At the 30th Gourmand Awards in Portugal on June 21, 2025, Niloufer Mavalvala’s cookbook The World of Parsi Cooking: Food Across Borders was selected as the Best of the Best in 30 years in the category of Food Culture.
As noted the citation from Edouard Cointreau, president and founder of the Gourmand Awards: "Thank you, Niloufer Mavalvala, for sharing your rich culinary heritage with the world. As a lifelong learner, passionate teacher, and proud Zarathushti, your deep love for food, family, and culture shines through every page. From your early baking days in Karachi to the books we all admire, your journey — rooted in tradition, driven by curiosity, and enriched by love — is both inspiring and deeply human. Your work is a heartfelt bridge between generations, cultures and communities.”
Above, from l: Niloufer Mavalvala and Elise Racicot; award winning books
"I have four cookbooks. Three of them are self-published which have won a total of eight Gourmand Awards,” Mavalvala informed Parsiana. While The World of Parsi Cooking earned its fourth Gourmand Award, yet another book by Mavalvala, The Route to Parsi Cooking: From Pars to India and Beyond was named Best Series in the World. This is the second Gourmand Award for this cookbook. The accompanying citation gave the book credit for offering "a heartfelt tribute to a culinary tradition deeply rooted in Zoroastrian values of community and respect for food. This collection is a significant contribution to preserving and celebrating Parsi culinary heritage.”
The website of Gourmand Awards www.cookbookfair.com states, "The Gourmand World Cookbook Awards were founded in 1995. Every year, they honor the best food and wine books, printed or digital, paid or free, private or public, trade published or self published, big or small, with an equal chance for everyone… The Gourmand Awards have been compared to the ‘Oscars’ for film. They are inspired by the Olympic Games and their spirit.”
Under the banner of the Cascais World Food Summit from June 19 to 21, the Awards were presented at the Estoril Congress Centre. The three-day program also included Mavalvala’s 10-minute slide presentation on "Preserving the past for the future” that was attended by the Ambassador of Canada to Portugal, Elise Racicot who was very "appreciative of my work,” said the author.
"Food customs and traditions provide us a sense of belonging. Parsis are believed to have ‘an occasion for every food and a food for every occasion.’ We must celebrate these foods by learning more about them to preserve them for future generations and prevent them from disappearing. Following our reet reevaj (customs and traditions) is a choice, but preserving them is a must,” Mavalvala shared her thoughts at the Awards function when promoting her books that can be ordered by sending an email to theroutetoparsicooking@gmail.com.