The Underrated Cuisines Worth Seeking Out Right Now

The food world has its celebrity cuisines — Japanese, Italian, French, Mexican — and then it has everything else. "Everything else" contains some of the most extraordinary food on earth.

Georgian (Caucasus)

Khachapuri — a boat-shaped bread filled with molten cheese and a raw egg yolk stirred in tableside — is the best bread-based dish I have ever eaten. Georgian cuisine is defined by walnut sauces, pomegranate, tarragon, and the wine tradition that may be the oldest in the world.

Oaxacan Mexican

The seven moles — negro, rojo, coloradito, amarillo, verde, chichilo, manchamanteles — each require multiple chili varieties, chocolate, seeds, and hours of work. Mezcal is the indigenous spirit of Oaxaca, with a complexity that makes standard tequila feel one-dimensional.

Ethiopian

Ethiopian food is communal by design: injera topped with a constellation of wats and tibs. The act of sharing food — gursha, the practice of hand-feeding someone as a gesture of affection — is built into the eating ritual.

Sri Lankan

Distinct from South Indian cooking, Sri Lankan cuisine uses coconut milk, pandan leaf, and goraka in ways that create a unique flavor profile. The best argument for traveling is still, in the end, the food you've never tasted.