10 Best Chinese Cookbooks UK 2024 | Ken Hom, Gok Wan and More

We absolutely adore this book, mainly as it is the most beginner-friendly introduction to Chinese cuisine. Dunlop carefully explains the flavours of any potentially unfamiliar ingredients and even provides product appearances, as well as plentiful pictures and easy-to-understand descriptions. 

Inspired by the home cooking of southern China, the recipes in this book are comforting, delicious and utilise the perfect balance of vegetables, meat and fish. And with Dunlop's passion for Sichuan cuisine, you'll find several recipes with her favourite spicy dishes, too! 

You've got no excuses for not cooking Chinese food at home as each recipe in this book only requires 5 ingredients! What's better is that most of the ingredients used can be easily found at your local supermarket, so you'll never have to worry about not being able to make specific dishes. 

The book covers a variety of dishes including soups, starters and even desserts, with some recipes that only take 20 minutes to prepare and cook. You'll be able to cook an impressive three-course Chinese meal in no time at all! 

Whether you want a quick street food snack or you fancy challenging yourself to make a Chinese feast, this book has it all covered. From recipes for the ever-popular lobster noodles to Wans' family favourites, dim sum and one-pot meals, there's a dish in here to suit any occasion or mood. 

You will be inspired and motivated by Gok's passion for cooking as soon as you open the book, plus, you'll be blown away by the variety of flavours and dishes. You'll probably challenge yourself to make all the recipes at least once, and we don't blame you!

With a successful Youtube channel, The Dumpling Sisters continue to spread the comfort and warmth of Cantonese homestyle dishes. You mustn't miss out on the potsticker recipe as readers commented it's the most successful they've ever made – it was even featured on Jamie Oliver's channel.

The sisters are also keen on educating the western audience about Chinese culture and provide tips for perfecting your chopstick skills, so you can impress both your Chinese and other friends. It also includes a sharing menu planner so you can prepare a Cantonese feast next time you host a dinner party! 

Are you craving wontons or having a wild thought of combining red curry with dumplings? Well, this book will blow your mind. With both a Chinese and a Mauritian background, Pang is eager to bring you on a journey of making both traditional and fusion dumplings!

The easy-to-follow instructions will turn you into a dumpling pro in no time. What's more, this book also offers other recipes like BBQ pork steamed bao and spicy Dan Dan noodles – so you can choose whether to impress your mates with your delicious dumplings or those Instafamous baos!

Whether you're vegetarian or simply want to reduce your meat consumption, this book will show that you can still enjoy your favourite Chinese dishes! Love hoisin duck? You can easily make hoisin glazed tempeh thanks to Kwoklyn Wan, as well as more delights like mock char sui, summer rolls and Kung Pow cauliflower. 

Some of you may also be glad to know that you can veganise the dishes without having to make any extra effort at all. Just remember that vegetarian recipes don't necessarily equate to healthier meals, if that's what you're after – you'll find quite a number of deep-fried dishes in this book.

A cuisine with Cantonese roots and Western influence, Pang will demonstrate to you the definition of Hong Kong food with recipes including famous street food, snacks, desserts and more that are unique to this tiny yet fully equipped city. You'll be surprised by both the familiar western flavours and the not-so-Chinese taste!

There are some perfectly beginner-friendly recipes, but you'll also find dishes that require patience or specific cookware to master those authentic Hong Kong flavours. But if you want to learn and experience the vibrant and exciting life of Hong Kong through food, this is the one for you. 

You'll have a chance to explore the various climates, geography and even culinary history while learning to make dishes from all regions of China with this book. From dishes popular in big cities to unusual local delicacies, be prepared to be charmed by the author's passion and absorbing photography. 

With a total of 300 recipes and 624 pages, this book is a Chinese culinary encyclopedia that might be slightly excessive for those who just want to enjoy the occasional Chinese meal at home.

As the pioneer who brought Chinese cookery into the lives of many British families, you're bound to see success with Hom's recipes. You'll be surprised to find him turning a few simple ingredients into authentically flavoured Chinese dishes – great news for those Western home kitchens just starting to cook Chinese food!

While this book includes some photography, each dish is not necessarily accompanied by an image, so you'll have to do extra research if you're unfamiliar with some of the recipes or techniques. 

Written by the owner of New York's most iconic dim sum restaurant (which has been going for 100 years!), Tang is dedicated to showing you the secrets of how to make the most authentic Cantonese dim sum including baos and noodles. It's also a book where you'll learn about the different stories of Chinese immigrants settling in New York City in the past century. 

This might not be the easiest Chinese cookbook for beginners as it will require patience and some skill, but as long you follow the instructions, you'll find everyone in the house enjoying your dim sun and asking for more.