Travel the World in Your Kitchen

Mark Kurlansky and his daughter Talia, who have a weekly tradition of cooking meals from different cultures around the world.

Mark Kurlansky has spent over 30 years of traveling the world writing about food, culture, and history. He and his daughter Talia Kurlansky tell us about their weekly cooking ritual—they spin a globe, and wherever Talia’s finger lands becomes the theme of that night's dinner. Many recipes are drawn from techniques Kurlansky learned as a professional chef and from many years of talking to chefs, producers, and household cooks around the world. They write about their tradition in their book International Night: A Father and Daughter Cook Their Way Around the World, which includes recipes, stories, and pen-and-ink drawings.