Join food expert, television producer, and bestselling author Padma Lakshmi in a trip across the United States in Padma’s All American. Five years in the making, this kaleidoscopic work compiles dozens of recipes from immigrant and Indigenous communities, as well as many from Lakshmi’s own family, and shows us what really comprises American cuisine.
Tickets with “& Book” include a copy of Padma’s All American, shipped to your door by our bookstore partner.
This book is a love letter.
It is a love letter to the people who create and evolve American cuisine every day.
It is a love letter to the foods that give America its vibrant palate.
When Padma Lakshmi arrived in New York City in the 1970s, she witnessed firsthand the cuisines of the immigrant communities around her: uniquely their own and yet quintessentially American. Here, in this very personal book—the result of five years of traveling and tasting, listening and observing for her show Taste the Nation—Lakshmi compiles dozens of recipes from the immigrant and Indigenous communities she visits, as well as many from her own family, showing us what really comprises American cuisine.
For Lakshmi, food is a lens. Through it, we can explore the influence of an eclectic array of cultures—and come to see, clearly, who we are and how we eat as a nation. Padma’s All American gives us a kaleidoscopic view of the vast range of incredible dishes she delighted in tasting on her travels, from coast to coast, and everywhere in-between.
From Indian coconut rice and Peruvian tamales with chicken to Afghani dumplings with leeks and scallions—from Oaxacan mushroom tacos to a strawberry, cardamom and cream cake that will be your new favorite celebration treat—Padma’s All American is filled with mouth-watering recipes, adapted here for the home cook—along with profiles and stories from the people who inspired the dishes. Padma’s All American is a joyful book—a reflection of who we truly are as a nation, from one of our most essential culinarians.
Padma Lakshmi is an Emmy-nominated food expert, television producer, and New York Times bestselling author. She is the creator of the critically-acclaimed Hulu series Taste the Nation, and served as host and executive producer of Bravo’s Top Chef. She is co-founder of the Endometriosis Foundation of America and an ACLU Artist Ambassador for immigrants’ rights and women’s rights. She is the author of Easy Exotic, Tangy Tart Hot & Sweet, The Encyclopedia of Spices & Herbs, New York Times best-selling memoir Love, Loss, and What We Ate, and the best-selling children’s book Tomatoes for Neela.
Colleen Echohawk, our Community Curated Series director and host for the evening, is a storyteller and changemaker encouraging hope-filled conversations that spark imagination, uplift justice, and inspire joyful transformation.
