Najmieh Batmanglij facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Najmieh Batmanglij
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Batmanglij with a dish of tahdig rice (2016)
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Najmieh Khalili
1947 (age 78–79) Tehran, Imperial Iran
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| Occupation | chef, cookbook author, publisher |
| Style | Persian cooking |
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Najmieh Batmanglij is an Iranian-American chef and cookbook author. She is famous for sharing the delicious flavors of Persian cuisine with the world. Born in Tehran, Iran, she had to leave her home in 1979. She moved to France and then to the United States.
As she traveled, she built a successful career writing cookbooks. Her first book, Ma Cuisine d’Iran, was published in French in 1984. Since then, she has written eight more cookbooks in English. These include Food of Life (1986) and Cooking in Iran (2018). In 2018, The Washington Post called her "the grande dame of Iranian Cooking." This means she is a very important and respected figure in Iranian cooking.
Contents
About Najmieh Batmanglij
Najmieh Khalili was born in 1947 in Tehran, Imperial Iran. She studied education in the United States. After finishing her studies, she returned to Iran. However, she was forced to leave in 1979 because of the Iranian Revolution.
She and her husband became refugees and moved to Vence, France. There, Najmieh studied cooking. She began turning her mother's recipes into French. This led to her first cookbook, Ma Cuisine d'Iran.
Moving to the United States
In the 1980s, Batmanglij moved to Washington, DC permanently. She wrote her well-known book, Food of Life, there. When she moved to the United States, it was around the time of the Iran hostage crisis. Because of this, she faced some unfair treatment.
To publish her work, she and her husband, Mohammad, started their own publishing company. This allowed her to share her recipes and culture.
Her Cookbooks and Teaching
After Food of Life became a success, Batmanglij wrote five more cookbooks. One of them, From Persia to Napa: Wine at the Persian Table, won a Gourmand Cookbook Award. Another book, Silk Road Cooking: A Vegetarian Journey, was praised by The New York Times. They said it was like reading "a good novel."
Batmanglij has appeared on The Martha Stewart Show. She also teaches people how to cook Persian food. She is a member of Les Dames d'Escoffier. This is a group of professional women who work in the food, wine, and hospitality industries.
For many years, she has taught at The Culinary Institute of America at Greystone. This is a famous cooking school in Napa Valley, California. She teaches there during the World of Flavors Conference.
Sharing Iranian Culture
Batmanglij has been a leader in introducing Iranian food to American readers. Before her, only a few people had written about it. She even wrote a cookbook for children called Happy Nowruz. This book shares recipes and also explains customs and traditions of Nowruz. Nowruz is the Persian New Year.
Awards and Recognition
Najmieh Batmanglij has received many honors for her work.
On February 15, 2013, chef Yotam Ottolenghi wrote about her in The Guardian newspaper. He said Food of Life was "one of the most exciting cookbooks" he had seen. He highly recommended it to anyone interested in Iran's food culture.
On April 6, 2016, she was a special guest chef. She cooked at First Lady Michelle Obama's White House Nowruz Celebration and Lunch.
Julia Moskin of The New York Times wrote about Batmanglij's cookbook, Cooking in Iran. She called it "Magisterial" and an "engrossing visual feast of modern Iran." She also chose it as one of the best cookbooks of Fall 2018.
Publishers Weekly described Cooking in Iran as "A massive and thorough guide to Persian cuisine." They called it "terrific, reverential, and accessible."
On November 5, 2018, The Washington Post published an article about her. It was written by James Beard Award winning writer Mayukh Sen. The headline said, "Najmieh Batmanglij is the grande dame of Iranian cooking. It’s time you knew her name."
On November 16, 2021, a book called Taste Makers: Seven Immigrant Women Who Revolutionized Food in America was published. Najmieh Batmanglij was one of the women featured in this book.
Family Life
Najmieh Batmanglij is married to Mohammad Batmanglij, who is a book publisher.
They have two sons:
- Zal Batmanglij is a film director and screenwriter. He has worked on projects like Sound of My Voice, The East, and The OA.
- Rostam Batmanglij is a record producer, musician, singer, songwriter, and composer. He was a founding member of the indie-pop band Vampire Weekend.
