With culinary nationalism defined as a process in flux, as opposed to the limited concept of national cuisine, the contributors of this book call for explicit critical comparisons of cases of culinary nationalism among Asian regions, with the intention of recognizing patterns of modern culinary development. As a result, the formation of modern cuisine is revealed to be a process that takes place around the world, in different forms and periods, and not exclusive to current Eurocentric models. Key themes include the historical legacies of imperialism/colonialism, nationalism, the Cold War, and global capitalism in Asian cuisines; internal culinary boundaries between genders, ethnicities, social classes, religious groups, and perceived traditions/modernities; and global contexts of Asian cuisines as both nationalist and internationalist enterprises, and "Asia" itself as a vibrant culinary imaginary. The book, which includes a foreword from Krishnendu Ray and an afterword from James L. Watson, sets out a fresh agenda for thinking about future food studies scholarship. This timely, thought-provoking collection deftly interrogates the relationships between foodways, modern nation-making, and the construction of class and ethnic boundaries within and across nations. Geographically spanning East, Southeast, and South Asia, and chronologically reaching from the late 19th century to contemporary times, this excellent volume allow us to comprehend how food-related practices and values have been key arenas for asserting and contesting identities in modern nation-states throughout Asia.