Plagiarism accusations against Brooke Bellamy, first brought to light by Nagi Maehashi on her website RecipeTin Eats, continue to emerge. 

While this is the latest cookbook-related scandal to rock the culinary world, there is a long history of plagiarism, fraud and just plain misfortune that has plagued cookbook publishing – from Belle Gibson’s cancer story and Pete Evans’ bone broth formula, to lesser known stories. Here are some others that have made the headlines.

Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly was released 25 years ago into a culinary world vastly different to today’s. With his signature semi-gonzo style, all sarcasm, wit and profanity, Anthony Bourdain lifted the pot lid on the world of the professional restaurant kitchen.

That world, if we were to believe Bourdain, was full of ne’er-do-well line cooks, shady produce purveyors, drug-fuelled hi-jinks and ego. Lots of ego. It was also full of people who loved food, who recognised, as Bourdain put it, that “food had power”. 

Summer holidays are traditionally a time of celebration and feasting. So, as our minds turn to food and our stomachs rumble, why not read about it?

These five food titles, ranging from a chef’s memoir to a foodie crime novel, offer a smorgasbord of perspectives on the ways food shapes our culture, our identities, our environment and our selves. All of them will leave you hungry!

Our food choices are being influenced every day. On social media platforms such as YouTube, Instagram and TikTok, food and eating consistently appear on lists of trending topics.

Yet food influencing is not a new trend.

Australia’s first food influencer appeared in the pages of Australia’s most popular women’s magazine nearly 70 years ago.

Australians were involved in competitive cookery long before MasterChef.

The earliest of Australia’s cooking competitions were at agricultural shows. In 1910, the Royal Agricultural Society of NSW hosted its first competition for “perishable foods” at the Royal Easter Show.

Along with pastry and pickles, competitors could also be judged on their calf’s foot jelly.

Over the past few weeks, Australians have become used to seeing empty shelves in their local supermarkets. Coronavirus-induced panic buying has quickly depleted stocks of products like pasta, rice and flour.

​Looking at Australia’s most widely read women’s magazine, the Australian Women’s Weekly, shows us how Australians have dealt with food shortages in the past: with creativity, ingenuity and good humour.

OzWords is the newsletter of the Australian National Dictionary Centre, a joint venture between the Australian National University and Oxford University Press