This book is a homage to the diverse, exciting cuisine that is Lebanese cooking. The capital of Lebanon, Beruit, has long been a melting pot of Mediterranean and Middle Eastern food. Hisham Assaad perfectly demonstrates this in Bayrut.

Assaad tells us that at the heart of Lebanese cooking is nafas. Directly translated it means ‘a breath’, but Assaad describes it as cooking with one’s essence or soul. It is what he learned from his mother and you can feel this within the pages of this book.

Broken into well-organised chapters, the book moves through from breakfast to brunch, salads and sides, mains to desserts and on to drinks. There are sections dedicated to street food and the Sunday feast, which I found particularly enticing. I enjoyed the zucchini and dill fritters, roasted fish with a spicy sauce, and, of course, tabbouleh, and pumpkin kibbeh. A personal favourite is the pearl couscous and caraway stew with chicken. Another highlight is the Armenian spicy sausages. So flavoursome. The desserts and drinks are interesting, from a semolina and coconut cake, stuffed pancakes and salep milk drink.

A downside is that it’s not clear the time the recipes will take to make, so it’s not easy to discover whether it’s appropriate for your timeframe. A few of the recipes can also be complicated, with some ingredients being possibly harder to find. Here, alternative suggestions could have been useful.

Bayrut is a vibrant and tempting love letter to Lebanese and nafas cooking. It is jam-packed with fresh, delicious recipes, made even more appealing by the accompanying stunning photos.

Reviewed by Amber Sawyer