Sabor Judío

The Jewish Mexican Cookbook

By Ilan Stavans, Margaret E. Boyle

With a preface by Leah Koenig; photographs by Ilan Rabchinskey

296 pp., 7 x 10, 53 color plates, bibl., index

  • Hardcover ISBN: 978-1-4696-8292-1
    Published: October 2024
  • E-book EPUB ISBN: 978-1-4696-7909-9
    Published: September 2024

Ferris and Ferris Books

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Sabor Judío celebrates the delicious fusion of two culinary traditions, Jewish and Mexican. Written with joy and verve, Ilan Stavans and Margaret Boyle’s lavishly illustrated cookbook demonstrates how cooking and eating connect Jewish Mexicans across places and generations. Featuring 100 deeply personal recipes enjoyed by Jewish Mexicans around the world, the book is organized by meal—desayuno (breakfast), comida (lunch), and cena (dinner)—and also includes dishes made for Shabbat, Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Passover, Hanukkah, Shavuot, and other holidays. 

Sabor Judío isn’t only a cookbook; it is also a vibrant history of Jewish immigration to Mexico from 1492 to the present. It explains how flavors and dishes evolved in Mexican and Jewish kitchens and how they fused into a distinct cuisine, mainly by the labor of Ashkenazi, Sephardic, Mizrahi, and converso women. This cookbook is the product of two award-winning, internationally known Jewish Mexican writers and foodies who spent a decade gathering recipes and personal narratives from Jewish Mexican households. The result is a dynamic and delicious array of recipes and experiences, infusing important cultural heritage into this essential culinary record.

About the Authors

Ilan Stavans, a leading Jewish Mexican scholar and critic, is Lewis-Sebring Professor of Humanities and Latin American and Latino Culture at Amherst College.


For more information about Ilan Stavans, visit the Author Page.

Margaret Boyle is director of Latin American, Caribbean, and Latinx Studies at Bowdoin College and associate professor of Romance Languages and Literatures.
For more information about Margaret E. Boyle, visit the Author Page.

Reviews

"The dish­es includ­ed in this spe­cial vol­ume reflect the ways our cul­ture and tradi­tions con­stant­ly adapt and evolve, trans­formed through con­tact with others."—Jewish Book Council

"If you’re an adventurous eater, these recipes will get you rethinking holiday menus as well as what you’re making for dinner tonight."—The Forward

"A thoughtful and mouthwatering representation of this hybrid cuisine."—J. The Jewish News of Northern California

"An enthralling insight into cooking in the extraordinarily mixed and vibrant Jewish Mexican community. This engaging book makes use of local produce and melds Ashkenazi, Sephardi, and Mizrahi styles with the flavors of Mexico."—Claudia Roden, food writer

"This is the book I have long been waiting for! With insight and knowledge, Ilan Stavans and Margaret Boyle show the way Jewish food travels around the world with its people. These delicious dishes weave together ingredients, traditions, and techniques and shine a light on what happens when people enrich each other's tables. Cheers to the incredible authors."—Pati Jinich, author of Treasures of the Mexican Table and host of the Emmy-nominated series Pati’s Mexican Table

"¡Oy güey! A fabulous compendium of memory, easy-to-follow recipes and visibility for La Comunidad that will find a welcoming home in kitchens of all religions and nationalities."—Gustavo Arellano