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When we wanted super approachable recipes that produced dinner in a flash, or inspiration from genre-defying new voices in food, these cookbooks were the ones we returned to most out of everything published in 2022. Add them to your own shelves or pick one up as the perfect stocking-stuffer this Christmas.

Cook by Karen Martini, $100

Budding cooks, students about to move out of home, or well-versed aficionados will all get something out of this door-stopper of a book. Martini has generously opened up her toolbox and shared her expertise over 912 pages. She covers Chinese cooking to Greek, crowd-pleasers like fish pie through to dinner party centrepieces, with more technical recipes for those who like to push themselves. Sauces, bread, pastry, what to do with that vegetable that always leaves you stumped – all of it is here in Australia's newest cookery bible.

• Recipes from Cook
• Karen Martini's recipes for Good Food

First, Cream the Butter and Sugar by Emelia Jackson, $69.99

Even a lukewarm interest in baking will be cranked up to full-bore after a flick through these pages. In between the shots of glorious-looking baked goods – sky-high layer cakes, ebony-hued chocolate tart, crumbly golden pastry, glossy eclairs – Jackson, a MasterChef-famous baker, guides you with step-by-step photos and a few baking cheats. You'll learn how to quickly get fridge-cold eggs to room temperature, or how to stop domed tops on your cakes. If there's a baker in your life who doesn't already own this, press it into their hands this December.

Mezcla by Ixta Belfrage, $55

A pupil of Yotam Ottolenghi's, this London-based author has a palate that embraces big, bold flavours, especially those of her mother's native Brazil. Chilli, plantain, citrus and dende oil are dotted throughout, but there is also familiar comfort, such as a big tray of bubbling eggplant parmigiana. More than half the recipes are devoted to vegetables, a big win for us and the planet, but dishes such as pineapple pizza salsa and Black Forest crumpets save anything from feeling too earnest. For full-throttle fun, flip to Mezcla.

• Recipes from Mezcla

Dinner by Nagi Maehashi, $44.99

The simple title is a giveaway: this is the book that will give you a meal at the end of the day, with as little fuss as possible. The surprise comes when you realise how much flavour blogger-turned-bestseller Maehashi packs into such simple recipes. How do you get "crazy crispy" chicken with no oil? What supermarket shelf item could transform your bolognese? The Good Food regular is full of tips and no-fuss explanations that will build your kitchen confidence. But it's still everyday food for everyday cooks: shepherd's pie, spinach and ricotta cannelloni, a huge plate of nachos. Dinner, done.

• Recipes from Dinner
• RecipeTin Eats' recipes for Good Food

Salamati by Hamed Allahyari and Dani Valent, $45

Few cookbooks come with this kind of compelling story: fleeing his homeland, Iranian refugee Hamed Allahyari has displayed pure grit to get to where he is today, running Persian cafe and restaurant, SalamaTea, in Melbourne's west. Now, he shares the recipes close to his heart with an even wider audience. This vibrantly photographed book expands your knowledge and repertoire beyond Persian benchmarks like fesenjan, with plenty of vegetarian twists provided for contemporary Australian cooks and dozens of memories shared along the way.

Chinese-ish by Rosheen Kaul and Joanna Hu, $39.99

If you loved being invited over to your friends' houses after school, less for the games and more to see what their family ate, this book will scratch that same itch. Full of idiosyncratic chapter titles and the life experiences of its authors, who grew up between many cultures, Chinese-ish is also full of authoritative advice on cooking stocks and noodles, using a wok and making your own dumplings (there's a six-page guide). If Chinese food has ever daunted you, this book will show you it can actually be your best friend, even on busy weeknights and especially with these two in your corner.

• Recipes from Chinese-ish
• More recipes from Rosheen Kaul