Yuan Mei

The Way of Eating: Yuan Mei`s Manual of Gastronomy is, remarkably, the first English edition of one of the world’s most famous books about food. The Way of Eating is a treatise and a cookbook, written in the late eighteenth century by the Qing dynasty poet Yuan Mei. It includes recipes for well-known dishes such as birds nest and sharks fin, and offers modern readers an appealing perspective on Chinese history and culinary culture, and was translated and annotated by Sean J. S. Chen with editorial advice from E. N. Anderson and Jeffrey Riegel. This edition is in English but includes Chinese characters and vocabulary, and is 250 pages in length. The team’s aim was to convey the charm, humor, and erudition of one of China’s greatest writers. Also included are a glossary and a bibliography of additional sources. Chinese food expert Nicole Mones, author of the novel The Last Chinese Chef, has contributed an engaging introduction to Yuan Mei and his work.

The Way of Eating: Yuan Mei`s Manual of Gastronomy is, remarkably, the first English edition of one of the world’s most famous books about food. The Way of Eating is a treatise and a cookbook, written in the late eighteenth century by the Qing dynasty poet Yuan Mei. It includes recipes for well-known dishes such as birds nest and sharks fin, and offers modern readers an appealing perspective on Chinese history and culinary culture, and was translated and annotated by Sean J. S. Chen with editorial advice from E. N. Anderson and Jeffrey Riegel. This edition is in English but includes Chinese characters and vocabulary, and is 250 pages in length. The team’s aim was to convey the charm, humor, and erudition of one of China’s greatest writers. Also included are a glossary and a bibliography of additional sources. Chinese food expert Nicole Mones, author of the novel The Last Chinese Chef, has contributed an engaging introduction to Yuan Mei and his work.

Recipes from the Garden of Contentment: Yuan Mei`s Manual of Gastronomy (Suiyuan Shidan) is, remarkably, the first English edition of one of the world’s most famous books about food. Recipes from the Garden of Contentment is a treatise and a cookbook, written in the late eighteenth century by the Qing dynasty poet Yuan Mei. It includes recipes for well-known dishes such as birds nest and sharks fin, and offers modern readers an appealing perspective on Chinese history and culinary culture. It was translated and annotated by Sean J. S. Chen with editorial advice from E. N. Anderson and Jeffrey Riegel. This edition is bilingual (English-Chinese) and extensively annotated, and 428 pages in length. The team’s aim was to convey the charm, humor, and erudition of one of China’s greatest writers. Also included are a glossary and a bibliography of additional sources. Chinese food expert Nicole Mones, author of the novel The Last Chinese Chef, has contributed an engaging introduction to Yuan Mei and his work. The cover illustration is by Lichia Liu.

Recipes from the Garden of Contentment: Yuan Mei`s Manual of Gastronomy (Suiyuan Shidan) is, remarkably, the first English edition of one of the world’s most famous books about food. Recipes from the Garden of Contentment is a treatise and a cookbook, written in the late eighteenth century by the Qing dynasty poet Yuan Mei. It includes recipes for well-known dishes such as birds nest and sharks fin, and offers modern readers an appealing perspective on Chinese history and culinary culture. It was translated and annotated by Sean J. S. Chen with editorial advice from E. N. Anderson and Jeffrey Riegel. This edition is bilingual (English-Chinese) and extensively annotated, and 428 pages in length. The team’s aim was to convey the charm, humor, and erudition of one of China’s greatest writers. Also included are a glossary and a bibliography of additional sources. Chinese food expert Nicole Mones, author of the novel The Last Chinese Chef, has contributed an engaging introduction to Yuan Mei and his work. The cover illustration is by Lichia Liu.

"The one hundred-some stories depict the important role ghosts played in the lives of the Chinese, as well as revealing a great deal about sex, revenge, transvestism, corruption, and other topics banned by Mei's puritanical mid-Qing society". -- Reference & Research Book News.

"The one hundred-some stories depict the important role ghosts played in the lives of the Chinese, as well as revealing a great deal about sex, revenge, transvestism, corruption, and other topics banned by Mei's puritanical mid-Qing society". -- Reference & Research Book News.