The Flavour Thesaurus: More Flavours by Niki Segnit is an inventive culinary guide through the world of flavour pairings, with emphasis on plant-led recipes and ideas for cooks. This is the sequel to The Flavour Thesaurus which became a worldwide bestseller in 2011. This follow-up has allowed Segnit to further tap into a world of mainly vegetarian-based ingredients that she wasn’t able to explore previously.

Segnit has written another cookbook that opens the readers mind to different flavour combinations and gets them thinking outside of the traditional context of cooking. In turn, this book should get you thinking about cooking with less meat, how to minimise wastage in the kitchen and how to creatively use everyday vegetables, spices, grains, dairy and fruit.

One of the books strengths lies in its accessibility. Segnit’s explanations are approachable and down to earth, making it easy for readers to understand the principles behind successful flavour combinations.

Her book is broken into flavour themes including Sour Fruity, Caramel Roasted, Herbal, Spicy Woody, Dark Green and Sweet Starchy just to name a few. The cross-referencing feature in this book highlights related flavour pairings that encourage the reader to experiment with different combinations of the same ingredient.

I personally love the ability to deep dive into ingredients like miso, garlic, mushroom or tomato and come away with anywhere between 10 to 30 different combinations I can mix and match. It opens the mind to the endless possibilities of the humble ingredients we cook with and is an educational read.

Reviewed by Robert Bromhead

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Niki Segnit is the award-winning author of The Flavour Thesaurus, Lateral Cooking, and now The Flavour Thesaurus: More Flavours, published in May 2023. Translated into fourteen languages, The Flavour Thesaurus has been called “a masterpiece” (Sunday Times), “superb” (Guardian) and “the smartest, most original compendium I’ve come across in donkey’s years” (Regina Schrambling). Niki’s columns and reviews have appeared in the Times, the Guardian and the TLS, and she broadcasts regularly for BBC Radio 4.

Visit Niki Segnit’s website