Modern Cape Malay Cooking

The love language of the Cape Malays is food, and author Cariema Isaacs says tramakasie (thank you) every day that she gets to express herself in this way.Modern Cape Malay Cooking, Cariema’s fourth cookbook, is a celebration of food and feasting, providing a contemporary view of Cape Malay cuisine and simple home cooking. The recipes showcase a blend of flavours that redefine the Cape Malay palate through modern ingredients and global influences. Though traditional Cape Malay cuisine and recipes have stood the test of time, adaptations have given rise to a culinary fusion. This is especially thanks to the Cape Malay millennial generation that craves popular dishes from the East and West, such as a comforting pasta or a quick stir-fry, but with a Cape Malay twist – this means it must be spicy, it must be saucy and it must be packed with flavour! In Modern Cape Malay Cooking, Cariema shares the recipes and influences that have inspired these modern dishes, with simple ingredients and vibrant aromatics for anyone who is curious and courageous enough to create flavour.

Cariema Isaacs is a South African food writer, chef and entrepreneur based in Dubai, where she attained her culinary diploma at the International Centre for Culinary Arts. A marketing graduate, Cariema currently works for a multinational company, and she maintains that it’s the ever-changing landscape of this environment that fuels her culinary creativity and love for writing. She is an active blogger on social media and has already published three cookbooks. Her first, Cooking for My Father in My Cape Malay Kitchen (2016) is a heartfelt tribute to her late father, inspired by her recollections of growing up in Bo-Kaap, the Cape Malay Quarter of Cape Town, South Africa. This was followed by Spice Odyssey (2019), which was nominated for the Gourmand Culinary Awards 2020 in the category of Spices. Cariema went on to write Curried (2021), which she joyfully attributes to her insatiable love of curries. Cariema teams up with her husband and ardent photographer, Turhaan Samodien, who she credits for bringing Modern Cape Malay Cooking to life through his evocative photography. They reside in Dubai with their sons Tawfeeq and Tashreeq.