On April 6, the book launch of the Chinese edition “Macaense Cuisine - Origins and Evolution”, by António Pacheco Jorge da Silva, took place at the Tap Seac Sports Pavilion, part of the Spring Book Fair program this year.
The book, initially published by the International Institute of Macau and made and translated now with the support of the Macau Foundation, had been printed in English in 2016, with a second edition in 2019. It was distinguished in that same year, with the World Award “Gourmand World Cookbook”, during the event of the International Book Fair in Macau, at the Venetian Macao.
The book describes the origins and history of Macanese cuisine, fundamentally what was left of the recipes and memories of the Macanese families, which marked place before and after the Second World War, a moment that marked the emigration of Macanese people around the world, today considered the Macanese diaspora. With the intention of reaching out to the vast Chinese-based community in Macau, this edition was recently published by Macao Daily News, with the translation by Professor Ieong Chi Chau, former director of a local school, and Ms. Iong In Lei.
This book is fully illustrated and with the original content of the previous mentioned editions, it leaves a rich legacy of the history and recipes of Macanese cuisine, now considered as Intangible Cultural Heritage of Macau and in a current context where Macau is also a Creative City of Gastronomy by UNESCO. It is recalled that, recently, a digital database of Macanese recipes was prepared by the Macao Government Tourism Office.
During the event, the presentations were made in Cantonese by the IIM's Secretary General, Rufino Ramos, and by the book's translator, professor Ieong Chi Chau.
The book is available on IIM Bookshop website and also at that fair, until 11 April.
