Mother Tongue is the first book from Akiko Kurematsu; a project exploring generations of Japanese family and home cooking.

The book is inspired by her mother Kozue’s cookbook “My Mother’s Love", of her grandmother Fusae’s recipes. Written in 2020 during the global pandemic when she cooked and adapted her mother's recipes to the produce, ingredients, and tools that she could find abroad, she also updated the recipes for how this generation eats - more local, sustainable, and aware.

The book contains nostalgic childhood memories of meals with family, and around 50 recipes from how to cook perfectly fluffy rice in a pot, staples like miso-soup and salads, to stand-alone dishes like okonomiyaki and soba. Everything in the cookbook is made simply, without fancy equipment or ingredients.

An accessible introduction to Japanese home cooking, most recipes are vegetarian with vegan options, and apart from a few fish options Mother Tongue does not include recipes using meat.

Written by Akiko Kurematsu, photographed by Harry Were.

Softcover, 160 pages,16cm x 14cm
Printed and bound in Italy