Boustany: A Celebration of Vegetables from my Palestine

by Sami Tamimi 

Celebrate the diverse cuisine of Palestine with more than 100 plant-based and vegetarian recipes for festive meals, breads, desserts, and more, from the award-winning co-author of Jerusalem, Falastin.

“With recipes rooted in nostalgia and memory, Sami Tamimi brings his heritage to life, plate by plate.”—Andy Baraghani, James Beard award–winning author of The Cook You Want to Be

A NEW YORK TIMES AND BON APPÉTIT BEST COOKBOOK OF THE YEAR

The first solo cookbook from Sami Tamimi, Boustany is anhomage to Palestinian food and culture. "Boustany" translates from Arabic as "my garden," which reflects Sami's signature style and approach to food: colorful and simple vegetable- and grain-led dishes. Bold, inspiring and ever-evolving, Boustany picks up where Falastin left off, with flavor-packed vegetable-based dishes, including pantry items, midweek easy meals and special to-be-shared dishes. It’s an approach that’s strongly present in Palestinian cuisine, from building your mooneh, or pantry, by preserving seasonal vegetables and herbs to lining the dinner table with a variety of salads and condiments reflective of a love for fresh and vibrant food.

This is how Sami grew up eating—platters of eggplant and chickpeas with a spicy green lemon sauce and fragrant lentil fatteh that always tasted better the next day. These are the 100 vegan and vegetarian dishes he has known, loved, cooked, and shared with friends, including:

• Braised eggs with pita bread, tomatoes & za’atar
• Smoky chickpeas with cilantro tahini
• Crushed butter beans with orange, makdous & mint
• Fried halloumi with purslane salad
• Couscous fritters with preserved lemon yogurt
• Jerusalem sesame bread
• Fenugreek & onion buns
• Pan-baked tahini, halva & coffee brownie
• Labneh & pomegranate ice cream

Boustany is filled with vibrant and lively photographs of everyday meals that invite you into Sami's home. With recipes for breads, dinner parties, fermenting your own vegetables, and more, Sami shares the cultural fabric of Palestine through his eyes.

The Author

Sami Tamimi was born and raised in Jerusalem and was immersed in food from childhood. He started his career as commis-chef in a Jerusalem hotel and worked his way up, through many restaurants and ethnic traditions, to become head chef of Lilith, one of the top restaurants in Tel Aviv in the 1990's. Sami moved to London in 1997 and worked at Baker and Spice as head chef, where he set up a traiteur section with a rich Middle-Eastern and Mediterranean spread. In 2002 he partnered with Noam Bar and Yotam Ottolenghi to set up Ottolenghi in Notting Hill. The company now has four stores and two restaurants, NOPI and ROVI, all in central London. In his position as the executive head chef, Sami is involved in developing and nurturing young kitchen talents and creating new dishes and innovative menus. 

Publisher: Ten Speed Press, 2025
Paperback, 410 pages
ISBN: 978-1984863188