Raghenie Bhawanie signeert en laat u proeven uit 'Madame Jeanette'

From authentic Surinamese roti to peanut soup with kale.

Surinamese food is heavy, difficult and time-consuming? Not if Raghenie has her way. At Madame Jeanette she serves more than a hundred dishes, the vast majority of which feature vegetables. Think of noodles, pom, stew with the Hindustani spice mix masala, Surinamese brown beans with rice, chutney, pickles and mango pie. She also explains in this cookbook that food with spice does not always have to be spicy, named after the aromatic pepper that is loved throughout Suriname and far beyond.

To embrace Surinamese cuisine is to understand Surinamese cuisine; a melting pot with roots in Africa, Indonesia, India and China. In addition to recipes, Madame Jeanette is packed with family stories, special encounters and an extensive report of a culinary study trip to Suriname. With photography that jumps off the pages and a good dose of humor, Raghenie offers a glimpse into traditional Surinamese cuisine and then gives it a modern twist with Dutch pearls such as beetroot, pointed cabbage and Brussels sprouts and with Surinamese vegetables such as long beans, sopropo and okra.

Raghenie Bhawanie

Raghenie Bhawanie was born and raised in the Frisian capital, where she received a full Hindustani upbringing by her Surinamese mother. She only ate apple sauce at the age of eight, but was spoon-fed Surinamese dishes with Javanese, Creole, Indian and Chinese influences. She viewed that culinary melting pot with renewed interest in Madame Jeanette. Raghenie is a communications strategist, culinary columnist and recipe developer and lives and works in Amsterdam.