This month wagamama announces the launch of their brand new cookbook, soul kitchen. Grounded in the idea that the kitchen acts as the soul of both the home and their restaurants, wagamama set off on a journey across Asia to discover the local food heroes serving up soul in their own communities. The result is this book, with 70 soul warming recipes alongside stunning photography and expansive storytelling.
Journeying from wagamama’s own open kitchens, the team travelled from Tokyo in Japan to South Korea’s Seoul, and on to Ho Chi Minh in Southern Vietnam, visiting eating houses, street food stalls, canteens and fine dining spots. There they discovered the art of eating and cooking through a focus on freshness, experimentation and a sacred moment of pause in which to savour our meal and the restoration it gives us.
Interviewing the cooks they met along the way, the wagamama team became the students again, exploring how playful experimentation with flavour can create something incredible. For example, Na Beom-Jun, the owner of Seoul’s latest chicken pub, Balladak, shares the secret behind his innovative chicken flavours. And Ngô Thanh Hòa, owner of Ho Chi Minh City’s contemporary Vietnamese restaurant, East shares how traditional flavours and ingredients can be made into something entirely new. These ‘food heroes’ and more share their stories in Seoul Kitchen, creating interesting and heartwarming stories that accompany recipes inspired by their signature dishes.
With recipes created by the restaurant brand’s food team and the stories written by wagamama senior copy manager, Charlotte Ellis, the cookbook’s chapters span a full day. Organised by mealtime, the recipes include kimchi hash browns, and a creative spin on the traditional Vietnamese soup, called ‘break-phost’. Plus there’s fresh glass noodle salads, crunchy banh mi, warming curries and stews, as well as cocktails and smaller snacks, too.
Published ahead of the festive season, soul kitchen is a beautiful addition to any cookbook collection, with the sleek design, striking imagery and beautiful story telling making it a great option as a coffee table book also. In true wagamama-style, the recipes have been curated with everyone in mind, so whether you’re brand-new to cooking or a seasoned home cook, soul kitchen will have a recipe for you.
Steve Mangleshot, wagamama’s global executive chef shares: “Our trip around Japan, Korea, and Vietnam was a culinary adventure. The knowledge and learning shared by the wonderfully talented chefs and cooks that we met along the way will stay with us all at wagamama.
I’m thrilled to be able to share our experiences, memories and importantly, these recipes with our guests. We hope that everyone feels inspired and fulfilled as they welcome us into their kitchen – or as we call it – the soul of the house.”
Recipe highlights include the hot shichimi fried chicken, inspired by South Korea’s famous fried chicken, and a rich and spicy gochujang pork jjigae. There is a whole chapter dedicated to reducing your kitchen waste, showing you how to turn your scraps into incredible dishes like leftovers veggie ramen, or the Korean rarebit. And you’ll find some familiar wagamama favourites, too, like yakitori chicken, and crispy chilli mushrooms.
Previous cookbooks from wagamama include; The wagamama Cookbook (2005), wagamama Ways with Noodles (2006), wagamama Feed Your Soul (2019) and wagamama Your Way (2021).
Available at various retailers, all wagamama restaurants and online for RRP £22.
