From KCRW, I'm Evan Kliman and you're listening to good food.

As a cook, who's also an avid cookbook reader,

I never tire of learning how place and culture work together to create cuisine.

One country that hasn't had a lot of representation

in English language cookbooks is Afghanistan.

So I was pleased to spend time with the best of Afghan cooking.

Zarguna Adele has written a book filled with personal stories and detailed recipes

that take us into a kitchen where even the virtual

aromas are seductive. I'm thrilled to have her on good food.

Hi Zargona! Hi, hello thank you. I'm so happy to welcome you to good food. Where in

Afghanistan did you grow up? I grew up in Kabul, the capital city, and there when I graduated from Kabul University, I got a scholarship

to study at the American University of Beirut, Lebanon, where I got my master's degree in education. And then what happened,

the Soviets invaded Afghanistan and I couldn't go back. So I came to the United States and right now I live in

Marina Valley, California.

Were you allowed to help cook when you were a child?

Not really. No. Like when I was like a seven year old I was always curious to see the

inside of the pot and try to stir it and that wasn't safe. My mom wouldn't like it.

And I couldn't reach the pot because I was too little. So and my mom insisted that I could not stir any pot until I was tall enough to be able to see the inside of it.

And later on when I grew up tall enough to see the inside of the pot. This was when my passion for

cooking ignited because then I could see I was so delighted I was so happy.

I love that. You know in all the years that I've talked to people about their childhood memories and being next to their mom in the kitchen, I have never heard that said that you have to be tall enough to look inside the pot, but of course it makes perfect sense.

Yeah, yeah.

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