For as long as I can remember, food has been more than just sustenance—it has been a story, a memory, a connection to the past. I grew up surrounded by the aromas and flavors of a cuisine that straddled continents, shaped by migration, trade, and adaptation. My passion for cooking, history, and cultural exploration has led me to embark on a journey to document and preserve a nearly forgotten culinary heritage: the food of the Baghdadi Jewish diaspora in Southeast Asia.
The Journey That Inspired This Project
The Baghdadi Jewish community, originating from Iraq, traveled far beyond the lands of Mesopotamia. By the 18th and 19th centuries, they had established themselves along the trade routes of the British East India Company, settling in India, Burma, Singapore, and Hong Kong. These merchant families, many under the vast influence of the Sassoon empire, carried with them their spices, traditions, and culinary knowledge. But as they settled in these new lands, they did not cook in isolation—their food transformed, borrowing from the flavors of their new homes, resulting in a unique fusion of Middle Eastern, Indian, Burmese, and Cantonese influences.
This project, Beyond Babylon, explores that journey through the lens of food. It is an extension of my cookbook project, Nexus: From Basra to Bengal, but with a broader perspective, tracing the Baghdadi Jewish culinary footprint beyond India, across the entirety of British East Asia.
Why This Matters
Culinary history is an overlooked but powerful storyteller. It reveals migration patterns, trade connections, and the ways in which people adapt to new environments while maintaining their identity. The Baghdadi Jewish cuisine of Southeast Asia is a rich, layered tapestry of flavors that deserves to be remembered, celebrated, and cooked once again.
As the years pass, many of these dishes—meticulously prepared by our grandmothers, served on Shabbat tables, and shared within tight-knit communities—risk being lost. My goal is to document them, reconstruct their origins, and make them accessible to anyone interested in history, culture, and, of course, great food.
What You Can Expect
Through this Substack, I’ll be sharing:
Recipes – Authentic, adapted, and reimagined dishes from Singapore, Hong Kong, Burma, and India.
History & Migration Stories – How trade, empire, and displacement shaped Baghdadi Jewish cuisine.
Culinary Techniques & Traditions – Unique methods, ingredients, and customs passed down through generations.
Personal Reflections – My own journey of discovery, cooking, and connecting with this heritage.
Join the Journey
This is more than a collection of recipes—it’s an exploration of a lost world, a culinary sojourn through time and place. I invite you to join me on this journey, to cook, to learn, and to rediscover the flavors that once connected Babylon to Bengal, and beyond.
Subscribe, follow along, and let’s keep this history alive—one dish at a time.