Zarela Martínez
Zarela Martínez

Zarela Martínez

chef/author/entrepreneur
https://www.zarela.com
Biography

Zarela Martínez came to the United States from Mexico in 1973. Her NYC restaurant, Zarela, which opened in 1987 and closed in 2011, was famed for its high-quality regional Mexican food. Martínez has promoted authentic Mexican food not only via her restaurant, but also through her cookbooks (Food from My Heart: Cuisines of Mexico Remembered and Reimagined, 1992; The Food and Life of Oaxaca: Traditional Recipes from Mexico’s Heart, 1997; and Zarela’s Veracruz: Cooking and Culture in Mexico’s Tropical Melting Pot, 2001). She also presented a 13-part PBS series, ¡Zarela! La Cocina Veracruzana, on the food of the Veracruz region. Her podcast, Everything you could possibly want to know about Cooking in Mexican from A to Z, can be heard on the Heritage Radio Network. Zarela was inducted into the James Beard Foundation Who’s Who of Food and Beverage in America in 2013. She lives in New York City.

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Zarela's recommendations
The Cooking of South West France

The Cooking of South West France

Paula Wolfert

Paula is my favorite cookbook author and this is my favorite book of hers. I love the Catalan Lamb and Bean "Cassoulet"
Madhur Jaffrey's World Vegetarian Cooking

Madhur Jaffrey's World Vegetarian Cooking

Madhur Jaffrey

Olive Oil from Tree to Table

Olive Oil from Tree to Table

Peggy Knickerbocker and Laurie Smith

Though this might not seem to be a world-class book, I have cooked every recipe and think that it is a great example o fhow we eat now.
Simple Soirées

Simple Soirées

Peggy Knickerbocker

I also have cooked most of the recipes in this book and turn to it all the time.
The Book of Jewish Food

The Book of Jewish Food

Claudia Roden

I love her Sephardic recipes.
The Joy of Cooking

The Joy of Cooking

Irma Rombauer and Marion Rombauer Becker

Classic Indian Cooking

Classic Indian Cooking

Julie Sahni

This book was my introduction to Indian food, I used it even before I had actually experienced the cusiine anywhere else!
Naples at Table

Naples at Table

Arthur Schwartz

I love all of Arthur's books but since I can only list my favorite 10 books, this will represent him.
The New Basics Cookbook

The New Basics Cookbook

Sheila Lukins and Julee Rosso

I still turn to it often.
Chef Paul Prudhomme's Louisiana Kitchen

Chef Paul Prudhomme's Louisiana Kitchen

Paul Prudhomme

Follow Zarela Martínez
What's playing in Zarela's kitchen?

Mostly Latin dance music or Mexican rancheras that I can sing to