide, With Practical Observations

I. Roberts· 1836
Notable Work
Editorial Score46/100
#15
Plays of the pioneers
cooking-food

Plays of the pioneers

Constance D'Arcy Mackay· 1915
Notable Work
Editorial Score46/100
#16
The American pastry cook
cooking-food

The American pastry cook

Jessup Whitehead· 1894
Notable Work
Editorial Score46/100
#17
The chemistry of wheat, flour, and bread, and technology of breadmaking
cooking-food

The chemistry of wheat, flour, and bread, and technology of breadmaking

William C. Jago· 1886
Notable Work
Editorial Score46/100
#18
Baked beans and brown bread
cooking-food

Baked beans and brown bread

United States. Department of Agriculture. Radio Service· 1929
Notable Work
Editorial Score46/100
#19
Farmer Takes a Wife
cooking-food

Farmer Takes a Wife

John Gould· 1945
Notable Work
Editorial Score46/100
#20
The household guide, or, Domestic cyclopedia
cooking-food

The household guide, or, Domestic cyclopedia

B. G. Jefferis· 1894
Notable Work
Editorial Score46/100
#21
The dinner year book
cooking-food

The dinner year book

Marion Harland· 1878
Notable Work
Editorial Score46/100
#22
Public school domestic science
cooking-food

Public school domestic science

Adelaide Hoodless· 1898
Notable Work
Editorial Score46/100
#23
Food chemistry and cookery
cooking-food

Food chemistry and cookery

Evelyn Gertrude Halliday· 1943
Notable Work
Editorial Score46/100
#24
Health in the house
cooking-food

Health in the house

Catherine M. Buckton· 1877
Notable Work
Editorial Score46/100
#25
Cover of Como agua para chocolate
literary-fiction

Como agua para chocolate

Laura Esquivel· 1989
Library Journal
Editorial Score45/100
#26
The Book Eaters
science-fiction

The Book Eaters

Sunyi Dean· 2022
Publishers Weekly
Editorial Score45/100
#27
Cover of Bone In The Throat
mystery-thriller

Bone In The Throat

Anthony Bourdain· 1995
Library Journal
Editorial Score45/100
#28
Fast Food Nation
cooking-food

Fast Food Nation

Eric Schlosser· 2001
Library Journal
Editorial Score45/100
#29
Let's cook it right.
cooking-food

Let's cook it right.

Adelle Davis· 1947
Publishers Weekly
Editorial Score45/100
#30
Modern cookery, in all its branches
cooking-food

Modern cookery, in all its branches

Eliza Acton· 1845
Library Journal
Editorial Score45/100
#31
How to Eat
cooking-food

How to Eat

Nigella Lawson· 1998
Publishers Weekly
Editorial Score45/100
#32
Cover of Food fundamentals
cooking-food

Food fundamentals

Margaret McWilliams· 1966
Kirkus Reviews
Editorial Score45/100
#33
Cover of Adventures in Food and Nutrition
cooking-food

Adventures in Food and Nutrition

Carol Byrd-Bredbenner· 1997
Library Journal
Editorial Score45/100
#34
Cover of Home cooking
cooking-food

Home cooking

Laurie Colwin· 1988
Library Journal
Editorial Score45/100
#35
Cover of Get Jiro!
cooking-food

Get Jiro!

Anthony Bourdain· 2012
Kirkus Reviews
Editorial Score45/100
#36
Travels in West Africa
cooking-food

Travels in West Africa

Mary Henrietta Kingsley· 1897
Kirkus Reviews
Editorial Score45/100
#37
Totémisme aujourd'hui
cooking-food

Totémisme aujourd'hui

Claude Lévi-Strauss· 1963
Kirkus Reviews
Editorial Score45/100
#38
The Professional Chef's Techniques of Healthy Cooking
cooking-food

