Contemporary cookbooks--at their very best--are more than just collections of recipes. They are windows into the kitchens and the worlds of others. When these kitchens are at home in distant lands; then a cookbook becomes a unique show-and-tell communication. We can read about the food in its cultural context, and we can reproduce it in our own homes. Huma Siddiqui's Jasmine in her Hair is a culinary bridge between American and Pakistani cultures.

Each of the six main sections contains foolproof recipes preceded by a graceful little narrative about life in Pakistan: For example in Section Two, day-to-day life in the Pakistan of Siddiqui's girlhood gracefully unwinds. We learn about the importance of spices and their correct application (to enhance rather than conceal foods' true flavors); the bonding tradition where close female friends exchange their scarves; the number of servants if the family was rich (hers was, very); and the street sellers whose wares ranged from glass bangles, to bananas (sold by the dozen, not the pound), to roasted corn, and fresh eggs (the test: if the egg floats--not fresh). This section's recipes for meat follow: including uncommon versions of Chicken Tikka, Lamb Korma and deep-fried Shami Kebab, or aromatic ground beef patties. I serve these between buns for one helluva hamburger. (apologies to Ms. Siddiqui who, in Home Sweet Home or Section One, preceding her extraordinary appetizer recipes, gently chides the modern decline in standards of communication evidenced by the prevalence of "swear words" in day-to-day communication.)

Section Three or Meatless Days discusses, without sensationalism, the experience of living through two wars with India. "We grew up in times of turmoil so we didn't quite experience fear," writes the author describing how their house was painted black to prevent it from shining in the moonlight and how the family would run out and sit in trenches dug in front of the house during air raids. And "for many years after the wars because of the shortage of cattle, we used to have two meatless days." The ten Vegetable Dishes that follow are a testimony to the triumph of the spirit and substance of great cooking over adversity: Shahi Dal, a savory, satisfying Lentil Curry, may be served with rice or as a soup; Aloo Sabzi, or Spicy Potatoes, transform this bland tuber into a explosion of flavor.

Ms Siddiqui gives recipes for and weaves stories around rice and bread dishes, the ubiquitous chutneys used as accompaniments, the fragrant chai (teas) or soothing mango lassi, and all the foods traditional to Islamic religious holidays and the multiple parties that surround weddings. And when the home cook recreates these dishes, the experience is enriched by having learned--ever so painlessly--a great deal about the culture of Pakistan.