The Best of Clay Pot Cooking

Since Roman times, cultures around the world have been enchanted with cooking in clay and the juicy, full flavors it preserves in any dish. Today's healthminded cooks will find an added bonus: Clay pot cooking is practically foolproof and often fat-free. In The Best of Clay Pot Cooking, Dana Jacobi takes a fresh look at cooking in clay pots and comes up with over 40 easy and delectable recipes, from soups and stews to breads and desserts. Some reflect traditional uses for the clay pot, such as roasting poultry and beef; others are inventive new dishes drawing on ethnic influences -- Chicken Tagine with Green Olives & Preserved Lemon, for example, or Salmon with Ginger & Lime, Shrimp & Ham Jambalaya, Black & White Chipotle Chili, Moroccan Semolina Bread, or Banana Bread Pudding. And all these are prepared with minimum fuss, maximum flavor, and enormous nutritional value.

By Dana Jacobi with photographs by Elizabeth Watt.