Iranian scholar introduces Safavid era recipes to English readers

TEHRAN,Aug.26(MNA) -- The Iranian scholar Mohammadreza Qanunparvar has recently translated a Safavid era cookbook into English. Entitled “Maddat ul-Hayat” (“The Material for Life”), the book was written by Nurollah Ashpazbashi, a court chef during the reign of the Safavid king, Shah Abbas (1571–1629). Qanunparvar said that he has followed the modern style being used in writing of cookbooks in translation of “Maddat ul-Hayat”. The U.S.-based Iranian scholar taught the Persian language at the University of Texas in the 2000s and has written several books in English including “In a Persian Mirror: Images of the West and Westerners in Contemporary Iranian Fiction” in 1993, “Translating the Garden” in 2002, and “Reading Chubak” in 2005. Iran’s Sorush Company published “Maddat ul-Hayat” in 1998 with the different title of “Cookery in the Safavid Period”. Qanunparvar is also author of “Persian Cuisine: Traditional, Regional, and Modern Foods”, which was published by the Mazda Publication in 2006.