Bath cookery teacher Simi Rezai-Ghassemi publishes new book, The Fermented Dairy of Central Asia

This book invites fermenters, home cooks, travellers, food lovers, and scholars alike to explore the enduring legacy of fermented dairy, its cultural significance, and its power to nourish both our bodies and our shared heritage.

Image: The Fermented Dairy of Central Asia by Simi Rezai-Ghassemi 

Accessible, sensory-rich and deeply personal, it is perfectly timed, combining the renewed focus on Central Asia with the rising enthusiasm for fermented cuisine.

By tracing the transformation of milk into fermented staples, it examines the cultural, nutritional, and historical significance of dairy in Central Asia. Traveling from the ​grasslands and yurts of the vast steppe to modern kitchens, readers experience how​ these foods have shaped identity, community, and culture. They uncover the meanings of both familiar​ and lesser-known fermented dairy names, explore connections between language, history,​ and taste, and immerse themselves in the textures, aromas, and flavours that bring these traditions to life.

"Full of information, stories, and good clear technical descriptions, this book is also very moving, with illuminating discussions of language, geography, identity, history, and culture, really big topics. Simi Rezai-Ghassemi bears witness to traditions that are gradually disappearing, while documenting them and explaining their rich context." - Sandor Ellix Katz. 

"Simi’s Fermented Dairy of Central Asia is an amazing insight into another world in the culinary universe. It is not only well researched and very well documented but also written with such feeling that I felt transported to Central Asia." - Ken Hom.

"A fascinating and enlightening look at a fundamental aspect of food culture. The author. Dr Rezai-Ghassemi combines academic rigour and intellectual curiosity with a storyteller's skill at creating an absorbing narrative, making this a very readable book." - Jenny Linford.

Dr. Simi Rezai-Ghassemi is an expert in Āzarbāijāni and Turkic foodways. A scholar and storyteller specialising in the foodways of Turkic Eurasia, she is fluent in the region's major languages and holds a PhD in Evolution. She combines ethnographic research with hands-on experience to reveal the stories of seasonal food traditions and their lasting influence on what we eat today. For the past 17 years, she has been teaching cookery and catering in Bath, running Simi's Kitchen and offering private catering in and around the city. She loves sharing her findings in her classes as much as in her work.