I have no idea how Sunset Wok Cookbook found its way into my collection.   My best guess is that it came bundled with a wok – probably the one I received at my wedding.  I own the coveted Special Edition Fourteenth Printing, which seems to be a promotional paperback run “compliments of Crisco Oil”, which fits well with the “free gift” hypothesis.   That wok is long since gone, replaced by a heartier carbon steel upgrade, but the cookbook lives on.

Sunset is a century-old lifestyle magazine in the mold of Better Homes and Gardens or Good Housekeeping, but with a regional emphasis on upscale “West Coast Living”.  My mother and grandmother were both long-time subscribers.   Like most print media, Sunset’s popularity is waning – the LA Times has documented their struggles here – but when my cookbook was printed in 1989 Sunset was still the self-proclaimed “Nordstrom of magazines” with over a million subscribers.

The cookbook is a mass-market specialty paperback, similar to ‘special edition’ magazines you might find at the checkout stand.  My edition is a handsome eight pages with quality paper and a dozen or so full-color photos on glossy stock.  The photos are wonderfully outdated, with shaggy-haired men cooking with their turtlenecked wives. Consistent with Sunset’s lifestyle concept, this is not just a collection of recipes – it’s an introduction to the wok cooking lifestyle.     There’s a short introduction to wok cookery:  how to select a wok, what kind of accessories you might need, and an overview different wok cooking techniques.  

The recipes reflect a time when authentic ingredients weren’t widely available.   “Asian” food meant chopped celery and canned water chestnuts.  Sunset commendably avoids fried chow mein noodles but also avoids certain Asian ingredients that are grocery store staples these days.  Sherry is used instead of rice wine, tofu is treated as an exotic health food, and a Vietnamese salad is flavored without fish sauce.    The only hard-to-source ingredient might be fermented black beans, which in my neck of the woods still require a trip to the Asian market.  They also reflect a time when the American palate wasn’t accustomed to Asian cuisine – there are wok-focused recipes for everything from sloppy joes to tacos to English fish and chips.

And yet despite being an obvious product of its era, the Sunset Wok Cookbook is still both practical and fun.  Some folks might bristle at the thought of Americanized Asian cuisine, but the constraints of the mid-80s American kitchen keep things interesting.  There are some brilliant improvisations, such as the pillowy thousand-layer buns (think Peking Duck) made from refrigerator biscuits, and time capsule oddities like the molded chicken-tofu custard. 

The recipe that perhaps best showcases the spirit of Sunset Wok Cook Book is  Curried Carrot Croquettes.   It fits with the vaguely Asian theme of the cook book (India’s in Asia, yo) and still maintains the mid-80s suburban dinner party vibe of the rest of the book.  It’s also a great way to use a wok for something other than stir frying, though a dutch oven or hefty cast iron pan will do the job just fine.

And it’s an amazing recipe – the croquettes are light and crispy on the outside but stay custardy-creamy in the middle.  They double as both side dish and sauce.  These are an absolute hit in my family.  They require some advance prep and don’t always turn out the prettiest, but there’s a lot of margin for error.   I’ve found that fully submerging the croquettes in oil provides marginally better results, but they’ll be equally delicious if you pan fray them in about an inch of oil.

I’ve stolen a few cues from the Indian samosa to jazz this up a little.  I’ve amped up the curry powder and added some heat and thrown in some frozen peas.  This maintains the creamy all-American goodness of the original but adds some vibrancy and texture.  I’ve also traded in the wok for my trusty cast iron, but a wok will certainly do the trick.  With a side of basmati rice this is a hearty vegetarian meal on its own, but also works well as a side dish with my fragrant cumin-spiced pork loin roast.  The interior filling is creamy enough to double as a sauce for the roast, or whatever proteins/sides you choose to serve with it.

The Sunset Wok Cook Book has multiple listings at Amazon.  You may purchase a copy via my Amazon Affiliate links here:  https://amzn.to/3mxFxBG or here: https://amzn.to/2I4dcnJ