The Professional Chef's Techniques of Healthy Cooking

Culinary Institute of America.· 1993
Notable Work
Editorial Score43/100
#39
Roald Dahl's Revolting Recipes
cooking-food

Roald Dahl's Revolting Recipes

Roald Dahl· 1994
Notable Work
Editorial Score43/100
#40
Peter Hunt's Cape Cod Cookbook
cooking-food

Peter Hunt's Cape Cod Cookbook

Peter Hunt· 1954
Notable Work
Editorial Score43/100
#41
Chef's Book of Formulas, Yields and Sizes
cooking-food

Chef's Book of Formulas, Yields and Sizes

Arno Schmidt· 1990
Notable Work
Editorial Score43/100
#42
The chef's compendium of professional recipes
cooking-food

The chef's compendium of professional recipes

Fuller, John· 1963
Notable Work
Editorial Score43/100
#43
Gourmet's guide to New Orleans
cooking-food

Gourmet's guide to New Orleans

Natalie Vivian Scott· 1933
Notable Work
Editorial Score43/100
#44
My kid's allergic to everything dessert cookbook
cooking-food

My kid's allergic to everything dessert cookbook

Mary Harris· 1996
Notable Work
Editorial Score43/100
#45
Eater's choice
cooking-food

Eater's choice

Ron Goor· 1987
Notable Work
Editorial Score43/100
#46
The Heretic's Feast
cooking-food

The Heretic's Feast

Colin Spencer· 1993
Notable Work
Editorial Score43/100
#47
The new food lover's companion
cooking-food

The new food lover's companion

Sharon Tyler Herbst· 1995
Notable Work
Editorial Score43/100
#48
The professional chef's art of garde manger
cooking-food

The professional chef's art of garde manger

Frederic H. Sonnenschmidt· 1973
Notable Work
Editorial Score43/100
#49
Campbell's creative cooking with soup
cooking-food

Campbell's creative cooking with soup

Campbells· 1985
Notable Work
Editorial Score43/100
#50
Dinner at Alberta's
cooking-food

Dinner at Alberta's

Russell Hoban· 1975
Notable Work
Editorial Score43/100
Happy Children
The Parenting Companion
Happy Children
What Evolution Actually Built Your Child’s Emotions For
Your child’s emotions are not the problem. They are the operating system.
Get It on Amazon →Paperback & Kindle

By Country

🇺🇳International6307🇺🇸United States124🌍United Kingdom39🇯🇵Japan35🇩🇪Germany23🇵🇱Poland20🌍Ireland17🇮🇳India11🇿🇦South Africa9🇫🇷France6🇮🇹Italy6🇨🇿Czech Republic1🇲🇽Mexico1🇵🇰Pakistan1

Key Authors

Patricia CornwellAlexandre DumasTerry PratchettGillian CrossSharon CreechMaya AngelouSamuel BeckettMeg Rosoff

Cooking & Food Books — FAQ

What are the best cooking & food books of all time?

The top-ranked cooking & food books include Анна Каренина, 鋼の錬金術師 1, Kokuritsu Kokkai Toshokan shozō Meijiki kankō tosho maikuro-ban shūsei — all with high editorial consensus scores across major literary prizes and critic lists.

How are cooking & food books ranked on 50 Best Books?

Rankings are based on aggregate editorial scores drawn from Nobel Prizes, Booker Awards, Pulitzer Prizes, and 40+ other critical sources. Each mention is weighted by prestige, recency, and scope.

Which countries produce the most acclaimed cooking & food books?

International, United States, United Kingdom lead our rankings in cooking & food, producing the most internationally recognised titles in the genre.

Who are the most acclaimed cooking & food authors?

Key authors in cooking & food include Patricia Cornwell, Alexandre Dumas, Terry Pratchett, whose works consistently appear across major prize lists and critic selections.

Are there cooking & food books for beginners?

Yes — our rankings include books at every level. Look for titles with broad critical acclaim and accessible descriptions. Start with books scoring 70+ on our editorial scale.